KTF, one of South Korea’s leading cellular providers, has launched a next-generation ultra-high speed 3.5G wireless network in Seoul and cities across South Korea using wireless broadband technology from LG-Nortel, a joint venture of LG Electronics and Nortel (NYSE/TSX: NT). The network supports advanced handset capabilities including high-definition (HD) video, video chatting, messaging and remote monitoring.

The new 3.5 G HSDPA, handset-based service is being launched with two handset models in the initial deployment – including the first HSDPA phone from LG Electronics, the LG-KH1000. A further four to five handsets are planned later in the year. KTF’s new service is branded ‘WorldPhone View’, a name representing ‘the world at your fingertips’ through access to video and collaborative multimedia applications.

KTF’s HSDPA mobile communications will be rolled out in 50 cities across South Korea beginning June 30. LG-Nortel is the primary network supplier and is the exclusive vendor for 34 cities including the vast Seoul metropolitan area which alone accounts for almost 50 percent of the total population of Korea. It is estimated that 80 percent of the country’s population will be able to access the service by the end of August 2006. A further 34 cities will be added by year-end, raising that figure to over 90 percent of the population, according to KTF estimates.

“The launch of our ‘WorldPhone View’ HSDPA service is a key component of KTF’s portfolio of next-generation mobile services,” said Won-Jin Park, executive vice president, KTF. “We chose LG-Nortel as the primary supplier for our UMTS/HSDPA network based on its strong technology credentials and our existing relationship. LG-Nortel has successfully implemented a world-class network which allows us to implement groundbreaking services as we enhance the mobile communications experience for all our customers.”

“LG Nortel, with the strong support of our parent companies Nortel and LGE, has implemented a secure, reliable, high-speed network to support the innovative range of services and applications KTF is launching to its customers,” said Peter MacKinnon, chairman of the board, LG-Nortel. “Korea leads the world in wireless broadband and LG-Nortel plays an integral role in ensuring the continuation of that success. We will work closely with KTF on the evolution of their network to support higher uplink speeds and ever-more sophisticated service requirements in the future.”

A key differentiator of HSDPA compared to current technologies is its ability to support high-speed, real-time HD video content. ‘WorldPhone View’ users will be able to access a variety of new services, including video SMS, video ringtone services, video chatting, video ad messaging and video remote monitoring – as well as high-quality video telephony. High-speed broadband capabilities will also enhance music downloads and high-volume multimedia collaboration and set the foundation for more sophisticated online gaming applications. The two HSDPA handsets being launched will also support universal integrated circuit (IC) cards, allowing access to secure transactions for transportation, membership, mobile banking and credit card services.

KTF’s HSDPA wireless network can deliver services at download speeds up to 14.4Mbps. The introduction of LG-Nortel’s HSUPA upgrade, planned for early 2007, will increase uplink speeds to 5.8 Mbps, improving performance for services requiring the high-speed upload of data.

Demonstrating its technology leadership, Nortel achieved the industry’s first HSDPA mobile call in January 2005 and Nortel and LGE completed the first live test calls using a commercial handset solution for HSDPA in March 2005. More recently, in February 2006, Nortel achieved approval for the introduction of high speed OFDM and MIMO packet access, in line with its technology HSOPA, into the Global 3GPP LTE standards. This paves the way for ‘multiplay’ services including voice, high-speed interactive applications including large data transfer, feature-rich IPTV, IMS enabled services, all with full mobility.

South Korea broke into a wireless broadband frenzy Friday with the country’s top two operators launching a volley of services. Leading mobile operator SK Telecom and fixed line carrier KT both introduced wireless internet services over WiBro – Korea’s homebrew WiMAX technology – while mobile unit KTF fired up its HSDPA network.

As of today both KT and SKT will be offering WiBro connectivity in a number of ‘hot zones’ in Seoul. As a result of the limited coverage, KT is offering discounted tariffs until year-end. Both operators expect coverage in all of Seoul by year-end.

WiBro is a homegrown Korean technology that shares compatibility with mobile WiMAX 802.16e and has a theoretical maximum speed of 20Mbps when stationary. The technology can potentially deliver speeds of 1-3Mbps while on the move at up to 120km per hour.

KT is launching with a PC data card and tariffs starting at Won6,000 for 500MB of data per month, ranging up to Won16,000 for unlimited usage. All subscriptions carry a one off Won30,000 connection fee. WiBro enabled PDAs and notebooks are expected to be introduced during the second half.

SKT is launching with a PCMCIA data card and a WiBro Unlimited Usage Plan for Won30,000 per month.

At the same time, KT’s mobile unit, KTF, also launched its commercial HSDPA service in 50 cities, supported by 2 DBDM (Dual Band Dual Mode: 2100MHz WCDMA/HSDPA, 1800MHz cdma2000 1x EV-DO) handsets.

KTF’s HSDPA service provides coverage to 80 per cent of the population in Korea, and is expected to reach 91 per cent of the population by year-end.

The two handsets, the Samsung SPH-W2100 and LG-KH1000, are capable of downloading wireless data at a maximum speed of 1.8 Mbps in HSDPA mode and 2.4 Mbps in EV-DO mode. The SPH-W2100 also supports T-DMB mobile TV services.

KTF said it plans to release up to three additional HSDPA handset models by year-end.

SKT beat KTF to the punch in terms of HSDPA though, commercially launching its network last month in 25 major cities, including Seoul, Incheon, Busan, Daegu, Daejeon and Jeju. The company plans to quickly extend its network to cover to a total of 84 cities, providing full service across the country. SKT hopes to sign up a total of 300,000 subscribers by the end of 2006.

SKT kicked off its service with the Samsung W200 and expects LG’s SH-100 to be in stores by June and four to five other models to be added by year-end.

Mike Roberts, principal analyst at telecoms.com’s parent, Informa Telecoms and Media believes the plans will face tough challenges. “The launch of WiBro by SKT and KT will be the first mass-market rollouts of pre-Mobile WiMAX service, so are an important test of the potential for Mobile WiMAX services,” said Roberts. “However WiBro is also something of a special case because it is launching into an intensely competitive market that will feature HSDPA services from SKT, EV-DO Rev. A services from LG from 2007, and EV-DO services from several operators.”

The country’s smallest operator, LG Telecom is in the process of deploying a cdma2000 1x EV-DO Rev. A network, which is expected to go live next year. LG previously abandoned plans to deploy a faster EV-DV network when vendor interest in the technology began to wane around 18 months ago.

The worldwide movement by operators to deploy high speed mobile broadband services – based on the global W-CDMA and HSDPA technology standards – is fuelling unprecedented economies of scale in the supply of equipment for carriers and handsets for consumers, said the GSM Association (GSMA) today.

According to the GSMA, the global trade organisation for the mobile industry, more than 105 mobile networks have launched commercial W-CDMA networks across 50 countries so far. Following the world’s first large scale commercial launch of HSDPA – the next evolution of W-CDMA – by Cingular Wireless last year in the US, more than 95 operators from 48 countries are deploying, or have announced plans to deploy the technology. Already, 18 mobile networks are providing live commercial W-CDMA/ HSDPA services in 14 countries.

Among the raft of global operator commitments, a number of networks have already announced deployment of W-CDMA/HSDPA in the 850MHz frequency band, including Cingular Wireless, Telstra in Australia and Rogers Wireless – Canada’s largest wireless voice and data communications service provider.

“Our plans to introduce a state of the art network based on the world standard for 3G wireless communications – W-CDMA – is a natural progression for Rogers’ coast-to-coast GSM/EDGE network,” said Bob Berner, CTO of Rogers Wireless. “By deploying HSDPA in the 850MHz frequency band, we will be able to better provide our customers in Canada with advanced mobile services, delivering speeds of up to 1.5 to 2 times faster than those claimed for competing technologies.”

This week, mobile operator KTF of Korea also announced that it will switch focus from its CDMA network to a new nationwide W-CDMA/ HSDPA network covering 84 South Korean cities by the end of the year. KTF has cited many compelling reasons for this shift, from simple economic efficiencies and global roaming to global handset availability and choice, economies of scale and significant potential revenue gains from high speed services.

As part of the evolutionary GSM family of technologies, W-CDMA & HSDPA will benefit from the strengths of the global GSM eco-system, such as global roaming and interoperability, open standards and huge economies of scale – evidenced through lower costs for handsets, and greater variety.

More than 315 handset products for W-CDMA are available already from the vendor community, 25 of which are HSDPA ready and a raft of new products are due for shipment in 2006.

“With more than 680 networks in our community heading along this globally agreed evolutionary path, no other technology can match the economies of scale and interoperability generated by GSM’s 1.8 billion and growing user base,” said Rob Conway, CEO and Board member of the GSM Association. “As economies of scale reach the point of critical mass for suppliers, we will see HSDPA become a ubiquitous part of device product ranges, just as GSM, GPRS and W-CDMA are today.”

The CTO of Cingular Wireless, the first network in the world to launch a large scale HSDPA network, Kris Rinne added: “Cingular is demonstrating that HSDPA is a real and robust technology that allows people on the move to enjoy high speed data and multimedia products and services. For us it was about enhancing our broad deployment of EDGE capabilities in the urban and suburban areas – and in technology terms, UMTS (W-CDMA) with HSDPA is uniquely positioned as the only 3G technology that supports both circuit switched voice and high speed packet data.”

The trend of operator migration from TDMA, CDMA and PDC to the global mobile path of GSM/GPRS/ W-CDMA & HSDPA continues – as seen across a raft of countries from Australia, Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Columbia, Mexico, Peru, Uruguay, Venezuela, to Japan, Korea, Singapore and the US among many others in recent years. This ease of migration has been witnessed in the phenomenal growth of markets such as Brazil, which three years ago moved to the GSM family. Today GSM is the market leader, and the choice of more than 50 million users.

In terms of global footprint, the GSM world is more than six times bigger than that of the nearest competing wireless technology, with 82% share of the digital wireless market and growing, while market share for other wireless technologies continues to decline. The scale of GSM growth enables consumers to enjoy unequalled value and variety of products and services, brought to bear by a global eco-system of hundreds and thousands of suppliers, as opposed to the few serving proprietary standards.