LTE – Unlicensed or Licensed Assisted Access (LTE-U or LAA)

LTE in unlicensed spectrum (LTE-U), is a proposal, originally developed by Qualcomm, for the use of the 4G LTE radio communications technology in unlicensed spectrumsuch as the 5 GHz band used by dual-band Wi-Fi equipment.^[1][2] It would serve as an alternative to carrier Wi-Fi. The proposed use of LTE-U by mobile phone networkoperators is the subject of controversy in the telecommunications industry.^[3]

• Ericsson also uses the term License Assisted Access to describe the same technology.^[4]