MTN shows benefits of its world-class LTE network

On 29 January 2014, MTN held an event to illustrate its unparalleled MTN long-term evolution (LTE) network experience at MTN's Branded Retail Store in Sandton City - one of Africa's leading and most prestigious shopping centres.

The MTN Sandton City store is one of the revamped stores in the country. It delivers engaging and interactive experiences and is part of MTN's push into a brave new digital world.

MTN's LTE network has, in numerous independent surveys, consistently performed as the fastest and most consistent in terms of capacity and experience, outperforming competitors.

"In the latest speed test, our LTE download speed was 33.89Mbps and upload speed at 8.48Mbps. The speeds are up to 10 times faster than 3G and twice as fast as our main competitor. Our LTE customers can upload a photo in six seconds, download a song in four seconds, and allows movie downloads in minutes, as well as apps, almost instantly," notes Krishna Chetty, MTN General Manager: Radio Optimisation & Planning.

"MTN's LTE network has sustained performance, especially on uplink and downloads, offering a seamless user experience to customers. MTN is at the forefront of innovation and cutting-edge technology; evidently, the MTN LTE network is of world-class standards," continued Chetty.

The Internet is shaping the new world. More and more people are connecting to the Internet and Ericsson predicts there will be 50 billion connections by the year 2020. As a result of this, MTN has already seen a drastic increase in data consumption with consumers demanding seamless connectivity. Consumers are demanding broadband anywhere, and continuous access to content everywhere and on any device.

In support of its vision to provide its customers with a bold, new digital world, MTN has greatly invested in its LTE network and has reached many milestones in developing faster communication access, such as establishing new remote hubs and beefing up existing switches, and has remote hubs in construction.

MTN's technology evolution has taken it from 99% 2G coverage to 75% 3G coverage, connecting three million consumers through LTE to date. The company has re-farmed 10MHz of 1800MHz spectrum in most areas.

Says Chetty: "The deployment of LTE in Sandton and across the country is part of our strategy to invest in better and faster networks, making our customers' lives a whole lot brighter by providing them with technology that gives a seamless and enhanced lifestyle experience."

New and existing customers will have a chance to experience MTN's enhanced LTE network, which provides ultra-fast mobile Internet speeds while testing smartphones and smart devices in store. "Consumers will now be able to experience how LTE will enable them to access information, entertainment, apps and services at faster speeds and much more richness and computing capacity. Our LTE network will ensure customers derive a seamless multimedia experience with live streaming of content, video-on-demand and enhanced gaming capabilities, to name but a few," adds Chetty.

"MTN is an innovative company that strives to deliver a distinct customer experience through a world-class LTE network. Our constant infrastructure and network upgrades serve to maintain and increase our leadership position in bringing innovative technologies to our customers," concludes Farhad Khan, Chief Consumer Sales and Distribution Officer at MTN.

MTN's street level LTE coverage map can be found on the MTN Web site: https://www.mtn.co.za/pages/coverage-map.aspx.