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Singapore operator M1 said deals with Nokia will deliver city’s first HetNet by mid-2017, and one of the world’s first NB-IoT networks.
Singapore-based fixed and mobile operator M1 announced plans to deploy the country’s first Heterogeneous Network (HetNet) as part of a partnership with Nokia that will also see the companies separately develop a nationwide narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT) network.
The operator said the HetNet, which integrates large and small cells with wireless radio technologies including cellular and Wi-Fi, will help it to meet growing demand for data services in Singapore by boosting the coverage and capacity of its infrastructure.
M1 said it will take a phased approach to deploying the HetNet. The operator plans to overlay Nokia’s Flexi Zone small cells and Wi-Fi equipment at high-traffic hotspots throughout Singapore, which it will integrate with its existing 4G network by utilising LTE-WiFi Aggregation (LWA) technology. The combination should enable the operator to deliver downloads speeds of 1 Gbps and higher by 2017.
The operator said HetNet trials conducted at several locations earlier this year had delivered a 60% improvement in download speeds to subscribers, and also showed that the combination of macro and small cells was an effective means of managing network traffic.
M1 CEO Karen Kooi said that the HetNet deployment “is also an integral part of our 5G network roadmap, the infrastructure on which we will build an ubiquitous on-demand, high-performance 5G service for our customers”.
In a separate announcement, M1 revealed it is also working with Nokia to rollout a nationwide NB-IoT network in Singapore by mid-2017.
The operator stated that the network will be Nokia’s first large-scale NB-IoT deployment with an operator partner in Asia, and will also be one of the first such networks launched globally.
Kooi explained that NB-IoT “is the key to connecting the coming wave of smart devices,” and that M1’s partnership with Nokia “strengthens our ability to support Singapore’s IoT eco-system, to drive the innovative and effective new fleet management, smart metering, public safety and other smart solutions”.
