KT was selected in 2015 by the government to construct and operate the network targeting the 2018 Winter Olympics
Korean telecom operator KT completed what it claims to be the world’s first public safety long-term evolution network trial, the Korean Times reports. The country’s second-largest telecom operator said the trial network had been constructed with a view toward preparing for the 2018 Winter Olympics, which is set to take place in PyeongChang, South Korea.
“As we have successfully realized the world’s first trial PS-LTE network, we have not only secured a foundation for the government’s drive to establish a nationwide public safety network, but have also demonstrated our leading technology to the world,” said Park Yoon-young, EVP at KT. “We will tap into advanced technologies of the domestic telecom industry and institute a full-scale nationwide PS-LTE network starting in the latter half of this year and will proceed to launch the technology service globally.”
In October, the South Korean government selected KT to build and operate the trial PS-LTE network in locations where the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics are to be held, including Gangneung and Jeongseon in Gangwon Province. During the trial phase of the network, KT deployed wireless base stations in the PyeongChang area, established operation centers designed to take control in possible disasters and provided special handsets designed for communication in the PS-LTE network.
NTT DoCoMo grants patent license to Huawei
In other APAC news, NTT DoCoMo said it granted a patent license covering “standard-essential patents” for its wireless communication technologies to Huawei. The Japanese operator had previously granted the patent licenses to more than 10 companies and plans to grant such licenses to other companies in the future.
NTT DoCoMo claims to currently possess more than 5,300 standard-essential patents for W-CDMA, LTE and LTE-Advanced standards. NTT DoCoMo said it plans to deploy “5G” technology by 2020.