O2 to trial 3G femtocell technology

gallery

Mobile phone network operator O2 has announced plans to trial femtocell technology in an effort to improve 3G mobile phone coverage inside buildings in marginal coverage areas.

O2 is working with Japanese electronics group NEC for the trial.

A femtocell is a small, low-power indoor base station for 3G mobile phone networks that enables operators to improve indoor mobile coverage at a substantially lower cost than the alternative of adding more cell towers.

The devices are plugged into a broadband line, like a wireless access point or router would be, and allow users to make calls or use data services with their regular 3G mobile phones.

Calls made through the femtocell could, in theory, be priced lower to encourage consumers to use their mobile phones instead of their fixed line.

O2 has started an initial the initial period of testing in the UK and will roll the trial out to around 500 users across the country in the summer if successful. A commercial launch could then take place by early 2009.

"Our Apple iPhone is already driving unheard-of levels of mobile internet usage, and the introduction of flat-rate data tariffs is expected to increase this further," Vivek Dev, chief operating officer of O2 Europe said.

"Both of these place huge capacity demands on our networks, and because so much of that usage is at home, femtocells coupled with DSL (broadband) could provide an alternative capacity resource."

In a report last year provided by NEC, ABI Research forecast the market for femtocell equipment could grow to more than $4 billion (£2 billion) by 2012.

Email to a friend

Print this page