The Swedish vendor has been selected by Koran carrier KT, while ZTE inked a 5G MoU with Malaysian telco U Mobile
Korean carrier KT has awarded Ericsson a 5G commercial contract to enable the nationwide launch of commercial 5G services in Korea.
Korean operators are expecting to launch nationwide commercial 5G services next month.
Under the terms of this contract, Ericsson is providing 3GPP standards-based 5G New Radio hardware and software from Ericsson’s 5G platform to support KT’s 3.5 GHz 5G Non-Standalone network.
In addition to immersive media, KT’s 5G commercialization use case plans include smart factories; safety; drones; and connected vehicles.
Ericsson said that its solutions will also allow KT to open up internet of things and Industry 4.0 opportunities to Korean enterprises on a global scale.
Jinho Choi, Vice President, Access Network Design, KT, said: “Having worked successfully with Ericsson on 4G LTE, we are pleased to continue that partnership to make our 5G ambitions a reality with Ericsson’s leading 5G technology,” said Jinho Choi, VP of access network design at KT. “Korea is one of the most competitive and technology-advanced markets in the world. By taking a global lead to enable nationwide commercial 5G services through commercially available 5G smartphones, KT is demonstrating our commitment to our customers and showing how we can drive a global 5G ecosystem where Korea plays a key role.”
“We’ve worked with KT for many years to bring the very best mobile user experiences to its customers,” said Patrick Johansson, head of Ericsson Korea. “Notably on 5G, we worked closely together to show the world what 5G could do during a major global winter sports event in 2018.”
The three Korean carriers had launched limited 5G commercial services in December 2018 as part of an agreement with the ICT ministry to launch simultaneously to avoid excessive competition. The three mobile carriers initially launched the 5G service in limited areas in Seoul.
In related news, ZTE Corporation signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Malaysian telco U Mobile.
The partnership will see both parties collaborating on various 5G related developments including 5G tests, 5G showcases as well as the implementation of Massive MIMO technology.
“U Mobile is delighted to partner with ZTE to accelerate 5G in Malaysia. We have a long standing working relationship with ZTE and it is a logical next step for us to collaborate on initiatives related to 5G,” said Wong Heang Tuck, CEO of U Mobile. “In the near future, we will be working closely with ZTE to conduct live tests in select areas in Kuala Lumpur, so Malaysians may experience the first-hand power of 5G.”
Woon Ooi Yuen, U Mobile’s CTO, said that “in recent months, we have been aggressively expanding our own 4G LTE networks all across West and East Malaysia. Concurrently, we are also plotting our journey towards 5G. As part of our 5G roadmap, we will be implementing Massive MIMO in certain areas in Kuala Lumpur to further enhance customer experience by leveraging the wider bandwidths.”
