Telstra demonstrated LTE-Advanced Carrier Aggregation, combining 20 MHz bandwidth within the 1800 MHz band and 20 MHz bandwidth within the 2600 MHz band, to achieve downlink speeds of up to 300 Mbps. The demonstration used Ericsson’s commercially released LTE Advanced software.
Telstra plans to deploy the technology on 700 MHz spectrum once that has been freed up by the Digital Dividend.
“The trials we conducted overnight demonstrate the ability to aggregate two channels of 20 MHz spectrum on our commercial network. While the download speeds we achieved of 300 Mbps are very impressive, for Telstra the main outcome is that we will be able to build out the capacity in our network to manage the future wireless data needs of our customers and continue to deliver them the most reliable network speeds and experience,” said Mike Wright, Telstra Executive Director Networks.
Thomas Norén, Head of Product Area Radio at Ericsson, said: “We are pleased to show with Telstra the network readiness of LTE Advanced Carrier Aggregation beyond 20 MHz. The delivery of a superior mobile broadband experience remains key as smart device users depend more upon mobile broadband for everyday life. We also look forward to continuing our work with global chipset and handset manufacturers as the Carrier Aggregation ecosystem evolves further.”
