Alan Hadden, VP, Research

Global mobile Suppliers Association (GSA)

www.gsacom.com

1
Global mobile Suppliers Association

www.gsacom.com

1"

4G/LTE
deployments:UPDATE
status worldwide
ARKET
& TECHNOLOGY
LTE Market Status
GSAs Evolution to LTE report APRIL 9, 2015

646 operators investing in LTE in 181 countries

Source GSA: Evolution to LTE report 9 April 2015

607 operator commitments in 176 countries

39 pre-commitment trials in 5 more countries

393 commercially launched LTE networks

in 138 countries
incl. 54 LTE TDD (TD-LTE) launched in 34 countries

Mobile traffic
outlook
(

GSA forecasts 460 commercially launched

LTE networks by end 2015

635 million LTE subscriptions

globally: Q1 2015

2,919 LTE user devices announced

3,253 LTE user

devices
announced
(April
2015)
Source: Status of the Ecosystem report 19 June 2015

LTE subs growth globally

exceeded 3G in Q3, Q4 14 and
Q1 15

497 million LTE subscriptions globally: Q4 2014

GSA www.gsacom.com

Global mobile traffic (monthly ExaBytes)

Cumulative commercially launched LTE networks growth

GSA forecasts over 1 billion LTE

subs by end 2015

LTE is the fastest developing mobile system

technology ever

10x

35

30

Data: mobile PCs, tablets

growth in
176 operators
(45%) commercially launched 9x increase in traffic by 2020
and mobile routers
smartphone
Data:
smartphones
LTE
networks
using
1800
MHz
(LTE1800)
25

traffic between
2014 and 2020

Voice

20

15

90 operators in 47 countries investing in

VoLTE deployments, studies or trials
16 operators commercially launched VoLTE-HD voice
in 7 countries

10

LTE-Advanced is a key industry trend

55% growth
data traffic
Q1traffic
14 Q1
15
Totalinmobile
data
is expected

5 116

LTE operators are investing in LTE-Advanced

deployments, studies or trials in 55 countries

642014
commercially launched LTE-A
networks in 39 countries
2017
2020
Source Ericsson Mobility Report June 2015

GSAs definition of commercial launch:

The phase in which a public telecommunications operator

is carrying commercial traffic on its LTE network, or offers
Global
mobile
to provide
publicSuppliers
service. OnlyAssociation
licensed operators with

80% of mobile data

to rise
at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR)
of around 45 percent
Frequency bands in commercial use for LTE service
Mobile data traffic growth is due to both the rising
number of smartphone subscriptions and increasing
data consumption per subscriber. This will result
in a nine-fold increase in traffic by the end of 2020.
The growth in data traffic between
2" 2019 and 2020
willwww.gsacom.com
be greater than the total sum of all mobile

Migration to LTE-Advanced systems

LTE(Advanced"deployment"is"the"major"trend"

116 LTE operators (30%) worldwide are investing in

LTE-Advanced carrier aggregation technology at
various stages of deployment
64 LTE-Advanced systems are commercially
launched in 39 countries
52 (over 80%) commercially launched Category 6
systems in 20 countries, with 30 systems supporting
the max. 300 Mbps theoretical peak DL speed
A further 38 Category 6 LTE-Advanced systems are
in deployment, trial or test phase which means 90
Category 6 systems are commercially launched, in
deployment, trial phase or being tested, i.e. almost
25% of all commercially launched LTE networks

Cat 6: over 150 Mbps up to 300 Mbps peak downlink

(50 Mbps uplink)

30

300 Mbps systems launched

Cat 9: over 300 Mbps up to 450 Mbps peak downlink

(50 Mbps uplink

13

Cat 9 and above systems in

deployment, trial, or testing

Source GSA: Evolution to LTE report (9 April 2015) and LTE-Advanced Carrier Aggregation Deployments: peak speeds (21 April 2015)

Global mobile Suppliers Association

www.gsacom.com

3"

LTE user devices

3,253 LTE User Devices

LTE device frequency bands

GSA monitors and researches worldwide mobile

broadband developments and publishes facts,
statistics and trends. Over 400 LTE networks are
commercially launched globally (GSA: Evolution to
LTE report). GSA forecasts this figure will rise to
460 networks by end 2015. There were 635 million
LTE subscriptions globally by March 31, 2015.

LTE networks are commercially operating in over 20

bands (see chart Spectrum used in LTE
networks (FDD and TDD deployments) via the
link on http://www.gsacom.com

3,253 LTE user devices including frequency and

operator variants are announced by 305 suppliers
according to GSAs research. 1,364 new devices
have been announced since July 2014 i.e. 72%
growth. The number of suppliers grew 81% in the
same period (July 2014 = 168 suppliers).

LTE-Advanced is taking hold

1,132 devices support Cat 4
(max 150 Mbps downlink)

= 35% of all LTE devices

AND a 63% increase since Feb 2015
Includes 108 Cat 6 terminals
3,253 LTE user devices - form factors

(151
2015
300 GSA
Mbps
max
downlink)
June
Global
mobile
Suppliers Association
The

smartphone

is

the

largest

LTE

device

1,783 smartphones
operator and
AND acategory.
4x increase
since including
Feb 2015

frequency variants are announced, giving an

improved 54.8% share of all LTE device types. LTE
tablets and personal hotspots are also fast-growing.

Global mobile Suppliers Association

The table below confirms the bands that are most

supported by the devices ecosystem. Note that
several devices are multiband and/or multimode.
LTE FDD
1800 MHz band 3
2600 MHz band 7
2100 MHz band 1
800 MHz band 20
AWS band 4
800/1800/2600 tri-band
850 MHz band 5
900 MHz band 8
700 MHz bands 12 or 17
1900 MHz band 2
700 MHz band 13
1900 MHz band 25
APT700 band 28
700 MHz band 12

1,543 devices
1,381 devices
1,185 devices
812 devices
727 devices
739 devices
684 devices
668 devices
650 devices
535 devices
457 devices
194 devices
139 devices
106 devices

LTE TDD
2300 MHz band 40
2600 MHz band 38
1900 MHz band 39
2600 MHz band 41
3500 MHz band 42/43

869 devices
752 devices
630 devices
625 devices
32 devices

90% of all LTE devices can operate on a 3G

technology (2,327 on HSPA systems)
219 VoLTE capable devices including 198
smartphones have been announced

1,210 LTE TDD devices

i.e. 37.2% of all LTE devices

June 2015 GSA Global mobile Suppliers

Association
Source
GSA: Status of the LTE Ecosystem report 19 June 2015
Note 1: Manufacturers have not declared operating frequencies
or fallback modes for some products

4"

Note 2: Certain products are carrier or country specific and are

www.gsacom.com
therefore not available in all markets

Mobile HD voice (W-AMR)

132 mobile operators have commercially

launched HD voice service in 81 countries
16 use VoLTE to enable HD voice calling on
LTE networks

Breakdown"by"network"type"
HD voice is commercially launched on:
120 HSPA networks
14 GSM networks
16 LTE networks
Note: some operators offer HD voice service
using more than one RAN
(MVNOs are excluded)

GSA forecasts many more commercial launches of

VoLTE enabling HD voice service throughout 2015

5
Global mobile Suppliers Association

www.gsacom.com

5"

LTE Broadcast
LTE"Broadcast""why"now?"
High industry traction
Interest/investments in eMBMS being made
now by multiple Tier 1 MNOs and others
Wide availability of superfast MBB enabled by
LTE and LTE-Advanced
eMBMS is part of the 3GPP LTE standard
Changing customer behaviour
Appetite for video, huge growth
Improved user device design /
capabilities / performance
by 2020 80% of mobile data traffic will be
from smartphones Ericsson, June 2015

Delivers network efficiencies, improves

user experience
Multiple use cases e.g.: broadcasting at
stadium and other large-scale public
events, efficient wide area TV
distribution (free-to-air or pay TV),
digital signage, digital media updates,
apps updates, use by emergency
services & public safety operations, etc.

Global mobile Suppliers Association

New GSA report in development (October 2015 release)

!leading operator and vendor input
!encourage development of the ecosystem
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www.gsacom.com

6"

Mid-2015 market conclusions / trends

LTE is mainstream
Migration to LTE-Advanced is well under way
HD voice and VoLTE rollouts picking up
Growing interest in eMBMS LTE Broadcast
LTE technology is leading mobile subs growth

LTE expanding reach

New market segments, enterprise, public safety/CC etc.

Deployments in unlicensed spectrum (LTE-U, LAA)
Low power and bandwidth for Cellular IoT / M2M
Small cells for enterprise and home use cases
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Global mobile Suppliers Association

www.gsacom.com

7"

of new vertical segments. Separate radio networks were previously requi

to provide public safety services, terrestrial TV or machine-to-machine w
a single radio solution, LTE, will be able to deliver all those use cases. LTE
also enable new uses like vehicle communication. LTE, and later 5G, will b
mainstream connectivity solution. Therefore, network performance, cove
and reliability need to match the requirements of all these future uses.
The use
of 3G and of
4G mobile
networks has
increased tremendously
in recent years
Evolution
broadband
will
The new uses and corresponding LTE technologies are summarized in Fig
and the rapid evolution of mobile broadband will continue with 5G technology.
continue
with
5G
technology
The enhanced radio capabilities are summarized in Figure 2. This paper
The commercial 5G era is expected to start by 2020. 5G will bring enhanced
gives an overview of the new features with LTE-Advanced evolution in 3G
radio capabilities and enable new uses and applications beyond traditional
Releases 12 to 14.
The commercial
of 5G
smartphones,
tablets andera
laptops.
Manyisofexpected
these uses can also be provided
on top of LTE-Advanced
networks
in
order
to
pave
the
way
to
the
5G
era.
to start by 2020

The"Journey"to"5G"

Introduction

5G will bring
enhanced radio
capabilities and
enable
new uses
LTE-M
of5G
new technical
vertical segments.
Separate radio networks
were previously required Internet of things = Machine-to-Machine
standardisation
activities
to provide public safety services, terrestrial TV or machine-to-machine while
and Apps
will start early 2016
a single radio solution, LTE, will be able to deliver all those use cases. LTE will
Public safety LTE for Public Safety
also enable new uses like vehicle communication. LTE, and later 5G, will be the
mainstream connectivity solution. Therefore, network performance, coverage
LTE-D
Proximity services
= Device-to-Device
and reliability need
to
match
the
requirements
of
all
these
future
uses.
Much of this can be provided on evolved LTE-Advanced
systems

The new uses and corresponding LTE technologies are summarized in Figure 1.
LTE-B
4.5G inthough
thispaper
is not an Terrestrial
officialTVname!
= Broadcast = eMBMS
The enhanced radio capabilitiesi.e.
are summarized
Figure 2. This
gives an overview of the new features with LTE-Advanced evolution in 3GPP
communication LTE for V2X (Vehicle-to-X) communication
Paves the wayVehicle
to 5G
Releases 12 to 14.
New uses on top of LTE-A networks
Internet of things
Public safety
Proximity services
Terrestrial TV

Connectivity for public

transport

LTE-M
= Machine-to-Machine

Figure 1. New uses on top of LTE-Advanced networks

LTE for Public Safety

Enhanced radio capabilities with LTE-A

Enhanced radio
capabilities

LTE-D
= Device-to-Device
LTE-B
= Broadcast = eMBMS

Denser networks

Vehicle communication

LTE for V2X (Vehicle-to-X) communication

Connectivity for public

transport

LTE for Backhauling Wi-Fi access points

Figure 1. New uses on top of LTE-Advanced networks

Global mobile Suppliers Association

LTE for Backhauling Wi-Fi access points

www.gsacom.com

More spectrum

Beyond 1 Gbps data rate and low latency

Small cell optimization and
dual connectivity
LTE on Unlicensed Band (LTE-U)
License Assisted Access (LAA)

Figure 2. Enhanced radio capabilities with LTE-Advanced

Graphics: Nokia Networks

Page 3

8"

4.5G"("a"bridge"between"current"4G"and"future"5G"

Performance targets for 4.5G

More capacity

Lower latency

> 1 Gbps

10 ms

Massive
connections

100K per cell

Suggested timelines

Graphic: Huawei

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Global mobile Suppliers Association

www.gsacom.com

9"

Key"deliverables"in"Release"13"
LTE in unlicensed spectrum

Opportunistic use of unlicensed spectrum is an important complement to meet growing traffic

demand. Licensed-Assisted Access will give operators the option to make use of unlicensed
spectrum with a unified network, offering potential operational cost saving, improved spectral
efficiency and a better user experience.
Focus is aggregation of a primary cell, operating in licensed spectrum to deliver critical information
and guaranteed QoS, with a secondary cell, operating in unlicensed spectrum to opportunistically
boost data rate. A key objective is to ensure fair coexistence between LTE LAA and Wi-Fi.

LTE CA enhancements

Expansion from 5 component carriers (per Release 10) to 32. Also useful for LAA case.

LTE enhancements for MTC

Definition of a new lower complexity UE category for the IoT market.

Enhancements for D2D

Support for more advanced proximity services for public safety and consumer use cases

Antenna, MIMO enhancements

Elevation beamforming and high-order MIMO

Enhanced multi-user
transmission techniques

To increase spectral efficiency

Indoor positioning

Enhancements to current positioning methods or new methods

Single-cell Point-to-Multipoint

eMBMS was developed to efficiently deliver multicast services over areas typically
spanning multiple cells. There could be applications that benefit from supporting
multicast services over a single cell. 3GPP will determine any potential benefits and
solutions of SC-PTM operation based on the LTE downlink shared channel

Source: 3GPP

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Global mobile Suppliers Association

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10"

3GPP"branding"of"Release"13"onwards"

Process was decided in April 2015 at PCG #34 meeting

! PCG #34 confirmed need for a new LTE branding marker for Release 13 onwards
! Proposals to be submitted by July 1, 2015
! 2 months open discussion
! Selection process
! Decision to be taken at PCG #35 meeting (October 2015)

GSA is a Market Representation Partner of 3GPP and a

member of its PCG (Project Co-ordination Group)
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Global mobile Suppliers Association

www.gsacom.com

11"

Visit the GSA website for free reports, information papers

and presentations on LTE: networks, devices, evolution,
spectrum, LTE Broadcast, M2M, LTE-U/LAA, etc.
Plus market snapshots on:
APT700
VoLTE
LTE TDD (TD-LTE)
LTE-Advanced
LTE1800

www.gsacom.com

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Global mobile Suppliers Association

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12"