China Mobile to promote coexistence of FDD/TDD-LTE

While China Mobile is establishing TD-LTE (Time Division-Long Term Evolution) trial networks around China, the company will still promote the coexistence of FDD (Frequency Division Duplexing)-LTE and TDD (Time Division Duplexing)-LTE to facilitate use of dual-mode multi-band LTE terminal devices around the world, company CEO Li Yue has indicated.

China Mobile has established TD-LTE trial networks of 20,000 base stations in total in more than 10 major cities in China, and will expand the deployment to 100 cities in 2013, with 200,000 base stations in total to cover an estimated 30-35% of the population in China, Li said at a TDD 4G technology development and cooperation summit jointly held by China Mobile and Taiwan government-sponsored Industrial Technology Research Institute in Taipei on January 17.

China Mobile expects TD-LTE CPU (customer premises equipment) to be available at CNY1,000 (US$160) in 2015, Li said.

China Mobile’s Hong Kong branch began coexisting TD/FDD-LTE operation in Hong Kong in December 2012, with frequency bands of 2330-2360MHz used for TD-LTE operation and of 2555-2570MHz and 2675-2690MHz for FDD-LTE operation, according to industry sources in Taiwan.