Vodafone, Verizon want to harmonize on 4G

Vodafone CEO Arun Sarin and Verizon CEO Ivan Seidenberg announced at the Goldman Sachs investor conference this week that both carriers are planning on using the same technology for their 4G networks. The likely winner is the LTE (Long Term Evolution) standard, which is the proposed 4G migration path for WCDMA/HSDPA networks. Verizon Wireless uses CDMA EV-DO technology, which is incompatible with HSDPA and doesn't give the two much operational efficiency. Since LTE and UMB (Ultra Mobile Broadband) technology, the proposed 4G migration path for CDMA EV-DO, both require a forklift upgrade, there's an opportunity for the two companies to harmonize their technology. Vodafone and Verizon say they are also looking at WiMAX. According to an article in Telephony, Verizon says it has not solidly committed to deploying the same technology as Vodafone.

"It makes complete sense for us to go from HSDPA to LTE and it makes sense for Verizon to go from EV-DO to LTE." Sarin said. The CEO said it would be another three or four years before LTE could be deployed.

Will the move quiet those investors who keep calling for Vodafone to sell its 45-percent stake in Verizon? 

For more on Verizon Wireless and LTE:
- read this article from Unstrung
- check out this report from Telephony

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