Motorola, Inc. (NYSE: MOT) and Sprint PCS (NYSE: PCS) have agreed to a multi- million dollar commercial network infrastructure contract. The agreement will provide Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) equipment via Interoperability Specifications (IOS) and third generation (3G) cdma2000 1x high-speed packet data to wireless network subscribers in a significant portion of the Sprint PCS markets.
"The wireless consumer in the United States is anxious to receive better quality voice and higher speed data capabilities on their mobile devices, and Sprint PCS intends to deliver these wireless services and the applications that will change the way people work and play," said Oliver Valente, chief technology officer, Sprint PCS.
Motorola has received 3G network upgrade orders from Sprint PCS for Chicago; Charlotte, N.C.; Chattanooga, Tenn.; Cincinnati; Cleveland; Columbus, Ohio; Greensboro, N.C.; Hawaii; Knoxville, Tenn.; Norfolk, Va.; Raleigh, N.C.; and in Richmond, Va.
"Sprint PCS has chosen a 3G solution that will give them more network capacity, which in turn will provide its customers with the higher voice and data speeds that they will yearn for in the not too distant future," said Fred Wright, senior vice president and general manager for North America for Motorola's Global Telecom Solutions Sector.
The agreement is the second within a Motorola-supplied Sprint PCS network to include a 3Gnetwork upgrade to 1x, scheduled for the second half of 2001. In November, Motorola and Sprint PCS signed a similar contract for a 3G IOS contract in the California Coastal Valley. The upgrades will significantly increase voice capacity on each 1.25 MHz CDMA carrier. It also will enable 144 kilobits per second high-speed packet data. The new 1x packet data capability can enhance data throughput for wireless Internet users when used with a new family of voice or packet data subscriber devices to be introduced in the near future.
In addition to the network upgrades, Motorola successfully conducted 3G calls in the Sprint PCS lab in Kansas City as part of the 3G trial in preparation for 3G commercial deployment. The 3G calls were placed on Motorola's commercial SCT 4812ET four-carrier base station. These base stations, currently deployed in the Sprint PCS network, require only simple card upgrades to support 3G 1x voice and data features. The trial is designed to use the industry standard IOS V4 (version 4) interface to connect to the PDSN (Packet Data Serving Node). The trial 3G system consists of an all IP radio access network (RAN) and a hybrid AspiraT core or next generation network. 3G voice calls are transported via IP backhaul and routed by a relay client through a G.711 voice over IP (VoIP) gateway.
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