3 Indonesia completed a trial of Nokia’s dynamic spectrum sharing (DSS) technology covering its 3G and LTE networks, paving the way for a nationwide deployment of the vendor’s product.

In a statement Nokia noted the trials are significant because the “migration to 4G” will become “one of the hottest topics for operators” in Indonesia as demand for 3G services begins to wane.

During the trial in Makassar, capital of one the country’s main islands Sulawesi, 3 extended availability of its spectrum in the 1.8MHz band 18 per cent. Nokia explained a key benefit of DSS is the efficiency of responding to changing demands for each generation.

Desmond Cheung, 3 CTO, said increasing its subscriber base with limited spectrum is a major challenge, but noted DSS opened the door to a “seamless transition from 3G to 4G” while enabling the operator to meet “ever increasing data demands”.

Last week, Nokia unveiled a version of DSS for 5G which is compatible with a wide variety of legacy radio technologies. It said the DSS capabilities are delivered via a software upgrade on its AirScale radio platform, with no new equipment needed.