HONG KONG: Hong Kong Applied Science and Technology Research Institute Company Limited (ASTRI) announces its collaboration with the PCCW Group, a telecommunication solution provider, on 3GPP Release 13 LTE WiFi Aggregation (LWA) trial. The LWA trial will enable ASTRI and PCCW Group to collect important field data towards enabling commercial LWA deployment in Hong Kong.

LWA is a specification developed by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), where a mobile handset supporting both wireless high-speed communication and Wi-Fi is configured by the network to utilize both the Long-Term Evolution (LTE)and Wi-Fi links simultaneously. It offers faster and more stable Internet service, enhancing user experience and system performance.

The collaboration targets commercial LWA deployment in Hong Kong to demonstrate the LWA benefits on enhancing user experience on LTE network and to position Hong Kong as a leading city in the world to conduct a 3GPP Release 13 LWA trial.

“Being Hong Kong’s leading mobile operator, the PCCW Group is enthusiastic about advancing wireless technologies together with ASTRI to the benefit of all walks of life in this mobile-centric era. This collaboration with ASTRI represents another key step toward PCCW’s commitment to promoting the development of innovation and technology in Hong Kong,” says Ms. Susanna Hui, Group Chief Financial Officer and Executive Director, PCCW.