NEW DELHI: Bharti Airtel Wednesday said it has signed 5G network agreements with Swedish Ericsson, Finland’s Nokia, and Korean major Samsung to commence fifth-generation network rollout starting August 2022.
This marks the first time that Airtel will work with Samsung. Reliance Jio has so far worked with the Korean company for its 4G network.
While Airtel has had partnerships with Ericsson and Nokia, the partnership with Samsung will begin this year onwards, the Sunil Mittal-led telco said in an official statement.
Airtel has acquired 19867.8 MHz spectrum in 900 MHz, 1800 MHz, 2100 MHz, 3300 MHz, and 26 GHz frequency bands in India’s first 5G spectrum auction, at Rs 43,084 crore, with plans to launch 5G in key cities.
“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,” said Gopal Vittal, MD and CEO, Airtel. ”India’s transition into a digital economy will be led by telecom and 5G presents a game-changing opportunity to drive the digital transformation of industries, enterprises and the socio-economic development of India.”
ETTelecom on July 27 reported first that both Jio and Airtel finalised their 5G equipment partners, awarding contracts to the three vendors, and officially shutting out Chinese vendors Huawei and ZTE from the 5G rollouts.
Ericsson, in a statement, said it will provide 5G connectivity in 12 circles for Airtel. The gear maker will deploy its 5G Radio Access Network (RAN) products and solutions as well as microwave mobile transport solutions.
“With Ericsson’s unrivaled, 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,” said Börje Ekholm, President and CEO, Ericsson. Nokia separately said that the Airtel deal for the roll out of 5G radio access network will give it approximately 45% market share. It will provide equipment from the Nokia AirScale portfolio, including modular and scalable baseband as well as high-capacity 5G massive MIMO radios.
“This landmark deal reinforces our long-standing partnership with Bharti Airtel… I look forward to our continued successful long-term collaboration in this vital and dynamic market,” added Pekka Lundmark, President and CEO at Nokia.
“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,” added Paul (Kyungwhoon) Cheun, President and Head of Networks Business at Samsung Electronics.