US component maker Qualcomm is cooperating with various players across Russia’s mobile sector with a view to trialling a 5G mmWave network in Moscow that will go live later in the year.
In addition to the Department of Information Technologies of Moscow, Qualcomm is working with various Russian mobile operators, vendors, and software providers to deliver the network, which it claims is the first 5G NR mmWave (band n257/28GHz) launch in Europe.
mmWave spectrum provides high capacity and data rates, and has thus far attracted the most attention from operators in the US for 5G purposes – perhaps due to the fact that it offers restricted coverage in comparison to the mid-band spectrum favoured in most other markets.
The Moscow project will enable the testing and commercialisation of a range of new applications, from improved fixed broadband and mobile wireless access for private users to unique business solutions.
The initiative aims to introduce new 5G-enabled digital services and innovations in the city such as VR and AR applications in a bid to foster job creation and provide impetus for the growth of high-tech industries. Moscow’s Department of Information Technologies has partnered on the project in a bid to increase the city’s role as a leading technology centre.
Qualcomm Europe’s VP of Business Development Yulia Klebanova said: “we are working with manufacturers to bring 5G mmWave technology to a wide range of devices, from smartphones to fixed wireless access points, which will be essential to the city achieving its goal.”
Eduard Lysenko, head of the IT department of Moscow, added: “In many of the world's megacities, the deployment of 5G networks is restricted by mobile operators’ business needs and their access to the spectrum frequencies needed. In our case, spectrum access has been resolved at state level to accelerate the rollout of high-capacity 5G mmWave.”
