3 Mobile Telecommunication Businesses Start Developing Additional Services
‘100% LTE Generation’ that uses LTE for even voice is now opened. It is predicted that benefits for users will be even more strengthened as VoLTE not only improves quality of calling, but provides variety of combined and complex services that were not seen before. 3 mobile telecommunication businesses have started developing related services, and Ministry of Science, ICP and Future Planning (MSIP) finished linkage between 3 mobile telecommunication businesses and announced that complete commercialization of VoLTE will start from the 23rd. After starting off with demonstrative service in end of June, MSIP and 3 mobile telecommunication businesses have been expanding targets of service after going through sequential commercialization. Unfinished service, which was only possible between users of same business, is now emerged as a complete service.
VoLTE processes calls by using packet (data) method. One can enjoy high-quality calling service because VoLTE supports wider audio frequency bandwidth than 2G and 3G. Quality of its video calling is 8 times better than 3G, and its time of calling connection is 20 times faster at about 0.25 seconds to 2.5 seconds.
Because VoLTE applies current fees, there are not additional fees or consumption of data. One can use it right away if a person has a Smartphone that was released after July of 2012. If a person has an Android, he or she can use VoLTE by going to Configuration, Calling, and HD Voice. If a person has an iPhone, he or she can use VoLTE by going to Setup, Cellular, LTE, and Voice.
All 3 mobile telecommunication businesses are being very busy since additional services based on VoLTE can be a new source of profit while their sales have been stagnant. Because a trend is leaning more towards data rather than voice calling, businesses are competing each other to put out new services first.
SK Telecom is introducing ‘Smart Call Forwarding (tentative name)’ service, which can receive calls from other equipment such as laptops, Tablet PCs and others that do not have USIM, by end of this year to its users. If users of ‘T-Phone’, which is a call platform, uses VoLTE, they can utilize variety of functions of ‘Visible Call’ that allows one to share documents and map with a different person.
KT released ‘Olleh Call and Share’ service that allows one to view contents such as pictures, documents, web pages, and others with a different person while talking on a phone. It is a free app for only KT members and it allows users to talk on a phone while making a sketch of particular parts of pictures and documents because not only it allows sharing of contents, but also supports Sketch function.
LG Uplus developed ‘Photoring Service’ and ‘One Number Service’ along with its current VoLTE platform called Uwa. Photoring is a service that shows even pictures and videos along with texts on an incoming call screen of a different person’s phone and it costs $0.04 (50 KRW) per use. One Number Service allows one to use a number of a cellphone from a Smartwatch that has a separate number.
Staff Reporter An, Hochun | hcan@etnews.com
