Jack Brown · @jackearlbrown
29th Jun 2012 from Twitlonger
“when will we be able to roam from one LTE network from one carrier to another?”
More work required for LTE roaming, says Qualcomm CEO
It is not very hard to roam with 3G networks and their HSPA+ derivates because they use a fairly limited number of bands. For example, a phone like the GSM Galaxy Nexus can work worldwide, including on most HSPA+ networks such as T-Mobile, AT&T and others in the world. To achieve this, the Nexus handset is compatible with 5 bands (it is a “penta-band” phone), which is relatively rare. Most GSM smartphones are quad-band.
With LTE, there are even more bands (or radio frequencies) because governments worldwide have allocated “whatever they can find” often without any national or international coordination. Even in the U.S, the LTE networks from AT&T, Verizon and Sprint aren’t necessarily compatible.
http://www.ubergizmo.com/2012/06/more-work-required-lte-roaming-says-qualcomm-ceo/