Korea's KT launches LTE broadcast service

South Korean operator KT has announced the commercial launch of its evolved Multimedia Broadcast and Multicast Service (eMBMS), to be made available to KT’s LTE subscribers using the Samsung Galaxy Note 3.

LTE eMBMS offers broadcast and multicast services over LTE networks for applications such as mobile TV and radio broadcast while minimising delays and disconnection rates.  According to KT, it also offers higher quality video than standard digital media broadcasting services, making it easier for the operator to limit congestion on its network. The operator claimed that this is the world’s first commercial deployment of eMBMS technology on an LTE network.

It added that the technology will be particularly useful in areas that are densely populated, such as in sports stadiums and concert halls, allowing subscribers to view content with access to various broadcast streams without delays or disconnection.

The LTE eMBMS service, named ‘Olleh LTE Play’, will require Galaxy Note 3 users to download a software upgrade. It can be accessed through the KT Olleh mobile IP TV application.

KT teamed up with Samsung to provide the network equipment, which the vendor adapted to KT’s LTE network. The two firms showcased the technology in a developmental stage at Mobile World Congress 2013.

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Samsung will also team up with KT on joint marketing campaigns and said that it will actively explore partnerships with operators globally to promote LTE eMBMS solutions in network equipment and devices.

South Korea has played home to pioneering developments in LTE services of late, with KT rival SK Telecom announcing its LTE-Advanced tri-band carrier aggregation technology this month, to ease network congestion in built up areas in South Korea. The operator also teamed up with vendor NSN to demonstrate its virtualised Evolved Packet Core proof-of-concept implementation in November last year.

Elsewhere, Filipino operator Smart Communications conducted a successful video multicast over LTE in Southeast Asia in November last year. The operator said the technology will allow consumers in the Philippines to watch lag-free live video on their LTE smartphones and tablets when the service comes to market.

Australia’s Telstra also completed an LTE Broadcast session on a commercial LTE network in October last year. The operator said it successfully activated and tested infrastructure vendor Ericsson’s LTE Broadcast Solution on its live network with the transmission of concurrent video feeds and large files to enabled devices.