By Emmanuel Elebeke

Telecoms giant, Alcatel-Lucent sponsored the just concluded eighth edition of West and Central AfricaCom, the conference and exhibition that focuses on commercial telecoms in all 24 countries in West and Central Africa.

The event took place on 15 and 16 June 2011 at the Meridien President Hotel, Dakar, Senegal. Present at event were Alcatel-Lucent’s top executives among other world renowned experts in the ICT sector were present , who took their turns to make valid presentations.

Christian Testu

Christian Testu, the LTE Director for Europe, Middle East & Africa, with Frederic Sallet, Vice-President, West and Central Africa, Alcatel-Lucent participated in the Networks & Infrastructure conference session presented for the first time in Africa a breakthrough technology, the LightRadio via the topic “Unleashing 3G/LTE Mobile broadband with LightRadio Innovative Technologies”.

Testu said the unveiling of the LightRadio technology at the event was informed by the explosion of broadband and the profound impact it is making on mobile networks. He spoke on what the new portfolio will do for the African telecom sector, because of the impact it will have on tbroadband access, among other things. Excerpts:

What is this LightRadio technology all about?

The LightRadio Cube is one of the key innovations embedded in the LightRadio solution, the next-generation radio access unveiled by Alcatel-Lucent in February 2011.

Bell Labs-invented Cube is a highly miniaturized, active, wideband radio element encompassing a full radio transceiver and an antenna in a 6cm-cube volume.

Cubes will be combined in very flexible way in small or “macro” active antenna arrays, to replace current passive antennas, numerous RF cables & 2G/3G/4G Radio modules installed on rooftops & towers.

Key benefits are reduced equipment footprint, lower power consumption, and increased flexibility, ease of maintenance & capacity. Wireless broadband is exploding, and the impact on mobile networks is profound. Alcatel-Lucent has responded with this breakthrough portfolio called LightRadio.

This new portfolio will quickly expand network capacity, lower operating costs, reduce energy consumption and bring connectivity to everyone around the world including Africa. LightRadio is the latest innovation and revolutionary solution of Alcatel-Lucent; it is new system that signals the end of the mobile industry’s reliance on masts and base stations around the world.

The Cube eliminates the need for cumbersome huts at the base of cellphone towers and packs antennas into a series of 2.5-inch boxes, while simultaneously improving capacity and reducing cost. The LightRadio combine 2G, 3G, and LTE antennas making them small enough to prop up on a lamp post.

What is expected of government with the introduction of this novel technology, especially the regulatory bodies?

Governments and regulatory bodies are expected to welcome the technical development, because it will help them meet targets for universal broadband access by laying the foundation to address the so-called “digital divide.”

Other major benefits from LightRadio include shrinking the carbon footprint of mobile networks by over 50%, reducing the total-cost-of-ownership of mobile operators by up to 50% and improve end user services by significantly increasing bandwidth per user, thanks to the deployment of small antennas everywhere.

Who are the target beneficiaries of this new technology?

All 2G/3G/4G operators who need innovation to strongly expand the capacity of their access network and absorb data traffic explosion foreseen in the next 5-10 years, while optimizing total cost of ownership.

Have you taken the issue of affordability into consideration before entering the market?

Yes, one key objective of the LightRadio solution is to greatly expand the network capacity by allowing flexible and efficient combination of high-performance small cells and macro cell), while offering key innovations to reduce main items of RAN Total cost of ownership

How confident are you that the product will fly in African market?

LightRadio is integrating major innovations (eg Cube-based AAA, next-generation modem, Cloud architecture) which are fully relevant to African operators facing rapid data traffic growth, increasing pressure on revenues, and expensive energy sources.

What is the future of wireless broadband, especially in Africa?

Wireless broadband will be critical in Africa to deliver high-speed internet access and multi-play to corporate users and consumers, in fixed, nomadic and mobile devices. It will play a major role in the development of numerous areas of the economy eg ICT, education, health, and infotainment both in urban and rural zones.

How would this product improve African economies?

The fantastic development of mobile communications in the region has boosted the exchanges of information in a unprecedented manner, allowing the people to communicate almost wherever they are in the region.

The impact on the economical growth is clearly measurable. Development of broadband communications and bringing services deeper in the rural areas, will further drive economic growth in the region.

However, Lightradio solution was unveiled in February 2011. It will be trialed starting in 2011 and commercialized from 2012.

What future do you see in African telecom markets?

I see a big explosion of the data market in the two years to come.