Verizon, Qualcomm set to supply controversial unlicensed LTE starting next year

Verizon and Qualcomm are on track to extend LTE networks into Wi-Fi frequencies by the end of next year despite a heated controversy over whether that would slow down wireless LANs. 

Verizon will start field trials of LTE-Unlicensed in October, aiming for a commercial launch next year, executives said during a briefing at the company's Innovation Center in San Francisco. Qualcomm demonstrated chips for mobile devices and small cells and said they would show up in products around the middle of 2016.

LTE-U has drawn fire from Google, the Wi-Fi Alliance, cable operators and others who say the technology might effectively squeeze Wi-Fi out of the spectrum it depends on. That spectrum is unlicensed, meaning any device approved by the Federal Communications Commission can use it as long as it meets a few criteria, but LTE-U would allow cellular networks to use much of the important 5GHz unlicensed band. 

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