German operator O2/Telefónica Deutschland has activated the first mini-radio cells with Open RAN technology (O-RAN) in the city of Munich, the telco said in a statement.
The telco said that these mini-radio cells will provide O2 customers with even more capacity and higher bandwidth at busy locations in the city. The company also said it aims to deploy pure 5G O-RAN mini-radio cells in Munich later in the year.
“With our O-RAN small cells, we are launching a model project for major German cities in Munich. From the customer’s point of view, they are a particular benefit where a particularly large number of people are out and about with their smartphones. Inconspicuously integrated into the streetscape and cityscape, they provide every customer with reliable access to a high-performance 4G network in many public places, and in the future also 5G,” said Mallik Rao, chief technology and information officer of O2/Telefónica Deutschland.
In the near future, O2/Telefónica will also use the small cells for targeted 5G coverage, with focus on particularly busy locations in German city centers, such as very busy squares, shopping streets or public transport stops.
The telco, controlled by Spanish telco Telefonica, previously said it expects to reach 50% of the country’s population with its 5G service by the end of 2022.
By the end of this 2021, the carrier aimed to reach 30% of Germany’s population with 5G technology, while nationwide 5G coverage is expected by the end of 2025.
The German carrier said that the 5G expansion will be chiefly based on the 3.6 GHz spectrum and will require an investment of around 4 billion euros ($4.55 billion) until the end of 2022.
O2/Telefonica Deutschland had said it will also deploy new, longer-range frequencies in the coming months to increasingly cover rural regions with 5G. This includes 5G on 700 MHz as well as the deployment of Dynamic Spectrum Sharing technology (DSS), which combines 4G and 5G.
The telco had previously launched its new 5G Standalone core network. The new 5G SA servers in the Munich data center are already connected to 5G antennas in the O2 live network. O2/Telefonica Deutschland has said that it is technically ready to deploy a nationwide 5G Standalone network but noted that the infrastructure will be fully activated as soon as 5G Standalone offers real added value for customers, and when enough devices in the market support 5G SA.
