SAN FRANCISCO - The top executive at Verizon Communications Inc. announced his company?s deployment of the first large-scale 4G Long Term Evolution network at the CTIA Enterprise & Applications 2010 conference.

During his keynote address, Lowell McAdam, president and chief operating officer of Verizon, Basking Ridge, NJ, detailed the company?s major network launch in 38 major metropolitan areas covering more than 110 million Americans by the end of the year. In addition, the company is launching 4G LTE in more than 60 commercial airports coast to coast.

?We?re excited to launch the LTE network?it will connect people, places and things,? Mr. McAdam said. ?Our decision to go early and first is proving again to be the right move.

?We were motivated to secure the perfect spectrum for LTE,? he said. ?Our early commitment set [the bar] for other players in the ecosystem and gave notice that we were serious about LTE, so now many of them are ready.

?In a 4G world, we have to turn that guarded model inside out, but the misconception that many have is that all 4G is the same?just as LTE is a technology platform, collaboration and openness will be the operating platform for the future.?

Verizon Wireless, a joint venture of Verizon Communications and Vodafone, is the No. 1 carrier in the United States based on number of subscribers.

LTE on the horizon
Mr. McAdam highlighted the metropolitan areas for Verizon Wireless? initial launch of its 4G LTE network, which include:

? Large sections of the Northeast Corridor, including Boston, New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore and Washington, DC, as well as Rochester, NY

? Throughout Miami and south Florida, Atlanta, Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston and New Orleans, as well as Charlotte, NC, and Nashville, TN

? Chicago, St. Louis, the Twin Cities, Pittsburgh and major cities in Ohio

? Major population centers in California, as well as Seattle, Phoenix, Denver and Las Vegas

Verizon Wireless claims that its 4G LTE network gives employees the ability to work at significantly faster speeds and improved latency, increasing productivity and the opportunity to get work done where their business takes them.

Verizon Wireless expects 4G LTE average data rates to be 5 to 12 megabits per second (Mbps) on the downlink and 2 to 5 Mbps on the uplink in real-world, loaded network environments.

These speeds are significantly faster than Verizon Wireless and other wireless providers? current or promised 3G network speeds, per Mr. McAdam.

By leveraging its 700 MHz spectrum for LTE deployment in the U.S., Verizon Wireless is capable of quickly deploying a high-quality wireless broadband network with excellent coverage.

The company is currently installing LTE equipment at existing cell sites and switching centers nationwide as part of its ongoing investment in its voice and data network infrastructure.

In addition to the 38 major metropolitan areas, Verizon Wireless is launching its 4G LTE network in West Lafayette, IN, home of Purdue University.

The public university is using several innovative software applications on Verizon Wireless? 3G network that improve student engagement and success.

Verizon Wireless is working with Purdue to explore the next phase of how 4G LTE technology can improve e-learning across the nation.

?4G LTE will be available to one-third of the U.S. population by the end of the year, including in Los Angeles, Chicago, Dallas, Boston, Atlanta, San Francisco and New York,? Mr. McAdam said. ?We?re going to roll out 4G LTE over a three-year period until virtually the whole country has it.

?This is a win-win collaboration between large carriers and smaller [ones], and we?re just warming up as an industry and company,? he said. ?As you expand a definition of a wireless device and you add in developers around the globe, the potential is really limitless.

?As this 4G future comes to life, there will be something in it for every one of us?it?s time to turn on the after-burners and get ready for the next generation.?

Rimma Kats contributed reporting to this story.

Final Take

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