US-based private cellular specialist Celona has set up in southeast Asia via a series of channel sales deals with carriers and integrators in South Korea, the Philippines, and Vietnam. It follows its move beyond its original confines in the CBRS market in the US to start business in Europe in February, and its stated ambition at the time to be ‘global’ – and, indeed, to chase down Nokia’s lead, junking cut-and-shut “Frankenstein” 5G systems in the process.
The company has recently signed a deal (MoU) with TMT conglomerate NOW Corporation and NOW Telecom in the Philippines, and non-binding agreements with mobile network operators “throughout” the region, it said, including with Viettel in Vietnam and Peratech and WIZCORE in South Korea. In addition, the California firm has also entered a reseller partnership with Rhodos Consulting Group to help facilitate its go-to-market strategy within Korea.
A statement said Celona will collaborate each of its new partners to “develop a service model for jointly offering Celona-made private standalone 5G (SA) to a range of industries, including to ports, warehouses, and factories. It said: “The partnerships will focus on the integration, interoperability testing, and validation of Celona’s private 5G solution as well as sales and marketing strategies for delivering private wireless solutions throughout the region.”
It added that the new deals provide only “a strategic direction for the companies”, but will lead to “commercial framework(s) in the future”. It quoted stats, from Allied Market Research, that the regional market for private cellular was worth $59.31 million in 2020, rising to almost $2 billion ($1,939 million) by 2030, at a compound annual rate (CAGR) of 41.9 percent. The biggest local markets will be energy and utilities, plus its stated target industries.
There was bumph in the statement, too, about the “cloud-first… plug-and-play” nature of the Celona system, plus a reminder that the firm is offering the “first all-inclusive collection of indoor and outdoor 5G NR products” covering the n48, n77, n78, and n79 bands.
Henry Andrews Abes, president and chief executive at NOW Corp, said: “We view private networks as the next mobile technology to revolutionize enterprise(s)… As a strategic offshore hub, the Philippines represents a massive opportunity to deliver innovative private networks at scale to what is effectively an untapped market… Celona is an ideal partner to help us capitalize on this opportunity.”
Rajeev Shah, co-founder and chief executive at Celona, said: “The globalization of private wireless is undeniable as organizations look to exploit the benefits… to modernize operational efficiencies and improve productivity… Celona is ideally positioned to capitalize on this worldwide phenomenon and is confident that our… products and technology will play a crucial role in setting the right conditions for scaling private 5G throughout Southeast Asian markets.”
