en.Wedoany.com Reported - MTN Zambia, in collaboration with Huawei, has completed the world's first commercial deployment of the new five-band LampSite solution at the Mulungushi International Conference Centre in Lusaka. The solution integrates 1.8GHz, 2.1GHz, 2.3GHz, TDD 2.6GHz, and 3.5GHz into a single-box device, supporting multi-band coordination and achieving peak rates of up to 1Gbps. This enhances 5G connectivity in high-traffic indoor scenarios such as convention centers, airports, and business districts.
Indoor networks are becoming an increasingly critical scenario for 5G deployment in Africa. Previously, operators prioritized outdoor macro base stations along urban main roads and commercial areas, as well as densely populated zones, when rolling out 5G. However, users frequently engage in high-bandwidth activities like HD video streaming, live broadcasting, cloud services, mobile office work, and online interactions in venues such as convention centers, airports, hotels, shopping malls, office parks, and transportation hubs. The Mulungushi International Conference Centre, a key venue for conferences, exhibitions, and business events in Zambia, experiences high visitor density and concurrent service demands. Traditional macro base stations struggle to provide stable 3.5GHz signal coverage deep indoors, and existing distributed antenna systems cannot effectively coordinate multiple frequency bands, leading to deficiencies in 5G speed, capacity, and consistent user experience. MTN Zambia's deployment of Huawei's new-generation LampSite adopts a digital indoor network architecture, integrating 2G, 3G, 4G, and 5G multi-mode capabilities into a single-box pRRU. By utilizing TDD 2.6GHz and 3.5GHz 4T channels for carrier aggregation, indoor users can achieve a gigabit downlink experience comparable to outdoor networks. For operators, the value of such a solution lies not only in bringing signals indoors but also in using a simplified device form to support multiple modes, multiple bands, and future 5G-A evolution needs. This reduces the number of devices, construction time, operational complexity, and energy consumption associated with traditional multi-system parallel deployments. As HD conferencing, cloud-based office work, immersive displays, AR/XR navigation, and large-scale event live streaming become routine requirements in public venues, indoor 5G networks have transitioned from supplementary coverage to an integral part of digital infrastructure.
According to official disclosures, the solution can reduce the number of head-end devices by up to 50% over the same coverage area, and achieve a "0 Bit 0 Watt" green network capability through intelligent sleep modes and symbol-level energy savings.
From the perspective of the ICT industry chain, the commercial deployment of the five-band LampSite reflects a shift in operators' indoor network upgrade logic. Early indoor coverage primarily addressed the issue of "signal availability," relying on distributed antenna systems, indoor distribution system modifications, and localized small cell additions. In the 5G and 5G-A era, user experience gaps are more driven by capacity, latency, band aggregation, energy efficiency, and multi-service support. Large convention centers simultaneously handle HD video calls, media uploads, mobile payments, exhibitor cloud applications, visitor navigation, and security communications during events. A network with only basic connectivity struggles to sustain such high concurrency demands. The single-box five-band design reduces the engineering complexity of deploying multiple bands independently and is better suited for venues like stadiums, airports, and business districts, which have limited space, short construction windows, and high network experience requirements. For equipment vendors like Huawei, the evolution of indoor 5G from traditional indoor distribution system upgrades to digital small cells and multi-band coordination means competition will shift from pure hardware coverage to comprehensive capabilities in "multi-mode compatibility, energy efficiency, evolution readiness, operational simplicity, and scenario replication." For Zambia and broader African markets, high-quality indoor connectivity will directly impact business activities, digital service consumption, enterprise office efficiency, and the digitalization level of urban public spaces. If this solution is replicated in airports, central business districts, and transportation hubs, indoor 5G could become a key lever for African operators to enhance network experience and unlock 5G commercial value.
MTN Zambia stated that the Mulungushi project helps provide a consistent indoor and outdoor connectivity experience and supports HD video, online interactions, and AR/XR applications. Huawei said it will continue to deepen cooperation with MTN Zambia, replicating multi-band coordination and 4T capabilities to more areas. As Africa's mobile internet user base grows, cloud services become more prevalent, and indoor high-traffic scenarios expand, indoor 5G, LampSite, and multi-band coordination will become important directions in operators' network upgrades.
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