O2 Slovakia, the provider of mobile service in Slovakia, has tapped Ericsson as its technology partner for commercial 5G rollout and modernisation of existing 2G, 3G, and 4G radio access network (RAN) infrastructures.
The Swedish multinational networking and telecommunications company said in a press release that the contract follows a multi-vendor trial that took place across the service provider’s 5G pilot networks in Bratislava in late 2020.
In the same period, O2 Slovakia successfully acquired spectrum in key 5G 700MHz, 900MHz, and 1800MHz frequency ranges, it said.
"Ericsson’s 5G RAN technologies, from the Ericsson Radio System portfolio, will enable O2 Slovakia to deliver improved mobile broadband (MBB) and enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB) customer experiences, as well as support new, high-capacity Fixed Wireless Access business cases such as consumer TV services," claimed the release.
Jenny Lindqvist, Head of Northern and Central Europe, Ericsson, said: "5G is a transformative platform that will have a major impact on Slovakia’s post-COVID economic revival. In addition to delivering on this promise, the Ericsson Radio System will also help O2 Slovakia meet its sustainability targets to reduce power consumption and contribute to continued decarbonization within the ICT industry and across other sectors. To do that by 2022, we are committed to making our 5G product portfolio 10x more energy efficient than 4G per transferred data, helping break the energy curve in mobile networks.”
According to Igor Tóth, CEO, O2 Slovakia, through this contract, his company will drive next-generation mobile experiences for its customers meeting the growing demands of data traffic and enabling new services, such as superior connectivity for households with Fixed Wireless Access.
"In addition to rolling out 5G, modernization of the 2G, 3G, 4G network with Ericsson’s leading products and solutions, will deliver major benefits in energy efficiency enabling us to build a more sustainable digital future for Slovakia,” he added.
According to a recent Analysys Mason report, 5G use cases are forecast to generate EUR 771million in net benefits for the Slovakian GDP across smart rural, smart production, smart urban, and smart public service sectors.
With the O2 Slovakia deal, Ericsson now has 137 commercial 5G agreements and contracts with unique operators, of which 78 are publicly announced 5G deals, including 85 live 5G networks on five continents.
