Having already initiated its Voice over LTE (VoLTE) roll-out, AT&T is now planning to offer Wi-Fi calling by 2015.
The carrier has always had embraced Wi-Fi and other closely related technologies. As a matter of fact, AT&T has managed to partner with other business entities over the years in order to provide public Wi-Fi areas for its customers.
Now, or more specifically, next year, the carrier is set to take important steps in boosting and further solidifying its Wi-Fi capabilities. According to Ralph de la Vega, CEO of AT&T's mobility and enterprise business, the company is considering Wi-Fi calling as an important complement to the carrier's core service, and not as a means for expanding coverage.
If anything else, AT&T's announcement of its Wi-Fi plans is impeccably timed. Just days ago, T-Mobile, another carrier, has also revealed its plan of venturing into the world of Wi-Fi calling and texting.
Interestingly enough, the recently announced iPhone 6 supports Wi-Fi technology, so one can easily say that T-Mobile's foray into Wi-Fi may have a lot to do with how the new iPhone version (and future ones) takes advantage of Wi-Fi networks.
Similar to T-Mobile, AT&T is planning on offering calls that smoothly operate between the LTE network and the Wi-Fi network. As of now, AT&T has not completed its VoLTE roll-out yet, which means that calls are still coursed through the traditional spectrum. For calls to achieve seamless hand-off between carrier and Wi-Fi, VoLTE is required. Without VoLTE, calls have a tendency of dropping when moving between the cell network and Wi-Fi. As soon as AT&T can complete its VoLTE rollout, the carriers should be able to start enjoying Wi-Fi calls.
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