LightSquared now says that it will continue testing its Long Term Evolution (LTE) through 2011 in anticipation of customers launching initial wholesale services on the operator's network in the first half of 2012.

The Harbinger Capital Partners LP -backed venture has now changed its FAQs section to state that it is conducting "technical testing which will run through 2011" with customers "expected to launch services in the first half 2012." (See LightSquared Plans LTE Launch Next Year .)

The initial FAQ and some executive interviews -- linked on the company's press page -- appeared to suggest that the company was originally planning commercial launch in the second half of 2011.

Here's the original page:



And the updated FAQ section:



A spokeswoman from LightSquared says that, in fact, it was always the company's intention to "launch test markets" by the end of this year, with commercial services to follow in 2012. She did say, however, in an email reply to Light Reading Mobile, that the initial FAQ statement could be interpreted in different ways, hence the update to the company's website.

Speaking of testing, there are more details trickling in about LightSquared's LTE test in the Las Vegas area. There have been fears that the LightSquared terrestrial broadband signal in the L-Band could drown out GPS positioning data beamed from outer space for aircraft navigation and other applications. The Las Vegas Sun is reporting, however, that non-commercial pilots and first responders in Nevada are seeing no impact on their GPS systems so far. (See FAA Warns on LightSquared GPS Tests in Nevada.)

We'll keep you updated on this frequently evolving story when more data comes in.

— Dan Jones, Site Editor, Light Reading Mobile