Wireless Networks

Hard on the heels of last week’s trial announcement with Nokia, Saudi Arabian operator STC has announced another major partnership, this time involving a carrier aggregation proof of concept with Ericsson.

Hard on the heels of a busy MWC for both companies, Ooredoo Qatar and Ericsson have highlighted the successful implementation of what is described as the world’s first 5G indoor shareable solution in Qatar, achieving speeds of 1.5 gigabits per second (Gbps).

Saudi Arabian operator Zain KSA has announced its launch of a 5G local area network (5G LAN). This, it says, makes it the first operator in the Middle East and North Africa to adopt the technology. It made the announcement during MWC 2022.

High-altitude platform systems (HAPS) are again in the news after UK company Stratospheric Platforms Limited (SPL), a partner of German telecommunications company Deutsche Telekom, successfully trialled pioneering technology that provides 5G network coverage from the stratosphere in Saudi Arabia.

Indoor coverage is a challenge for telcos or system integrators: whether small or medium sites, the work of RF design, device tuning, antenna installation, cable laying, and various passive components must be set in the right correctly to be easily positioned for future maintenance, resulting in continued project maintenance.

Cambodian operator Smart Axiata saw a significant uptick in Fixed Wireless Access users during 2021, with the service attracting more than 100,000 registered users for that year.

ZTE Corporation joined hands with Telekom Malaysia Berhad (TM), to deploy the service provisioning of TM’s IP CORE network of the NGN (Next-Generation Network), marking an important milestone of the project.

Vanu, a provider of equipment, tools and services that enable mobile network operators to profit by serving off-grid communities, has announced that, working with a local deployment partner, it has brought mobile network base stations to several communities in Nigeria.

mmWave’s superwide band and narrow beam offer significant advantages for use in modern 5G networks, broadband satcom systems, and satcom and radar systems.

Cisco, a leader in technology that powers the internet, and Rakuten Symphony, which offers a modern, industrial-scale automation platform built specifically for telecom, have announced a strategic agreement at MWC Barcelona.

With more and more 5GNR networks in use, avoiding shadow coverage areas is becoming an important consideration to highlight the advantages of 5GNR. Repeaters and BDAs (bi-directional amplifiers) will continue to play a vital role, just as in the 3G/4G eras.

Orange has announced suppliers for its 5G standalone (5G SA) networks in Europe, including networks in Poland and Slovakia.

Sivers Semiconductors has announced multiple new products for licensed 5G bands at MWC 2022 resulting from its recent acquisition of mmWave company MixComm.

Nokia today announced the world’s first deployment of 5G Edge Slicing on a live commercial network with mobile operators, Cellcom and Telia.

MTN Namibia has tapped Canadian firm NuRAN Wireless to deploy a minimum of 150 rural and suburban network sites over the next two years.

Zimbabwean operator Econet Wireless and Botswana’s Mascom have this week both announced 5G launches that are to begin in their countries' capital cities.

Indian operator Vodafone Idea (aka Vi) has announced a collaboration with A5G Networks, an innovator in autonomous mobile network infrastructure, to enable Industry 4.0 and smart mobile edge computing in India.

Nokia is showcasing the UBT-T XP Dual Band radio, the latest addition to its award-winning Wavence product family, at Mobile World Congress 2022.

America Movil’s Telcel has switched on 5G services in 18 of Mexico’s largest cities.

Intracom Telecom announced the extension of supply of its Point-to-Multipoint (PtMP) WiBAS-OSDR (hub) and WiBAS-Connect (terminal) at 10.5 GHz band to Lintasarta, an Information and Communications Technology (ICT) total solutions company in Indonesia.

From 2G – which is still popular in many regions - to 5G, more and more cellular systems are emerging and co-existing. A solution to balance between new technology and CAPEX/OPEX is necessary for telcos or system integrators.

Digicel is replacing its end-of-life IP Transfer Point (ITP) systems in use at 26 of its markets in the Caribbean and Central America with BroadForward’s Signalling Transfer Point (STP).

Open RAN firm Parallel Wireless is collaborating with Türk Telekom and Juniper Networks on a multivendor Open RAN initiative to deliver state-of-the-art broadband communications.

5G spectrum auctions and rollout may still be some months off in India, but 5G trials are well under way. Vodafone Idea Limited (aka Vi) is the latest operator to announce that it has successfully demonstrated 5G voice over new radio (VoNR).

Sri Lankan operator Dialog Axiata has tapped telecoms systems vendor Intracom Telecom to enhance its fixed wireless access (FWA) technology.

Wireless internet service provider XCIEN and fixed wireless access expert Tarana have announced a new partnership to bring high-speed, reliable internet service to businesses and residential areas across Mexico with plans ranging from 100 to 400 Mbps.

India's minister of communications and technology declared the country is in the final stages of developing 5G and is currently looking ahead to future network standards. 

National Narrowband Network Company (NNNCo), operator of the Australian national LoRaWAN network powered by Actility, has signed a contract with a European technology provider Wellness TechGroup, to provide IoT network coverage to 70,000 smart streetlights in Uruguay’s capital Montevideo.

Nigeria was found to have the highest mobile web traffic globally beating even India, as the African nation spurs such conditions with affordable data and handsets.

Elon Musk’s satellite company SpaceX is aiding the effort to restore telecommunications to the island nation of Tonga after the country was struck by the after-effects of a volcanic eruption.

Kyrgyzstan’s Cabinet of Ministers has laid out its strategy for implementing 5G, which could see the technology become commercial available within 2022.