Europe : Airvana, Inc. and Nokia Siemens Networks announced that the companies plan to provide an end-to-end femto cell solution for mobile operators worldwide. The solution is targeted at 3G operators that wish to extend their coverage and offer new voice and mobile broadband data services.

Femto cells are small cellular access points that utilize a broadband Internet connection to provide consumers with enhanced mobile voice, video and data services, especially in the home. They enable operators to provide mobile broadband services in-building by leveraging existing broadband connectivity. In a recent report, ABI Research forecasts the market for femto cell equipment will grow 95% per year, to more than $4 billion by 2012.

“Delivering operators a complete, standards-based femto cell solution will enable them to offer new services and expand relationships with their customers,” said Timo Hyppölä, Indoor Radio Solutions Product Line, Nokia Siemens Networks. “Nokia Siemens Networks is a strong proponent of employing open interfaces, a philosophy shared by Airvana. Operators now have greater flexibility and choice thanks to the compatibility of Femto customer premises equipment with our open architecture. This approach provides us the flexibility we need to best meet the demands of the market.”

Airvana’s UMTS Home Base Station femto cell leverages software-based functionality and off-the-shelf silicon to accelerate feature development and reduce product cost. The product is being certified to interoperate with Nokia Siemens Networks’ Femto Gateway. As the first milestone in this effort, the companies have successfully completed simultaneous end-to-end calls utilizing Airvana’s femto cell and Nokia Siemens Networks’ Femto Gateway to connect to a 3GPP core network. The two companies will cooperate in the marketing and sales of the joint solution to mobile operators worldwide. Each company will independently supply its respective products to the operator. Initial trials of the joint solution are expected by the end of 2007, with deployments starting in 2008.

“We believe that femto cells will transform the experience of using mobile devices indoors,” said Randy Battat, President and CEO of Airvana. “Nokia Siemens Networks has a great strategy to connect femto cells to the core network by driving an open ecosystem, and Airvana’s product is a natural fit to their strategy.”

Launched in July 2007, the Femto Home Access Solution from Nokia Siemens Networks introduces open interfaces, boosting the overall femto cell ecosystem and enabling operators to enhance their 3G service offering and coverag