ISCO International Links RF Physical Layer Conditioning To 3G / 4G Wireless Capital Efficiency At CTIA Wireless 2011

March 16, 2011

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Similar to Well-Established Practices Concerning Wireline Networks and Layer-1 of the ISO Model --Wireless Networks Require a Solid, Conditioned RF Physical Layer for Maximum Coverage and Capacity

ELK GROVE VILLAGE, Ill.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Gordon Reichard, CEO of ISCO International, LLC, a leading provider of flexible spectrum conditioning solutions for wireless service providers, will attend next week’s CTIA Wireless 2011 conference and exhibition in Orlando to discuss the tight linkage between a conditioned RF physical layer and maximum cell site coverage, capacity and performance.

Wireless service providers are continuously growing their networks to deliver the capacity needed to satisfy data hungry smart phones and their applications. Making sure the capital invested to deliver the incremental capacity meets expected financial returns requires the deployed equipment to operate as efficiently as possible. Specifically, ISCO has found, after working with numerous operators around the world and deploying “spectrum conditioning” units in more than 1500 base stations, that anomalies known as “Physical Layer Impairments” (PLI) will degrade cell site capacity and negatively impact planned performance and the expected return on investment (ROI).

The sources of PLI are numerous and random but can be expected to occur. As wireless traffic increases along with subscriber density, the probability of PLI caused by random interference also increases. Similar to potholes on a street, once a cell site experiences an interference event, the physical layer (Layer-1 of the ISO model) is impaired and performance degrades. The longer the interference persists or the more powerful the interferer becomes, more calls will be dropped or denied access and data users will experience an immediate decrease in throughput and data rate.

“Spectrum has always been a scarce commodity,” noted Peter Jarich, Service Director with Current Analysis. “With mobile broadband demand skyrocketing and 4G services rolling out, this scarcity will not change any time soon, making it critical for operators to do everything possible to protect their assets, add capacity and recover capacity due to interference.”

"With mobile data traffic soaring through the petabyte barrier, operators need to squeeze as much capacity from the existing spectrum they own as possible – maximum utilization is a must. Achieving maximum utilization starts with layer-1, a solid RF physical layer that the services layers of the wireless network can rely upon,” said Mr. Reichard. “In addition to maximum utilization, having a solid layer-1 that is verifiable aids network optimization and trouble isolation, which translates into lower operating costs and a higher performing wireless network.”

ISCO recently introduced Proteus, an all digital platform based on the latest digital signal processing technology. The Proteus platform supports CDMA including all EVDO and UMTS including all HSPA. The company plans to formally introduce a 4G version later in 2011.

About ISCO International:

ISCO International operates on the “front lines” of 3G – and soon – 4G communications by enhancing the integrity of a mobile operator’s “physical layer” assets – the cell site and acquired spectrum. ISCO understands that wireless communications depend heavily on the user’s RF connection to the base station and the company’s “spectrum conditioning” product line ensures that this connection performs as expected even in the most hostile and unpredictable environments. ISCO’s new Proteus™ product, based on the latest PurePass™ digital signal processing technology, adaptively identifies and corrects the physical layer impairments (PLI) that decrease a cell site's coverage, capacity, data throughput and KPI performance. In sum, ISCO allows wireless carriers to get the most out of their existing base stations and spectrum (possibly eliminating the need to build additional ones in certain situations), reduce operating expense and deliver a consistently high quality of service. Please visit www.iscointl.com for more information.