South Korea Ministry Signs TD-LTE Cooperation Agreement with China Mobile and ZTE

Tripartite Memorandum of Understanding between the Telecommunications Institute of the Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning, China Mobile Research Institute and ZTE to cover in-depth cooperation on TDD/FDD data roaming and VoLTE

18 September 2015, Shenzhen, China – ZTE Corporation (0763.HK / 000063.SZ), a major international provider of telecommunications, enterprise and consumer technology solutions for the Mobile Internet, announced the signing of a cooperation agreement on TD-LTE technology with China Mobile Research Institute and South Korea's Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning (MSIP).

The tripartite Memorandum of Understanding will cover in-depth cooperation on technologies including TDD/FDD data roaming and VoLTE, addressing possible interconnection and interoperability issues as TD-LTE networks are constructed in South Korea. The agreement will further promote the convergence of TDD and FDD technologies, spurring the transition to next-generation networks.

"We are delighted to cooperate with ZTE and China Mobile in this project," said Dr. Cui Kuishi, head of the Convergence Technology research department at MSIP's Telecommunications Institute, "China Mobile and ZTE are leaders in the global telecommunications industry, and this strategic cooperation will help South Korea with in the deployment of 4G interconnection and interoperability tests, especially the tests based on TD-LTE."

As the largest TD-LTE operator in the world, China Mobile has abundant experience in network construction and operation. China Mobile's technologies and experience will help accelerate the development of TD-lTE in South Korea.

"We are excited about this tripartite cooperation with MSIP and China Mobile," said Jason Cao, ZTE's chief representative in South Korea. "The adoption of common telecommunications standards in China and South Korea will generate increased opportunities for industry and commerce, as trade and partnerships between businesses in the two countries grow under the China-South Korea Free Trade Agreement."

Compared with FDD-LTE, TD-LTE has higher spectrum efficiency and offers operators a clear roadmap in the evolution to 5G technology. According to GTI (Global TD-LTE Initiative), there are 63 commercial TD-LTE networks globally as Q2 2015, of which 23 are TDD/FDD dual-mode networks.