AT&T Finalizes Buy of Add'l Spectrum for 4G Network
Dec 28, 2011, 4:27 PM by Rich Brome
updated Dec 28, 2011, 5:04 PM
AT&T this week announced that it has formally completed its purchase of a block of 700 MHz spectrum from Qualcomm. The spectrum covers 300 million people and cost AT&T $1.9 billion. The FCC approved the sale on December 22. AT&T plans to use the spectrum to augment its 4G LTE network. Because the spectrum is unpaired, it is difficult to use for two-way services. Therefore AT&T will use it for downlink (download) traffic only, in combination with its two-way LTE network already being deployed. Although this should improve the capacity and performance of AT&T's 4G network, this configuration will be unique to AT&T, requiring phones even more unique from those of Verizon and other carriers. The spectrum was previously used for Qualcomm's unsuccessful MediaFLO service that broadcast live television directly to phones.
Comments
No messages
