Nokia Networks Unveils $970M 4G Deal With China MobileNokia Networks Unveils $970M 4G Deal With China Mobile

Nokia Networks has further cemented its 4G relationship with China Mobile, revealing a $970 million deal with the massive Asian carrier.

Nokia Networks , which already styles itself as "the top non-Chinese vendor" for China Mobile Ltd. (NYSE: CHL)'s LTE TDD rollout, is providing technology -- including its Evolved Packet Core (EPC) and GSM wireless networking equipment, core application platforms, OSS, software, and services -- for the 4G deployment this year and in 2015. It started shipping gear under this agreement at the start of 2014. (See Nokia Networks Boasts China Mobile 4G Deals.)

The deal has already had a positive effect on Nokia's financials. (See Nokia Holds Steady in Q2, Raises Outlook.)

Need to know more about 4G? Visit Light Reading's 4G/LTE channel. Long Term Evolution Time Division Duplex (LTE TDD) -- also known as TD-LTE -- is China's home-grown 4G standard. TDD technology uses a single channel and a timed signal to separate uploads and downloads to get its mobile broadband mojo. That contrasts with the frequency division duplex (FDD) versions of LTE more commonly deployed elsewhere, which have two dedicated channels for uploads and downloads. (See Defining 4G: What the Heck Is LTE TDD?.) The domestic vendors for the 4G deployment are Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. and ZTE Corp. (Shenzhen: 000063; Hong Kong: 0763). China Mobile claims to now have 30 million people on the new service, which initially launched in December 2013. (See China Mobile Adds 9M 4G Customers in August.) — Dan Jones, Mobile Editor, Light Reading