GSM – LTE Migration: Deployment Issues forOperators in Developing Countries

The emergence of new applications such as mobile TV and increase in data usage motivated the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) to introduce Long Term Evolution (LTE) in 2009 as the latest standard in the mobile network technology. GSM standard has been a remarkably successful 2G technology with large number of subscribers and installed base of infrastructures of above 86% market share. It is a circuit-switched system that has the ability to deliver 64 kbps to 120 Mbps of data rates and divides each 200 kHz channel into eight 25 kHz time-slots. It operates majorly either at 900MHz or 1800MHz frequency band and uses narrowband Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) technique for transmitting signals. The main advantage of using GSM standard is the ability to allow customers to roam and switch carriers without having to replace their cell phones. LTE on the other hand is a 4G Network that provides higher data rate for subscribers at the same time reducing the cost per bit for service providers and much higher overall capacity to deliver more throughputs and reduced latency. It was designed to support only packet switched services to ensure minimal interference, reduce number of network elements by a simplified architecture and deployable in the spectrum bandwidth ranges from 1.25MHz–20MHz. Due to the variation in the frequency used in different regions, LTE is limited in its state of roaming with operators using different bands. In view of this, it is unlikely that LTE devices will work on other networks than its home network; except the users have phones with multi-band capabilities which can roam freely across the globe. Another challenge that LTE faces is Battery life of the devices. The large number of applications on LTE devices results in 5 -20% increase in power consumption compared to older phones.The use of a powerful battery with very long battery life after each charge is capable of extending talk time of the devices but ultimately increases device cost. This paper discusses the issues affecting the network wide deployment of LTE in developing countries and proffers solution to some of the critical issues.