Huawei, a leading global information and communications technology (ICT) solutions provider, and Zain, a pioneer in mobile telecommunications in eight markets across the Middle East and North Africa, have launched  a commercial LTE 1800 MHz network that covers the entire country of Kuwait.
 
The network is the largest of its kind in the region and marks a major step for the development of the region's mobile broadband market.
 
Zain and Huawei expanded their LTE partnership after the successful deployment of GSM and UMTS networks in Kuwait. On November 21, Zain launched LTE services under the banner of "Wiyana Connect LTE", a newly-built LTE network that realizes Circuit Switched Fallback (CSFB) as a LTE voice solution and achieved download speeds exceeding 90 Mbps.
 
The new LTE network also enables a wide variety of high-performance mobile applications and multimedia, including video conferencing, high-definition content transmissions, high-speed video downloads, and social networking platforms. These mobile services, made possible by both the existing GSM/UMTS and new LTE networks, provide Zain's subscribers with a superior mobile broadband experience.
 
Zain has also partnered with Huawei to provide a diverse range of LTE smart devices, including smartphones, routers, hotspot MiFi, and dongles. The partnership includes agreements on a series of products, solutions, and services for terminal, radio access, and core network operations and management.

Omar Al Omar, Zain Kuwait CEO, said: "We are building a world class mobile network in Kuwait with GSM, UMTS, and LTE access to offer our customers a significant improvement in network coverage and speed. We have selected Huawei as our long-term strategic partner and believe that their innovative solutions and extensive experience in launching commercial networks will enable our customers to enjoy an incomparable mobile broadband experience."
 
Huawei has provided Zain with its cutting-edge SingleRAN solution that is capable of converging GSM, HSPA+, and LTE standards into a single network. This simplifies overall network structure while reducing Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) and expended manpower requirements. Huawei's SingleOSS suite also helps realize exceptional improvements in the operations and management efficiency of the whole network.
 
"Our successful partnership with Zain for GSM, UMTS, and now LTE, demonstrates the effectiveness of Huawei's SingleRAN solution. The solution continues to help operators simultaneously manage the challenges of operating multiple networks while meeting growing mobile broadband demands," Said Mr. Ali Shi, President of Huawei Middle East Region. "We are committed to being the best business partner for our customers worldwide, and will remain focused on customer-centric innovation moving forward."