SmarTone to heat up 4G market with new network

SmarTone Telecommunications expects to intensify competition in the city's nascent 4G mobile market with the launch of its new high-speed wireless network next month.

Chief executive Douglas Li said yesterday that from August 28, SmarTone would offer 4G subscribers the same 3G tariff plans it now provided.

The carrier also vowed to deliver 'superior network performance' and better indoor coverage, which is made possible by running 4G services on the lower 1.8-gigahertz frequency band.

'Our choice [of frequency band] has proven prescient, with a wide range of compatible devices being made available by all the leading smartphone manufacturers,' Li said.

SmarTone's new infrastructure supports a technology known as frequency division duplex long-term evolution (FDD-LTE). The other recognised 4G network standard, time-division duplex long-term evolution (TDD-LTE), is championed by China Mobile, the world's biggest wireless network operator.

HKT, the telecoms arm of PCCW, and Three Hong Kong, the mobile unit of Hutchison Telecommunications Hong Kong, both operate their respective 4G FDD-LTE networks on the 2.6GHz band. China Mobile Hong Kong, the mainland carrier's local unit, also runs its FDD-LTE network on the band and will soon build a complementary TDD-LTE network that will run on the 2.3GHz band.