Ericsson and Orange Polska have launched a 5G test network in Warsaw, Poland. The 5G trial network includes 9 sites in the Warsaw district of Ochota and Powiśle, and Ericsson said that the test nework offers download speeds close to 900 Mbps.
“Today we are one step closer to launching the Polish fifth generation mobile network. We are technologically ready for this challenge. After more than a year of trials in laboratories and in the field, we have launched a network operating in the capital city. We will invite our customers to those tests, providing them with new 5G smartphones manufactured especially for Orange,” said Jean-François Fallacher, CEO of Orange Polska.
“Our collaboration with Orange Polska together with our ongoing investment across Poland contributes to a wave of 5G innovation making Poland one of the leading nations for 5G in Europe,” said Martin Mellor, head of Ericsson Poland.
Ericsson said that the test network operates in an 80 MHz channel in the 3.4 – 3.6 GHz band, made available by Poland’s Office of Electronic Communications. This band is ultimately planned for the launch of the 5G network in Poland. The network will use currently available 5G devices, including more than 100 smartphones and routers.
All the tested sites are connected to the network via an optical link with 10 Gbps throughput, which is ten times faster than the standard Orange Polska’s 4G connection. This allows for data to be downloaded at speeds up to 1 Gbps, the vendor said.
Orange plans to deploy 5G technology in Poland in 2020 or 2021, once the telco acquires the necessary 5G frequencies.
Orange Group had previously said it aims to launch 5G technology in 17 major European cities across Belgium, France, Luxembourg, Poland, Romania and Spain during 2019.
The telco said that these initial launches will pave the way for the company’s full-scale commercial launch of this technology, which is scheduled to take place during 2020.
Ericsson has already publicly announced 24 wins in the 5G segment. Some key customers include AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile US, US Cellular, Verizon, Swisscom, TDC, Telenor, Vodafone UK, Wind , Etisalat, Optus, Ooredoo, STC, KT, SK Telecom and Telstra.
