Infonetics: LTE Could Have Big Year in 2010

A new report from Infonetics Research says LTE is likely to gain momentum in 2010, with the potential for the infrastructure market to top $5 billion in 2013.

"To date, the gloomy economic environment has not adversely affected service provider LTE plans and commitments. In fact, the number of commercial LTE launches scheduled for 2010 has risen from 10 in March to 14 now," said principal analyst Stéphane Téral. “As mobile operators initially build their LTE coverage, the E-UTRAN is where the action will be. Later, as the time comes to figure out a way to monetize LTE-based services, the significance of the evolved packet core will rise.

The report details LTE market highlights, which include:

• The first major technical deployments of LTE have now started in Japan and the US, driven mainly by NTT DoCoMo and Verizon Wireless, for major commercial service launch in 2010.
• Peak rates, latency, and spectral efficiency are the chief drivers behind the push to make LTE the universal future-proof mobile broadband platform.
• The LTE infrastructure market is expected to top $5 billion by 2013, fueled by E-UTRAN macrocell (eNodeB) deployments.
• Based on public announcements made by service providers planning LTE services, the number of LTE service subscribers is expected to exceed 72 million by 2013.

For the first five years of deployment, according to Infonetics, LTE will be predominantly “PC-based” (laptops, netbooks, dongles, etc.), with LTE smartphones expected to hit the market after 2011.