Best practices for ensuring LTE rollout success

Neil Coleman
23rd May 2012
 Agenda

• Market trends
• What we’re seeing in early LTE deployments
• Emerging best practices
• Conclusions
 About Actix

• 20 years of providing software to optimize the RAN

– RAN customer experience
– Analytics to drive LTE rollout acceptance
400
Over 400 customers – 2G, 3G, 4G network optimization & SON
in active deployment

• 400 customers & 25 of the top 30 mobile operators

25 of the
top 30
We are proud to serve 25 of the top
30 mobile operators worldwide.
• 60th LTE customer announced in May 2012

3
 LTE rollouts are gaining pace
• 319 operators are investing in LTE in 97 countries
• 72 commercial networks in 37 countries
• Improving device and spectrum availability

4
 …however it is still early days for LTE
• Marketing launches and low coverage
• 70% of all LTE traffic is in the US and 70% of that is iPad (3)
• 3G and HetNets will remain the focus for most operators

5
 What we’re seeing in LTE early rollouts

• LTE is just another part of the HetNet mix

• Typical early technology problems

• LTE KPIs are still emerging - largely 3GPP based

• Rollout isn’t perfectly smooth

• SON is gaining traction

6
 Emerging best practices

1. Use customer demand to prioritize LTE deployments

2. Establish your KPIs early – and bake them into contracts

3. Make the vendors work for you during rollout

4. Move beyond 3GPP SON

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Understanding customer demand

Smartphone data usage at 5:15pm in a major city

8
 Using customer demand to
improve LTE deployment strategies
Traditional Real customer Focused LTE
Strategy Inputs intelligence Rollout Strategy

Marketing goals VIP locations Prioritization

Competitors plans Device availability Quick wins
Local knowledge Unexpected hotspots High ARPU subs
Existing site locations Segmented demand
Network traffic HetNet

9
Establish your KPIs early – and bake them into contracts

Rollout Contract

RAN Data
Accessibility
Accessibility %

Retainability
Downlink
Throughput
LTE KPIs Uplink
Outsource Contract
Paging MME Paging

% Time LTE
IRAT
IRAT Redirect %

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Make the vendors work for you during rollout
Detailed LTE acceptance measuring contractual KPIs

National acceptance dashboard

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 Thorough acceptance requires automation
Collect Check
OK
Data KPIs Y
N
Make
Changes

Number of Failures N

Plan,
Plan, Site
Plan,
Build & Site
Build & Site
Integration Cluster Tuning Acceptance
Build &
Commission Integration Passed Accept Operate
Commission Integration Complete Process Process
Commission Y

Generate
Collect Check
Acceptance Negotiate
Data Report
Report
Time Time Time Time
Cost Cost Cost Cost

Time to accept
NEP Activity
Operator Activity
Go live to accept time
 Move beyond 3GPP SON

• LTE networks will be layered on

top of 2G and 3G Customer centric SON
• 3GPP LTE SON needs to be
extended to cover 2G & 3G
networks 2G, 3G & 4G SON
• Customer data will turbo
charge these network centric
SON Use Cases 3GPP 4G SON Standards

13
 Conclusions

• LTE is gaining momentum

…but it won’t be the same as UMTS
• New approaches and solutions are required
– Leverage true customer insight
– Automated analytics and KPI reporting
– HetNet SON and optimization solutions

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 info@actix.com

Thank you
neil.coleman@actix.com