Italian operator TIM confirmed the completion of what it claims to be the first connection in Europe able to consistently surpass 2 Gbps speed on a 5G live commercial network with 26 GHz mmWave frequencies, the carrier said in a release.
TIM said it has achieved this record together with Ericsson and Qualcomm Technologies. The speed milestone was achieved using an Askey CPE RTL0200 powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon X50 5G Modem-RF System.
According to the Italian telco, 26 GHz mmWave frequencies fit the further development of 5G Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) services both in the areas not yet covered by fixed broadband and the creation of “dedicated” 5G indoor coverage, through being able to achieve multi-gigabit speeds and provide high network capacity thanks to the wide bandwidth available.
Furthermore, these features enable new Industry 4.0 scenarios based on services with exceptional high speed, extremely low latency and the highest security and reliability levels, TIM said.
TIM also noted that it achieved the record speed on a standard 3GPP Non-Stand Alone (NSA) solution able to let devices and network components from different providers interact and to aggregate TIM’s 4G and 5G network, already implemented in 3.7 GHz spectrum.
Michele Gamberini, TIM’s Chief Technology and Information Officer said: “This milestone paves the way to the development of new 5G solutions to grant fixed ultrabroadband to families, companies and public authorities not yet covered. This also includes coverage dedicated to the development of robotics and automation digital services in the smart manufacturing area. All of our customers will therefore be able to take advantage of a wide range of integrated solutions that will allow them to fully enter the digital society.”
“5G will be the main innovation platform of the next decade and it will allow Italy to be increasingly competitive and attractive in the global scenario,” said Emanuele Iannetti, country manager at Ericsson Italy. “We are extremely pleased that TIM has chosen Ericsson’s 5G technology to achieve this important milestone, placing our country at the forefront of the commercial implementation of the fifth generation of mobile networks.”
“2020 will see a significant expansion in 5G coverage and the use of mmWave bands will play a clear role in the build-out”, said Enrico Salvatori, president, Qualcomm EMEA.
TIM had secured 5G frequencies via a 2.4-billion-euro investment, aimed at acquiring all three different available frequencies (3.7 GHz, 26 GHz and 700 MHz). The 3.7 GHz spectrum, where TIM has 80 megahertz in total, already allowed the telco to develop 5G coverage in 2019, with the goal of achieving 120 cities, 200 holiday destinations and 245 industrial districts by 2021, in addition to 200 large enterprises specific projects.
TIM is now kicking off the use of the 26 GHz spectrum, where the company owns 200 megahertz, while the 700 MHz spectrum will be available in 2022.
