Verizon's VoLTE rollout will kill off CDMA - and allow unlocked LTE phones, too [telecom]

By Neal Gompa

On Tuesday, Verizon announced that it will launch HD Voice over LTE in the coming weeks. With this launch, Verizon is taking the first step toward shedding CDMA2000 as its primary network platform. Back in

2011, Verizon first indicated it would roll out VoLTE (Voice over LTE) on its network in 2012, transitioning away from CDMA within a couple of years of that. However, it backed away from that because it simply did not have the coverage to make that work, since CDMA networks cannot support SRVCC (Single Radio Voice Call Continuity) like GSM/UMTS networks can. Because of this, the call would drop outside of LTE coverage areas. Over the last few years, Verizon has rapidly deployed LTE on its Upper 700MHz C block (LTE Band 13) spectrum throughout the country. Assisted in part by its LTE in Rural America program, Verizon has matched its CDMA EvDO footprint with LTE, and has very nearly matched its CDMA 1X footprint.

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