An eNodeB comprising: a first transceiver to transmit and receive in an unlicensed channel; a second transceiver to transmit and receive in a licensed channel and in the unlicensed channel according to a cellular wireless protocol; and a controller configured to: sense, via the first transceiver, an energy of the unlicensed channel over a predetermined number of one or more slits to determine that the unlicensed channel is unoccupied, the slits defined with reference to timing information of the cellular wireless protocol, and in response to determining that the channel is unoccupied: schedule, via a control channel transmitted on the licensed channel, at least one User Equipment, UE, serviced by the eNodeB to receive data in the unlicensed channel; and transmit the data over the unlicensed channel starting at a cellular subframe boundary via the second transceiver; wherein the controller is configured to implement a backoff process, and is configured to refrain from transmitting the data on the unlicensed channel until the backoff process is successful; characterized in that the control channel is a Physical Downlink Control Channel, PDCCH, and the controller is configured to: predict (7020, 7030) that a backoff process will complete before an end of a transmission of the PDCCH, and in response, schedule, via the PDCCH on the licensed channel transmitted by the second transceiver prior to completion of the backoff process, the at least one UE serviced by the eNodeB to receive data on the unlicensed channel. a first transceiver to transmit and receive in an unlicensed channel; a second transceiver to transmit and receive in a licensed channel and in the unlicensed channel according to a cellular wireless protocol; and a controller configured to: sense, via the first transceiver, an energy of the unlicensed channel over a predetermined number of one or more slits to determine that the unlicensed channel is unoccupied, the slits defined with reference to timing information of the cellular wireless protocol, and in response to determining that the channel is unoccupied: schedule, via a control channel transmitted on the licensed channel, at least one User Equipment, UE, serviced by the eNodeB to receive data in the unlicensed channel; and transmit the data over the unlicensed channel starting at a cellular subframe boundary via the second transceiver; wherein the controller is configured to implement a backoff process, and is configured to refrain from transmitting the data on the unlicensed channel until the backoff process is successful; characterized in that the control channel is a Physical Downlink Control Channel, PDCCH, and the controller is configured to: predict (7020, 7030) that a backoff process will complete before an end of a transmission of the PDCCH, and in response, schedule, via the PDCCH on the licensed channel transmitted by the second transceiver prior to completion of the backoff process, the at least one UE serviced by the eNodeB to receive data on the unlicensed channel. schedule, via a control channel transmitted on the licensed channel, at least one User Equipment, UE, serviced by the eNodeB to receive data in the unlicensed channel; and transmit the data over the unlicensed channel starting at a cellular subframe boundary via the second transceiver; wherein the controller is configured to implement a backoff process, and is configured to refrain from transmitting the data on the unlicensed channel until the backoff process is successful; characterized in that the control channel is a Physical Downlink Control Channel, PDCCH, and the controller is configured to: predict (7020, 7030) that a backoff process will complete before an end of a transmission of the PDCCH, and in response, schedule, via the PDCCH on the licensed channel transmitted by the second transceiver prior to completion of the backoff process, the at least one UE serviced by the eNodeB to receive data on the unlicensed channel.