Ericsson has been selected to upgrade Bite’s 3G network with HSDPA in Lithuania and to build an HSDPA-enabled WCDMA/UMTS network in Latvia. With the upgrade, Bite has boosted its mobile broadband offering, delivering a download speed of up to 3.6Mbps, further breaking new ground in the Baltic region.

Ericsson is delivering commercial HSDPA hardware, software and implementation services. This upgrade to HSDPA has enabled Bite to introduce its customers to a new generation of mobile services, including mobile broadband, mobile TV and mobile music.

Zilvinas Jurksus, CTO of Bite Group, says: “Our customers are driving the evolution of our networks, demanding more advanced services. Choosing Ericsson as supplier allows us to be among the first in the world to launch HSDPA-enabled services and offer our customers mobile broadband with unrivalled transfer speeds. We will satisfy our customers’ needs in this area not only today, but also in the future.”

Stefan Johansson, President, Ericsson Lithuania and Ericsson Latvia, says: “We look forward to cooperating with Bite as it brings this enriched experience to its customers. HSDPA deployments are taking off around the world and we are extremely pleased to power Bite’s HSDPA network in both Lithuania and Latvia.”

Bite has been running its network with HSDPA up to 3.6Mbps in Lithuania since June 7. The HSDPA launch in Latvia will also deliver download speeds up to 3.6Mbps. With the Ericsson HSDPA solution, users are able to download on average eight times faster than the current 3G connection using existing PC cards, and up to 40 times faster than with a GSM/GPRS connection.

At the end of the year, Ericsson’s HSDPA solution will enable peak download speeds of up to 14Mbps. The advanced technology more than triples system capacity and makes response times for interactive services faster.

Siemens will be supplying all of the Baltic countries with W-CDMA network technology: Following orders from mobile operator Tele2 in Estonia and Latvia last year, UAB Tele2 in Lithuania has now also contracted with the Siemens Communications Group to build a nationwide 3G network.

“We are pleased about this series of orders from Tele2. They confirm our quality and performance in building mobile infrastructures as well as our leading role in 3G technology,” said Christoph Caselitz, President of Mobile Networks at Siemens Communications. In addition to 3G radio technology, Siemens will be upgrading existing line- and packet-switched network elements in order to enable broadband data services, like music downloads to mobile handsets or video telephony, in Lithuania.

Independent industry analysts rank Siemens/NEC number one in the 3G/W-CDMA market with respect to commercially installed base stations – NodeBs (source: Multimedia Research Institute, Tokyo, April 2005). Approximately 40 operators in over 30 countries throughout the world are already utilizing 3G technology from Siemens.

The operator has selected Nokia as its sole WCDMA 3G network supplier

Omnitel today launched High Speed Data Packet Access (HSDPA) services in the city of Palanga from where the service rollout will extend to other parts of the country. With Nokia’s HSDPA solution, Omnitel will be able to operate its network more cost-efficiently and offer its customers data services at speeds of up to four times faster than current 3G speeds.

“Thanks to our recently launched WCDMA 3G network that has been now upgraded to HSDPA, we can offer our customers the best quality services, such as high speed mobile Internet connection, ” says Antanas Zabulis, CEO, Omnitel. “In today’s event we are demonstrating the exceptional speed of HSDPA together with Nokia, whose WCDMA and HSDPA solutions and rapid deployment of the network have enabled us to offer this new service to our customers.”

“This launch is an important milestone for Omnitel and Lithuania,” says Jan Lindgren, Vice President, Networks, Nokia. “Nokia HSDPA is a cost-effective, high performance solution that helps operators tackle the challenges of providing high speed, quality services with optimized cost of delivery.”

In addition to WCDMA 3G and HSDPA radio network, Nokia has delivered Omnitel Lithuania packet core network equipment, and will upgrade the operator’s existing Nokia Mobile Switching Center (MSCi) to Nokia MSC Server mobile softswitch. Nokia will provide maintenance services, and the network will be supported by the unique, multitechnology Nokia NetAct(TM) network and service management system.

Nokia is Omnitel’s sole core network and WCDMA 3G network supplier.

In WCDMA 3G, Nokia has 59 customers to date. Nokia’s high-performing HSDPA is a simple software upgrade to Nokia WCDMA networks, thus enabling cost-effective and fast rollout. In the first phase, Nokia HSDPA offers up to four times faster data services than current 3G, and consequently enhanced quality of service experience. Nokia is a leader in the HSDPA market, with over 20 contracts globally. Several network operators have already opened their HSDPA networks with the Nokia HSDPA.

Mobile softswitching and IMS are the main elements in converging networks. With over 90 customers for the MSC Server, Nokia has delivered the majority of the world’s commercial 3GPP-compliant mobile softswitches, accounting for over 75% of Nokia’s switch deliveries. Nokia is also the front-runner in IMS for fixed and mobile networks, with over 80 references for IMS solutions, such as Push to talk over Cellular and video sharing.