TeliaSonera’s Estonian cellular subsidiary Eesti Mobiiltelefon (EMT) has launched Long Term Evolution Advanced (LTE-A) services, which will provide high speed wireless services with download rates up to a theoretical peak of 300Mbps. The initial launch was made in the area of Kiisa in Harju County, around 20km from the capital Tallinn as, according to Tiit Tammiste, the head of EMT’s Technology Division: ‘This is where mobile traffic is heaviest because of the large number of private houses that are not connected to a broadband network.’ Coverage will soon be expanded to other areas. Access is currently only available using the Huawei E5186 LTE-A-enabled router which costs EUR249 (USD328). ‘The number of devices with LTE-A support will keep growing, and LTE Advanced phones will also become available soon,’ Tammiste said.
Separately, EMT has revealed that almost one third of its mobile data traffic is now carried over its 4G LTE network. EMT launched commercial LTE services in the city centres of Tallinn, Tartu and Kohila in December 2010 and now claims around 98% territorial coverage for its combined 800MHz/1800MHz/2600MHz 4G systems.