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With operator budgets under pressure, any advance that enables them to squeeze more mileage out of their networks is welcome, so we have seen intensifying attention to technologies such as EDGE Evolved, Qualcomm's enhanced CDMA 1xRTT, and ZTE's HSPA MX. The latest contribution comes from Nokia Siemens (NSN), which has carried out the first field trials of a system for doubling the voice capacity of GSM without special handsets.

While GPRS and EDGE add data capabilities to GSM networks, Orthogonal Sub Channel (OSC) is focused on voice capacity, like Qualcomm's recent upgrade of its 2G CDMA platform. In the trial, NSN carried four voice calls on a single GSM timeslot, an industry first, and claimed no loss of call quality. OSC, a software upgrade to base stations and BSCs, promises cellcos more capacity from fewer base stations - especially those in emerging economies, many without more efficient 3G networks, and most still primarily focused on voice services. The breakthrough should also reduce energy costs for carriers and reduce carbon emissions, and it works with all existing GSM phones.

The vendor says it will commercialize the technology next year. It has been heavily involved in the standardization of OSC, and its head of GSM/EDGE product management, Prashant Agnihotri, told EETimes: "This successful demonstration opens up a profitable growth path for operators, evolving their networks to a new level of efficiency with minimized capex and opex."

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