TeliaSonera launched what is claimed to be the world’s first, fastest and largest commercial LTE (4G) service. The service in Stockholm was supplied by Ericsson and was completed well ahead of schedule.

Ericsson provided TeliaSonera with an LTE system, including LTE radio base stations, which are part of the new RBS6000 series, an Evolved Packet Core (EPC) network, a mobile backhaul solution including SmartEdge 1200 routers, the latest EDA multi-access aggregation switch and an operation and management system. The LTE system is based on 3GPP standards for LTE radio technology and EPC technology.

As a result, downtown Stockholm is now covered by the Ericsson LTE network and TeliaSonera’s subscribers are the first to have access to the LTE service by commercially available Samsung LTE dongles. Ericsson has completed commercialization of its LTE products, and larger-scale production is ready for further deployment. Interoperability has been tested thoroughly with many different devices in different operators’ networks.

On the day of the launch, Carl-Henric Svanberg, President and CEO of Ericsson, said, “The new era of mobile broadband has just begun today. With LTE, so-called 4G, your mobile broadband experience is moving to unequalled levels. The LTE speed gives you an absolutely effortless feeling of broadband access.”

Kenneth Karlberg, President and Head of Mobility Services, TeliaSonera, added, “We are very proud to be the first operator in the world to offer our customers 4G services. Thanks to the successful cooperation with Ericsson we can offer 4G to our customers in Stockholm earlier than originally planned.”