NatCom Development and Investment Limited (ntel), the company that acquired the core assets of NiTel/MTel (in liquidation), made its first voice-over-LTE (VoLTE) call in Lagos yesterday.
The test VoLTE call was made at 3.30pm at ntel’s new Tier III data centre located on Lagos Island. VoLTE calls are enabled over a carrier’s high-speed data network instead of on a voice network. Voice-over-LTE calls also connect faster upon dialling and feature ultra-clear high-definition voice quality.
In a press release signed by Osondu C. Nwokoro, director, external affairs, ntel, the VoLTE call was completed in partnership with Original Equipment Manufacturers L M Ericsson of Sweden and Sony Electronics of Japan. This follows ntel’s first data call on January 18, 2016, and its first SIP voice call on February 18, 2016.
ntel will now progress work with Nigeria’s other mobile operators and international partners to perform cross-network VoLTE calls: This will ensure that ntel’s customers can connect with each other as easily as they can to both customers in Nigeria and to those elsewhere in the world: a network now comprising more than seven billion telephones, globally.
This crystal-clear, high-definition VoLTE call was made via an ntel sim card and is set to be a significant differentiating factor for ntel as it progresses with the roll-out of Nigeria’s largest Advanced 4G/LTE network, due to be launched shortly.
The successful test call is, according to Kamar Abass, ntel CEO, “confirmation that the key network elements are now in place to support the full commercial launch of premium integrated voice, video and data services over 4G/LTE.
“The ntel network is built on the 900/1800Mhz, which are the most efficient propagation frequencies for the deployment of 4G/LTE technology.”
The company made its first test data call in Lagos on Monday, January 18, 2016, a few days after NatCom chairman, Tunde Ayeni appeared before the House of Representatives Communications Committee.
Speaking during his appearance, Ayeni had told the lawmakers that ntel was committed to investing over $1 billion to support roll out of commercial services, starting in Lagos, Port Harcourt and Abuja. He also noted that ntel would generate employment for over 4,000 Nigerians in the next five years.
This test call is a further demonstration that ntel is fully committed to building on the acquired assets of NiTel/MTel to provide world-class super-fast broadband services to support the Federal Government’s 2013 National Broadband plan.
Ntel will commence full commercial operations, in its key launch states, shortly.
