Swedish vendor Ericsson said it is powering Singaporean carrier Singtel’s 5G SA network with 5G radio access products and cloud-native, dual-mode 5G Core network solutions.
The European vendor said its product range will deliver high-quality connectivity for outdoor coverage in densely populated areas and help drive strong indoor-mall coverage across the city-state.
In addition, Ericsson’s solutions for 5G SA will provide super-fast response times and faster access to higher data rates that are required by cloud gaming, immersive media and vehicles or robot control.
Mark Chong, Group Chief Technology Officer at Singtel, said: “We are pleased to partner Ericsson in our 5G journey. Together, we launched Singapore’s first 5G standalone network and achieved the fastest 5G speeds this year. 5G is a game changer that will drive greater innovation, and in turn strengthen Singapore’s position as a leading digital hub. We look forward to bringing to life the full benefits 5G has to offer to enterprises and consumers in collaboration with ecosystem partners.”
Ericsson and Singtel have also signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with several global industry partners to develop advanced 5G enterprise solutions in Singapore. The MoU will utilize test facilities and capabilities to innovate solutions and scale them for global deployment. The partners are ABB, Axis Communications, Bosch, Bosch Rexroth, Cradlepoint, DHL, Hexagon, PTC and Rohde & Schwarz.
Martin Wiktorin, Head of Ericsson Singapore, Brunei and the Philippines, commented: “5G SA will allow consumers in Singapore to experience the full benefits of 5G connectivity and also enable businesses across industries to reap the benefits of enhanced mobility, flexibility, reliability and security.”
Singtel had announced the launch of its 5G SA network in the country in May. Singtel had partnered with Korean company Samsung to launch 5G SA. The 5G SA sites run on 3.5 GHz spectrum.
Singtel said it aims to intensify its 5G SA deployment across the island in the coming months as handset manufacturers progressively roll out 5G SA software updates for existing 5G handsets and launch more 5G SA-compatible models in Singapore later this year.
Singtel had initially launched its 5G non-standalone (NSA) network in September of 2020, using spectrum in the 3.5 GHz frequency as well as existing 2.1 GHz spectrum.
The carrier said it is using 28 GHz mmWave spectrum, in addition to the 3.5 GHz and 2.1 GHz bands, to boost its 5G deployment in Singapore. Singtel has switched on mmWave in several locations across the island, including Orchard Road, the Padang area and Marina Bay Sands Expo.
Earlier this year, Singtel had announced plans to hire over 500 people in Singapore over the next two years to focus on 5G and other emerging technologies such as IoT, cloud engineering and data analytics.
