On Tuesday, Verizon announced that it will launch HD Voice over LTE in the coming weeks. With this launch, Verizon is taking the first step toward shedding CDMA2000 as its primary network platform. Back in 2011, Verizon first indicated it would roll out VoLTE (Voice over LTE) on its network in 2012, transitioning away from CDMA within a couple of years of that. However, it backed away from that because it simply did not have the coverage to make that work, since CDMA networks cannot support SRVCC (Single Radio Voice Call Continuity) like GSM/UMTS networks can. Because of this, the call would drop outside of LTE coverage areas. Over the last few years, Verizon has rapidly deployed LTE on its Upper 700MHz C block (LTE Band 13) spectrum throughout the country. Assisted in part by its LTE in Rural America program, Verizon has matched its CDMA EvDO footprint with LTE, and has very nearly matched its CDMA 1X footprint.
Last year, Verizon CFO Fran Shammo indicated that it would roll out VoLTE in early 2014. Obviously, that has not happened. Somewhat surprisingly, T-Mobile beat Verizon to launch nationwide VoLTE at the end of July(Opens in a new window). However, now that Verizon has confirmed the availability of national VoLTE in a few weeks(Opens in a new window), the company will be able to move out of the CDMA camp and offer national VoLTE service, too.
Example screenshots of Verizon VoLTE + RCS Video Calling
The availability of VoLTE changes the equation for consumers a bit. Because Verizon's Upper 700MHz C block spectrum rules mandate open access to the network for any compatible device, any LTE device that supports VoLTE must be allowed to operate on the network and be able to use VoLTE. We spoke to Debra Lewis of Verizon Corporate Communications about the matter, and we were assured that Verizon is following all the relevant standards for authentication and configuration for VoLTE. Like T-Mobile, Verizon is using AMR-WB for its LTE voice codec, and it will support HD Voice. However, Verizon is also launching the first set of RCS (Rich Communications Services) to go with it: video calling. VoLTE and RCS Video Calling are being dubbed as "Advanced Calling 1.0"(Opens in a new window). The company plans to roll out other RCS features like presence notification, instant messaging, and file transfers in the future. Unfortunately, despite the IP voice interconnection with T-Mobile made earlier this year(Opens in a new window), we were told that VoLTE HD Voice calls only work among Verizon Wireless customers for now.
Of course, the real winner here is Qualcomm,
Provided that the device is loaded with the requisite VoLTE software, any unlocked LTE phone with compatible bands will work. That means phones like the Sony Xperia Z2 (which supports Verizon's LTE network on 700MHz and AWS but lacks support for the CDMA network) would be able to make calls on Verizon's network once a software update by Sony is made to add VoLTE software to the phone. Phones that support VoLTE and support AWS (LTE band 4) would be able to work on Verizon's AWS LTE network (primarily from spectrum acquired from the cable companies and branded XLTE(Opens in a new window)), but not everywhere (since the primary band for Verizon LTE is on 700MHz Band 13).
This is a huge deal, as once VoLTE is available, all the shackles that Verizon has historically imposed on consumers in terms of device selection are effectively gone. It is only a matter of time before phone manufacturers pick up on this and start releasing unlocked phones capable of using Verizon's VoLTE system. And most importantly, Verizon can now start rolling out phones that do not support its CDMA network, as it has for tablets for nearly a year now.
