The WiMAX operator Banglalion has received permission from the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission to launch long-term evolution (LTE), which is equivalent to fourth generation broadband service.
LTE, marketed as 4G, is a standard for wireless communication of high-speed data for mobile phones and data terminals. Once WiMAX operators bring LTE service, users will enjoy receiving data at a faster rate than WiMAX.
When contacted, BTRC chairman Sunil Kanti Bose said the regulator gave the permission along with a no objection certificate (NOC) after a formal request from Banglalion for LTE operation.
BTRC gave the permission on Thursday last week, which made Banglalion the second operator after Qubee to launch LTE in Bangladesh.
The Banglion users will have to change their modems to get LTE service, which will be faster than WiMAX service.
Qubee’s LTE received the regulator’s approval early last month.
Currently,Banglalion has 183,980 subscribers while Qubee has 131,317 subscribers, showed BTRC data as of August.
Earlier, Banglalion was denied LTE approval last year.
Besides, the regulator provided LTE permission to the mobile phone operators who got 3G broadband licence, although they are not expected to go into LTE launch in a short time.
“We also provided LTE permission to the mobile phone operators having 3G licence. But they are probably not going to bring the service to the customers so quickly,” said BTRC chief.
Meanwhile, Ollo, a co-branded operator with no WiMax licence, has already imported LTE equipmentand installed it in different base transceiver stations, although it has no NOC from BTRC for the LTE equipment.
Market insiders predicted that BTRC would soon give a WiMAX license to Ollo (Bangladesh Internet Exchange) as it has already imported the LTE equipment.
