Finnish vendor Nokia is launching a certification program to help industry professionals realize the “full business potential of end-to-end 5G networks,” the company said in a release.
The Nokia Bell Labs end-to-end 5G certification program will offer professionals across the information and communications technology (ICT) industry two levels of certification – associate and professional – that deliver “essential knowledge covering everything from the basics of 5G networks to professional level planning and design,” Nokia said.
Nokia noted that the vendor-agnostic certification program is designed for business and technology professionals at communications service providers and enterprises.
The program, the vendor says, will allow such professionals to “gain a greater understanding and proficiency in the application of end-to-end 5G technologies,” so that companies can benefit via ” faster realization of 5G strategies.”
“5G is dramatically changing the communications landscape, providing the need for a broad, technical program that provides professionals not only with a firm understanding of end-to-end 5G technologies but also the skills to apply them effectively when creating network solutions in support of emerging business opportunities,” said Marcus Weldon, Nokia CTO and president of Nokia Bell Labs. “As 5G investments are still in relatively early stages, we feel the timing of this end-to end 5G certification program is ideal, ensuring the coming years of intense 5G activity have profound, positive impacts for consumers and industries alike.”
“NokiaEDU is excited to partner with Nokia Bell Labs to deliver this innovative end-to-end 5G certification program. The companies and individuals who are best informed and equipped to recognize the opportunities of 5G stand to benefit most from this revolutionary technology,” said Sergio Fasce, VP of NokiaEDU, the learning and development branch of Nokia.
The Nokia Bell Labs 5G certification program will officially launch at the end of February with the introduction of its Associate Level Certification and End-to-End 5G Foundation course. Professional level certifications and courses will follow later in 2020.
Nokia reached a total of 63 commercial 5G contracts worldwide as of mid-January. The company said that some of the customers include AT&T, KDDI, Korea Telecom, LG Uplus, NTT DOCOMO, O2, SK Telecom, SoftBank, Sprint, STC, T-Mobile US, Verizon, Vodafone Italy and Zain Saudi Arabia.
Nokia has highlighted that these 5G commercial contracts exclude any other type of 5G agreements, such as paid network trials, pilots or demonstrations. Including these agreements, the total number of 5G agreements would reach over 100.
Nokia also claimed to be the only vendor with a globally available end-to-end product portfolio that covers all 5G network elements, including radio, core, cloud and transport as well as management, automation and security. Approximately 60% of Nokia’s 5G customers select more than just New Radio from its end-to-end portfolio, the vendor said.
In October 2019, Nokia announced it had declared more than 2,000 5G patent families as essential for 5G, a year after making its first declarations for the standard.
