Supporting GSM and CDMA on One Radio Access Network

The software radio developer, Vanu and Mid-Tex Cellular - a rural cellular operator in central Texas, USA - have announced that they have launched the cellular industry's first commercial network to simultaneously operate both CDMA and GSM wireless standards on a single system. The enabling technology, Vanu's Anywave software radio, delivers a Radio Access Network (RAN) that supports both standards.

"To keep pace with large regional and nationwide carriers, rural operators are continually faced with the need to purchase and support separate networks based on different standards," said Vanu Bose, CEO of Vanu, Inc. "The industry is witnessing the fulfillment of a software radio vision, unmatched by traditional cellular networks, where one system operates multiple standards, and that represents the road to new revenue streams."

Toney Prather, CEO of Mid-Tex, commented, "This is a very important program for our company and represents a major milestone in our efforts to be a leader in providing cellular service in rural Texas. By choosing the Anywave network, we've enjoyed the ability to add standards rapidly, to support more customers, and to enter into new agreements with national carriers for incremental roaming revenue."

Traditionally, cellular operators use single standard, high-cost infrastructure that requires dedicated hardware and duplicates operating expense for each wireless standard that is deployed. With the Vanu Anywave solution, Mid-Tex Cellular built one RAN to accommodate both GSM and CDMA, and the same platform will enable the addition of 3G technologies via remote software downloads. The download of CDMA has allowed Mid-Tex to evaluate the standard's performance, including roaming revenue potential, without a large capital outlay.

"We did not have to buy new equipment to add CDMA to our existing GSM system, and that allowed us to create an additional revenue stream for the company without a tremendous capital expenditure. Plus, all of this was done inside the existing footprint of our current infrastructure and was implemented remotely using software downloads with no need for cell site visits. This dramatically reduced our time-to-market while saving us considerable operating costs today and in the years ahead," continued Prather.

In 2004, with analog subscribers comprising their entire customer base, Mid-Tex installed the Anywave GSM system and was quickly able to establish roaming agreements with AT&T and T-Mobile. With the recent addition of CDMA to the same network, Mid-Tex has added Verizon and Alltel as roaming partners.

Posted to the site on 13th November 2007