Reliance Jio
Infocomm, India’s largest telecom service provider, on Monday announced its
multi-year contracts with Nokia and Ericsson for the supply of 5G network
equipment to Jio. 

Reliance Jio tied up
with Finland’s Nokia to supply 5G Radio Access Network (RAN) hardware to deploy
a 5G standalone network in India which will overwork with its 4G network. “The
network will enable Reliance Jio to provide advanced 5G services such as
massive machine-to-machine communications, network slicing, and ultra-low
latency,” the company said in a statement.

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The supplies from
Nokia will be from its AirScale portfolio and include base stations,
high-capacity 5G Massive MIMO antennas, Remote Radio Heads (RRH) to support
various frequency bands, and self-organising network stations.

“This is an important
win for Nokia in an important market and a new customer with one of the largest
RAN in the world,” said Pekka Lundmark, President and CEO of Nokia. 

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“India is developing
a world-class digital infrastructure that will boost innovation and
entrepreneurship, and help to create jobs across the country. We are delighted
to partner with Reliance Jio in those ambitions. Ericsson 5G standalone
connectivity will be a strong catalyst in accomplishing these digital
transformation dreams,” said Börje Ekholm, President and CEO of Ericsson.

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The long-term
contract between Ericsson and Jio will include the deployment of its
energy-efficient 5G Radio Access Network (RAN) products and E-band microwave
mobile transport solutions deployment in the country for Jio.

Bharti Airtel and
Vodafone Idea also get supplies from Nokia and Ericsson. After the deals, both
European equipment makers will be supplying India’s three largest mobile
operators. Vodafone Idea is yet to announce its 5G strategy, while Airtel and
Jio have said that they will deploy pan-India 5G by 2024.

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“Jio is committed to
continuously upgrading to the latest network technologies to enhance the
experience of users. We are confident that our partnership with Nokia will
deliver one of the most advanced 5G networks around the globe,” said Akash
Ambani, chairman of Reliance Jio.

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“We are delighted to
partner with Ericsson for Jio’s 5G standalone rollout. Jio transformed the
digital landscape in India with the launch of LTE services in 2016. We are
confident that Jio’s 5G network will fasten India’s digitalization and will
serve as the foundation for realising the ‘Digital India’ vision.” he
added.

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Earlier in August
this year, the 5G spectrum auctions were completed, wherein Reliance Jio
was the largest acquirer with bids of over Rs 88,000 crore. Bharti Airtel
rendered over Rs 43,000 crore to acquire 5G spectrum, followed by Vodafone Idea
spending around Rs 18,800 crore. The fourth and last acquirer was Adani Data Networks Limited which spent Rs 212 crore claiming to offer private network
solutions for business vertices like airports, ports, power generation and
logistics, but not to enter the consumer mobility sector.