News Brief

Ovum: ZTE Ranked Third in Global Optical Networking Market

7 July 2010, Shenzhen, China ― ZTE today announced that it is ranked third in the global Optical Networking (ON) industry, according to the latest research by industry analyst firm Ovum. ZTE posted the strongest gains for the first quarter of 2010 and a strong increase in overall revenues to rise from its previous position as the seventh-ranked vendor in 1Q09.

According to Ovum’s latest report entitled “Market Share: 1Q10 optical networks, global and regional”, many of the top ten ON vendors posted double digit percentage revenue declines for 1Q10, as compared to 1Q09. ZTE is the only vendor that showed a 33% sequential increase in overall revenues for the first quarter of 2010.

Around the world, optical networking spending in the first quarter of 2010 dropped to 3.2 billion USD, posting a decline of 8% as compared to the same period last year. While the Asia-Pacific region looks fairly healthy and North America spending appears to be on the road to recovery, the EMEA and SCA regions remain relatively depressed.

The Ovum report also noted that only Cisco and ZTE reported growth as compared to the same quarter one year ago, with ZTE proving to be the top performer of the first quarter this year, fueled by a big contract win with China Mobile for backhaul-related PTN products for its 3G network. “Many vendors have seen benefits from operators’ need to revamp their mobile backhaul networks to cope with broadband traffic, new services and new devices. In this regard, ZTE’s competitive position in the China market was a strong plus for it in 1Q10,” commented Matt Walker, a Principal Analyst on Ovum’s Network Infrastructure team.

“ZTE made great strides in the optical network markets in 2009, especially in the PTN market where ZTE got a gigantic win in China Mobile’s PTN tender. The scale of this networking project huge with stringent networking requirements, and clinching the contract was a great encouragement to both ZTE and its customers. ZTE PTN equipments have been widely deployed in some Asia-Pacific countries as well as in several Multinational Telecom Operators (MTO) in Europe and America,” said Mr. Fan Xiaobing, General Manager of ZTE’s bearer network product line.

ZTE and Three Release Android Éclair Handset in the UK

15 July 2010, London ― ZTE and Three, have launched the ZTE Racer, a low cost Android 2.1 (Éclair) powered handset. The Racer is the first Android handset in the UK from ZTE and is Three’s first Android handset to break the £100 barrier, selling at £99.99.

“We’re really excited to bring the ZTE Android smartphone into our range. Combining the power of Android and the strength of our 3G network, we’re enabling more and more customers to get a great mobile internet experience at a price that’s right for them,” said David Kerrigan, Head of Internet Service, Three UK.

The Racer is a ZTE and Three co-branded handset that combines a 2.8'' QVGA touchscreen, 3.2 megapixel camera, 256 MB of internal memory, Bluetooth and 7.2Mbps HSDPA capabilities. The handset is aimed at consumers who require access to a wide range of applications. The Android operating system (OS) allows users to download thousands of apps from the Android market with quicklink access to services including Facebook, Spotify, YouTube, Google Maps and Google Talk.

ZTE Positioned in the Leaders Quadrant in Leading Industry Analyst Firm Report

14 July 2010, Shenzhen, China ― ZTE today announced that it has been positioned in the leaders quadrant in Gartner’s Magic Quadrant for Softswitch Architecture Report.

 As described in the report: “Leaders are high-viability vendors with a broad portfolio, significant market share, broad geographic coverage, a clear vision for how service providers’ needs will evolve, and a proven track record for delivering products. They are well positioned with their current product portfolios and are likely to continue to deliver leading products. Leaders do not necessarily offer the best solution for every customer requirement, and their products may not be ‘best of breed’ throughout their portfolios. However, overall, they provide solutions that offer relatively low risk and high quality.”

 ZTE’s all-IP core network solution covering fixed Softswitch, Mobile Softswitch, IMS and other fields, and the continuous innovative Softswitch and IMS solution promotes the healthy development of industry chain. ZTE is becoming the leader in driving core network technology development and market application all over the world. Based on continuous investment in research and increasing in emerging markets, ZTE gained 35% revenue growth in the Softswitch market, while the overall market suffered a decline of more than 10%.

ZTE Ranks First in China’s CDMA Market with Increased 43.54% Market Share in H1 2010

30 June 2010, Shenzhen, China ― ZTE today announced that it has increased its market share in China’s CDMA market to a robust 43.54% in the first half of 2010, reinforcing its lead as the top vendor again. ZTE also has an accumulated market share of 43.2% of China’s total CDMA equipment market, putting it firmly ahead of its competition in the CDMA industry. The company attributed the achievements partly to the steady increase in shipments made globally.

“For four consecutive years, ZTE has been firmly at the top of the global CDMA market in terms of base station shipments from 2006 to 2009. The development of the CDMA market is of great importance to ZTE, which is why we are one of the few vendors in the world who continue to make large-scale investments into CDMA technology,” said Li Jian, ZTE’s General Manager of CDMA & LTE products.

ZTE Completes World’s First MSF LTE/EPC Interoperability Tests

MultiService Forum tests conducted in China and Germany

19 July 2010, Shenzhen, China ― ZTE today revealed that it has successfully completed the world’s first MSF LTE/EPC Interoperability tests. ZTE is one of various equipment vendors to participate and succeed in the MultiService Forum tests.

The tests were held by China Mobile and Vodafone in China and Germany respectively. ZTE took part in both China and Germany site tests by providing its advanced equipment sets including LTE eNodeB equipment, Evolved Packet Core (EPC), and IP Multimedia Subsystems (IMS) components.

All the core network vendors underwent two different scenarios of tests: single and interconnected laboratory. The objective is to assess the performance of equipment from multiple vendors under different implementation conditions. The end goal is to enhance the maturity of EPC inter-working in a multi-vendor environment, and to promote core network development in the LTE eco-system.

In the experiment carried out in the Vodafone Germany laboratory, ZTE was the exclusive supplier of eNodeB wireless equipment, and it successfully passed single laboratory and interoperability tests with Starent, Bridgewater, NEC and other vendors.

 ZTE also joined the tests held at China Mobile’s Beijing laboratory that measured end-to-end interoperability of the main LTE interfaces. In addition, the company also concluded all three roaming experiments between the two laboratories and realized the industry's first IMS LTE call under a multi-vendor interconnection setting.

World’s First Dual-Band LTE Commercial Network Deployed by ZTE and CSL in Hong Kong

22 July 2010, Shenzhen, China ― CSL Limited, Hong Kong’s leading mobile network operator and a subsidiary of Telstra Corporation, and ZTE, a leading global provider of telecommunications equipment and network solutions, will be deploying the world’s first commercial 1800 MHz/2600 MHz dual-band LTE network. The deployment follows the commercial LTE network construction contract signed by both parties, under which ZTE will provide CSL with an end-to-end LTE infrastructure solution and LTE devices. The dual-band LTE network will leverage CSL’s spectrum position to provide customers with better coverage and enhanced penetration for a more satisfying communications experience.

The LTE terminals for CSL’s LTE network will be deployed and developed by ZTE. It will provide CSL with a unified core network to support 2G/3G/LTE concurrently for a seamless user experience. The latest Software Defined Radio (SDR) technology supports the distributed multi-mode and multi-band base stations, including re-farming of the 1800MHz spectrum for LTE use.

With its world-class all-IP 3G HSPA+ network now in place, CSL is the first operator in Hong Kong to deploy a commercial LTE network, earning it wide regard as a global pioneer in LTE network development.

As a strategic partner with CSL, ZTE has supported CSL in developing and deploying GSM/HSPA+ and LTE wireless technologies. Due to its unique geography and density, Hong Kong is one of the world’s most challenging environments to deploy a large-scale wireless network. With ZTE’s extensive experience and leading R&D capabilities, ZTE’s uni-RAN solution has demonstrated enormous innovation and capabilities in coping with the needs of multi-platform integration in complex network environments.