Bouygues Telecom CEO Olivier Roussat said the company will offer download speeds up to 42Mbps on its 3G network, a ten-fold improvement on its current maximum rates.
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The improvement will be made using DC-HSPA+ technology that will be overlaid on Bouygues Telecom's existing base stations in Paris, Lyon and Marseille ready for use by the end of this year. The company will then roll out the service to French ski resorts during February 2012 and all other major cities by the middle of 2012.
"Within 18 months, two-thirds of the data traffic will be carried by this new technology," said Roussat, according to the French 01net news service.
However, while Roussat said this upgrade is part of the company's transition to LTE, he warned of possible delays to the commercial availability of the new high-speed network.
"The technology part is easy to implement," Roussat said. "In contrast, obtaining permits to install new antennas, including in Paris, may take some time."
While the company has shunned the use of femtocells to improve 3G mobile data coverage, the executive is more upbeat about their use with its LTE networks when the first macro base stations are to be switched during the second half of next year "For LTE, the femtocell will allow us to improve coverage in buildings significantly," Roussat said.
For more:
- see this 01net article (translated via Google Translate)
- see this Telegeography article
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