Verizon to Launch LTE Networks in 20 to 30 Markets in 2010

Competing next-gen wireless technologies long-term evolution and WiMAX went another round in the fight for 4G dominance this week, as officials with the United States’ largest wireless operator reportedly clarified their plans for a nationwide LTE network launch.

 

For months, IT and telecom insiders have reported on rumors that Verizon Wireless would start building out its networks either this year or next, and the LTE-WiMAX competition has captured headlines nearly every day.

 

Recently, for example, while analysts have predicted that by 2013, operators will spend over $8.6 billion on LTE base station infrastructure alone and the world’s largest maker of fixed-line networks –  Paris-based Alcatel-Lucent – says its LTE business is gaining traction. At the same time, other analysts say WiMAX will displace up to 12 percent of the global DSL installed base by 2013, and Sprint Nextel and Clearwire Corp. are pushing forward – legal issues notwithstanding – with plans to offer high-speed mobile Internet service based on WiMAX technology.

 

This week, Verizon Wireless Chief Executive Officer Lowell McAdam reportedly said that his company would launch its LTE networks commercially in 20 to 30 markets in “the second half of 2010,” with “nationwide buildout complete in late 2013 to early 2014.”

 

According to a post by Sascha Segan on Gearlog.com, a gadget site operated by Manhattan’s Ziff Davis Media Inc., Verizon is testing its 4G technology with a small group this year, then turning later in 2009 to a single “pre-commercial” network on the east coast and one on the west coast.

 

Verizon’s LTE is expected to provide average data speeds between 8 and 12 Mbps, eventually replacing the company’s CDMA network.

 

McAdam also reportedly disclosed that Verizon Wireless LTE devices will have swappable SIM cards, and the company will have certification requirements beyond the minimum LTE requirements.

 

“In other words, there will be swappable SIM cards, but you probably won’t be allowed to use devices which weren’t specifically certified for Verizon,” Segan reports.