T-Mobile Launches OFDM Broadband Service

T-Mobile Slovakia has launched Europe's first commercial mobile broadband service using Flarion Technologies' FLASH-OFDM network technology. As of today, the service is available in selected areas of Bratislava, and in 19 other cities around Slovakia.

Hamid Akhavan, Chief Technology Officer of T-Mobile International stated: "Mobile broadband access is an extremely important asset in today's world of communication. It will soon become a vital part of countries' infrastructure. I am very pleased to see our company in Slovakia be the world's pioneer for this exciting new technology that has the power to deliver broadband internet to offices and homes even in areas that lack other telecommunications infrastructure."

Customers of T-Mobile Slovakia's service will experience mobile data speeds of one megabit per second (Mbps) average in the downlink and 256 kilobits per second (Kbps) average in the uplink, making it suitable for both business and residential customers.

"By launching our Fast Internet service using FLASH-OFDM technology, we are making a giant leap in increasing the lagging broadband internet penetration in Slovakia," stated Robert Chvatal, CEO, T-Mobile Slovakia. "We want to provide a broadband internet choice also outside of big cities and increase the choice beyond DSL and cable," he added.

As part of this deployment, Siemens and Flarion are delivering to T-Mobile a complete FLASH-OFDM solution for the 450 MHz frequency spectrum: RadioRouter base stations, desktop modems and PC cards. Furthermore Siemens had the task of integrating the FLASH-OFDM network into T-Mobile Slovakia's existing mobile network."

Posted to the site on 18th October 2005