UAE telecom giant Etisalat has launched its long-term evolution (LTE) frequency division duplexing (FDD) mobile network in the UAE, offering 4th Generation (4G) data transfer speeds to its subscribers.

Etisalat Acting CEO, Mr Nasser Bin Obood, said the corporation has completed building the first 4G LTE-FDD network in the country and the widest in West Asia. Etisalat’s strategy ensures that upon launch, new technologies are made available to customers across all key areas of the UAE.

The company said it is one of the first telecommunications operators in the world to complete this technological achievement, which enhances the country’s global position in terms of advanced telecommunications services.

With this new technical achievement, the UAE is one of the first countries in the word to launch 4G, the result of years of work to develop the telecommunications sector and the corporation’s significant investment in the country’s infrastructure.

The LTE network offers speeds exceeding 100 MB/s and is particularly effective when utilising large amounts of data, such as watching high definition movies, playing online multiplayer games, using social applications and utilising other bandwidth-intensive applications.

For the LTE network, more than 700 base stations have been renovated and equipped to provide 4G services in the country.

Etisalat plans to establish up to 1,000 fully operational base stations by the end of this year.

This investment has directly impacted and contributed to the country’s ICT capabilities, ranking the UAE on par or ahead of developed countries.