• A unique combination of FDD-LTE bands 1800 and 2100 MHz yielded up to 150 Mbps speed

• Will help Zain KSA further boost its network performance while lowering costs

Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia - 22 June 2015

Nokia Networks and Zain KSA today announced their successful completion of a pilot project using carrier aggregation to combine FDD-LTE bands 1800 and 2100 MHz. Conducted in the western region recently as part of Zain KSA's network enhancement project, the trial is the first in the country to take advantage of combining those bands.** **Nokia Networks used its Global Services team, advanced radio platform, and carrier aggregation software to improve performance and yield up to 150 Mbps speed in Zain's LTE network.

Carrier Aggregation improves capacity and speed

Carrier aggregation enables operators to create larger, virtual carrier bandwidths for telecommunications services by combining separate spectrum bands, thus boosting network capacity and speed. Using its carrier aggregation software, Nokia Networks helps operators worldwide achieve the highest possible network efficiency and data rates.

Click to Tweet : Saudi-first carrier aggregation pilot by @nokianetworks, @ZainKSA successfully yielded 150 Mbps http://nokia.ly/1SBSoOx #NetworksPerform

Hassan Kabbani, Chief Executive Officer of Zain KSA, said: "We are fully focused in our efforts to continue investing in our state-of-the-art 4G network to ensure a world-class, reliable mobile voice, data and video service experience for Zain's customers in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. With the increased adoption of smart devices, the demand for superior quality, high-speed and new data services is growing, and we must deliver utmost mobile broadband performance to meet that demand. As a caring operator, we opted for a strategic and long-term partnership with Nokia Networks due to its reliable technology, differentiating expertise in network planning and optimization, and network implementation."

Bernard Najm, Vice President and Head of MEA, Nokia Networks, said: "Our carrier aggregation solution is capable of helping Zain KSA provide better network performance with higher throughput and speeds while reducing capital expenditure. We will help Zain KSA become a technology leader in the Saudi market, and provide the Saudi customers with the world-class service experience."

Solution details at a glance

• Nokia Networks used its Flexi Multiradio 10 Base Station, a Single RAN (radio access network) Advanced platform for high capacity throughput

• It also provided software to aggregate 1800 and 2100 MHz bands

• Its Global Services team (Network Planning and Optimization and Network Implementation) was a key differentiator in being chosen for the project

Did you know?

The continuing demand for ever more capacity is driven largely by the growing use of video. As people from all walks of life start to use media more intensively, their expectations of throughput and service rise accordingly. Nokia Networks predicts that global data traffic will grow 1000 times by 2020 compared to 2010. With enhancements in network and device technology, it is possible to deliver this amount of data profitably without compromising on customer experience.

Resources:

• Press Release

• Technology Vision 2020

• Whitepaper: LTE-Advanced Evolution (Rel. 12-14)

• Whitepaper: LTE-Advanced (Rel. 12 and beyond)

• Whitepaper: LTE-Advanced (focus on Rel. 10)

• Video: LTE-A Carrier Aggregation

• Infographic: LTE-A Carrier Aggregation

• Youtube: Nokia LTE-A Carrier Aggregation

• Insight newsletter: How to make LTE-A even more advanced

• Awards