Nokia Siemens Networks Helps U.S. Cellular Continue 4G LTE Rollout

Nokia Siemens Networks and U.S. Cellular, along with partner King Street Wireless, have successfully launched 4G LTE network service in 11 markets across the U.S. This includes select cities in Illinois, Missouri, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, Tennessee, Virginia, Washington and West Virginia.

U.S. Cellular selected Nokia Siemens Networks to provide radio access network (RAN) and mobile management entity (MME) technology for the second wave of its 4G LTE network rollout. This represents a continuation of a previous partnership between the two companies, as Nokia Siemens deployed evolved packet core (EPC) and home subscriber services (HSS) in the first wave of the 4G LTE rollout.

“U.S. Cellular is focused on providing the world's best customer experience and delivering industry-leading innovations. We are building on this commitment by rapidly expanding the 4G LTE network, which currently covers 58 percent of our customers and will reach 87 percent of our customers by the end of this year,” said Michael Irizarry, executive vice president and chief technology officer for U.S. Cellular, in a statement.

Nokia Siemens will continue to support U.S. Cellular's network expansion, providing the 4G LTE access network and expanding the EPC capacity. The company will also provide 4G LTE base stations, eNode Bs, which use the award winning Flexi Multiradio Base Station and MME. The agreement between U.S. Cellular and Nokia Siemens also includes network implementation services in addition to hardware and software services.

Nokia Siemens Networks boasts 77 commercial references in place for the delivery of LTE and 206 WCDMA radio customers. Earlier in the month, the company decided to combine its Middle East and Africa businesses into a single organization structure covering both regions.