Krishna Chetty, MTN SA

The evolution to next-generation wireless technology long-term evolution (LTE) is in full force, and SA’s operators are allocating increasingly more resources to develop their networks and try keep up with the global shift.

Vodacom, which was first to the table with an LTE offering in October 2012, is going to divulge more on its LTE plans later this month, at the company’s full-year results.

In the meantime, Vodacom spokesperson Richard Boorman notes LTE usage is steadily increasing, as more LTE-capable devices enter the market.

Vodacom commercially launched its LTE 1 800MHz service on 10 October 2012 with 70 base stations in Johannesburg. The operator currently has around 900 LTE base stations.

MTN, which followed with its LTE launch about a month after its red rival, says it has continued rolling out LTE in most areas where re-farming 1 800MHz spectrum is possible.

Krishna Chetty, GM of radio planning and optimisation at MTN SA, says the operator’s LTE network covers over three million people, and coverage is still growing. He says MTN has a few hundred thousand subscribers provisioned on its LTE network.

The speeds achievable on the network, says Chetty, are up to 73Mbps on the downlink and up to 36Mbps on the uplink.

Telkom Mobile’s LTE service was commercially launched last year, on 21 April. The operator currently has close to 1 000 integrated LTE sites. Coverage is concentrated in the metros of Johannesburg, Pretoria, Cape Town and Durban.

Cell C is deploying 2.1GHz LTE. On 19 December 2012, a pre-commercial trial service for selected heavy data users began in Cape Town, Durban, Johannesburg and Pretoria.