Docomo to offer VoLTE roaming in Korea
Japan’s NTT Docomo will launch voice-over-LTE (VoLTE) roaming service in South Korea on 7 October in cooperation with KT.
The country’s largest operator said it will be Japan’s first mobile operator to offer a VoLTE outbound roaming service. Nine smartphones in its winter/spring lineup are compatible with the new service, which will be offered between Japan and South Korea and within South Korea.
Docomo said its customers have made VoLTE calls from more than 10 million smartphones in Japan.
China’s e-tailers take larger share of smartphone market
The share of smartphones sold in China through e-commerce platforms, or e-tailers, increased from 14 per cent to 21 per cent in Q2 from a year ago.
The number of smartphones sold through e-tailers expanded 58 per cent year-on-year in Q2, according to IDC. With lower smartphone subsidies, IDC said there is greater opportunity in the open market for vendors, which are focused on e-tailers as a channel.
Xiaomi, which puts a large emphasis on selling via its website, signed a deal with JD to open an online store on its website in May. Huawei, which sold the most phones through e-tailers in Q2, also has an online store with the country’s three major e-tailers — Alibaba’s Tmall, JD and Suning Yigou.
XL selects Ericsson for 4G rollout
XL Axiata signed a three-year contract with Ericsson to deploy a 4G network and upgrade its existing 2G and 3G networks in Jakarta and Central Java.
The agreement covers hardware, software and services.
XL, the country’s fourth largest operator with 45 million connections, launched 4G service earlier in the year and is expected to have 1.2 million 4G connections at the end of Q3.
Cambodian ISP picks AlcaLu for LTE support
Cambodian ISP Chuan Wei has selected Alcatel-Lucent to deploy LTE technologies to supplement its broadband network as it expands across the country.
Chuan Wei aims to to offer nationwide high-speed connectivity by the middle of next year to meet the growing demand from its enterprise customers and introduce consumer services.
Alcatel-Lucent will supply the LTE-FDD RAN, IP mobile core, backhaul connectivity, microwave packet radio and online charging system.
The deployment will begin in the most densely populated cities, including Phnom Penh and the tourist destinations of Siem Reap region and the coastal resort of Sihanoukville. The rollout will continue in the cities of Poipet and Bavet, on the borders with Thailand and Vietnam respectively as well as other major cities across the country.
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