New Delhi: India’s second biggest carrier Bharti Airtel has signed pacts with Ericsson, Nokia and Samsung to commence deployment of 5G services in August.
Ericsson will roll out the services in 12 circles, while Samsung has come on board as a new partner.
“Our network agreements are finalized and Airtel will work with the best technology partners from across the world to deliver the full benefits of 5G connectivity to our consumers,” Gopal Vittal, MD and CEO, Airtel, said.
The chief executive said the choice of multiple partners will enable Airtel to roll out 5G services spanning ultra-high-speeds, low latency and large data handling capabilities, which will enable a superior user experience and innovative use cases with enterprise and industry customers.
Airtel bid for and acquired 19867.8 MHZ spectrum in 900 MHz, 1800 MHz, 2100 MHz, 3300 MHz, and 26 GHz frequencies in the recently concluded auctions, for more than ₹43034 crore.
Börje Ekholm, president and CEO, Ericsson, said that Airtel will deploy power-efficient 5G Radio Access Network (RAN) products and solutions from its radio system and microwave mobile transport solutions.
“We look forward to supporting Bharti Airtel with its deployment of 5G in India. With Ericsson’s unrivalled, global 5G deployment experience, we will help Bharti Airtel deliver the full benefits of 5G to Indian consumers and enterprises, while seamlessly evolving the Bharti network from 4G to 5G. 5G will enable India to realize its Digital India vision and foster inclusive development of the country,” he said.
The multi-year deal will see Nokia provide equipment from its market-leading AirScale portfolio along with solutions and services for network management, deployment, planning and optimization services to ensure the best end-user experiences.
Speaking about the partnership, Pekka Lundmark, President and CEO of Nokia said, “This landmark deal reinforces our long-standing partnership with Bharti Airtel. We are delighted that they have chosen Nokia's best-in-class AirScale baseband and radio portfolio to deliver superior 5G performance in one of the world's largest networks. I look forward to our continued successful long-term collaboration in this vital and dynamic market.”
Airtel will also bring in South Korean major Samsung as a network partner for the first time. Samsung had been the sole supplier to Reliance Jio till recently.
“5G will have a powerful impact on India’s consumers and businesses—taking mobile experiences to a new level, introducing a gamut of enhanced capabilities and expanding what is possible. As a global leader in 5G, Samsung is excited to embark on this 5G journey with Airtel to deliver innovative solutions that will help advance India’s entrepreneurial spirit and open up a new paradigm for the country,” said Paul (Kyungwhoon) Cheun, president and head of networks business at Samsung Electronics.
Over the past year, Airtel has tested several use cases with multiple partners at many locations. It demonstrated India’s first 5G experience over a live 4G network in Hyderabad. It showcased India’s first rural 5G trial to the first cloud gaming experience on 5G and the successful deployment of India’s first captive private network on the trial spectrum.
