News DeskDubai, UAE – du, a leading telecommunications provider from Emirates Integrated Telecommunications Company (EITC), in collaboration with Nokia and MediaTek, has announced a significant milestone in the enhancement of 5G technologies in the Middle East and Africa (MEA). The innovative trial, a first in the region, successfully boosted uplink (UL) performance by 70% on du’s 5G Advanced network, providing expanded indoor coverage for premium customers.
The trial, conducted in Abu Dhabi, leveraged du’s operational 5G Advanced network to achieve notable advancements in UL speeds and coverage. This technology promises robust connectivity and superior network efficiency by integrating multiple frequency bands and enhancing transmission pathways, which is essential for high-demand applications such as video conferencing, live streaming, and substantial data uploads.
Hasan Alshemeili, Head of Infra Technology Planning at du, emphasized the importance of this trial: “This trial not only accelerates the uplink performance of our network but also aligns with our ongoing commitment to enhance customer connectivity since our initial 5G launch in 2019. Our continuous upgrades to our state-of-the-art network infrastructure ensure an unmatched 5G user experience.”
The trial employed a pioneering technique that utilized three transmitter antennas (3Tx) combined with 2-component Carrier Aggregation (2CC) across Frequency Division Duplex (FDD) and Time Division Duplex (TDD) bands, incorporating TDD UL MIMO on du’s existing infrastructure. Nokia played a crucial role in this achievement by deploying its advanced AirScale portfolio, including baseband, Massive MIMO radios, and macro remote radio heads to enhance capacity, coverage, and performance. MediaTek contributed its cutting-edge T830 5G mobile Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) platform, highlighting the collaborative effort that led to this success.
Mohamed Samir, Vice President of Mobile Networks, Middle East at Nokia, stated: “This trial underscores our commitment to leading-edge technological solutions that cater to and exceed the dynamic needs of our connected societies. Our technologies are designed to empower mobile operators to maximize radio network performance effectively.”
Dr. Ho-Chi Hwang, General Manager of Wireless Communication System and Partnerships at MediaTek, added: “Our joint trial sets a significant benchmark in the region and reaffirms MediaTek’s dedication to advancing wireless communication technology. Our T830 platform, now accessible to customers, leads the market with its proven high-performance capabilities.”
Carrier Aggregation is pivotal in allowing mobile operators to optimize their spectrum and network resources to enhance user connectivity experiences, delivering increased data rates and improved coverage extensively.
This collaborative effort marks a significant step forward in the development and deployment of advanced 5G technologies in the MEA region, setting a new standard for network performance and customer experience.
