ZTE, KPN partner for LTE trials

Chinese equipment vendor ZTE and Dutch telecoms company KPN have announced a joint development programme for the application of Long Term Evolution (LTE) technology in Germany and Belgium. The pair have scheduled a field trial programme for 2011 to investigate the capabilities of ZTE’s commercial equipment, giving KPN the flexibility to speedily upgrade its network equipment to LTE in the future. Under the agreement, ZTE has started a programme to help transform KPN’s networks in Germany (E-Plus) and Belgium (KPN Group Belgium) over a three-year period using ZTE’s Software Defined Radio (SDR) technology to provide users with HSPA+ services, offering download speeds of up to 21.6Mbps. ‘ZTE is a telecommunications equipment market challenger in Europe, very much in line with E-Plus’ and KPN Group Belgium’s development strategy,’ said KPN Mobile International CTO Erik Hoving, adding: ‘This agreement further strengthens our cooperation in the telecommunications market. It has strategic significance for both KPN and ZTE in Europe, and also in terms of each company’s international market position.’