TIM said that the 5G Standalone network will be activated once the 3.5 GHz spectrum becomes available for local carriers
Brazilian carrier TIM said it has completed the implementation of its 5G Core Standalone (SA) network in the country.
The South American operator noted that its 5G SA network will be fully activated once the 3.5 GHz spectrum becomes available for local carriers.
TIM also said that this initial implementation includes a limited offer in a soft-launch format, which will be available to the operator’s employees. Also, network tests will continue during the rest of March at the company’s headquarters, in Rio de Janeiro.
The telco said that 5G SA is essential for mission-critical applications such as self-driving cars and remote surgery. In addition, this technology is the basis for initiatives in IoT and M2M (Machine to Machine).
Marco Di Costanzo, network director at TIM Brasil, said: “For the corporate market, having the Core ready for the 5G SA network is important to enable solutions that will be possible from the availability of the 3.5GHz frequency”.
“Being the first operator in Latin America to offer 5G Core SA is especially important to meet the demands of corporate customers, who will need solutions with high resiliency, very low latency and ultra-connectivity. 5G SA will enable the revolution in the Internet of Things, and today, we are taking the first step towards addressing the demand for high throughput and reliable IoT. 5G SA allows us to develop customized service offerings for the corporate market, and is essential for generating new revenue opportunities,” said Leonardo Capdeville, CTIO at TIM Brasil.
In October 2021, TIM confirmed that Ericsson and Huawei had been selected as the suppliers of equipment for its 5G network.
TIM had also previously carried out tests of a 5G Standalone (SA) network in partnership with Ericsson, Motorola and Qualcomm.
The 5G NR CA SA data connection was established in TIM’s commercial network associated with its 3.5 GHz experimental network, aggregating non-contiguous spectrum in the 700 MHz (n28) and 3.5 GHz (n78) bands.
5G NR CA performance was completed using Ericsson’s 5G SA RAN infrastructure, Motorola smartphones with Snapdragon 778G and 870 5G Mobile Platforms with Snapdragon X53 and X55 5G Modem-RF Systems.
Brazil raised a total of 47.2 billion reais ($8.5 billion) in its 2021 5G spectrum auction.
Through this auction, the government awarded spectrum in the 700 MHz, 2.3 GHz, 3.5 GHZ and 26 GHz bands.
The country’s main mobile operators, Vivo, Claro and TIM, secured 5G spectrum as well as telecoms operators Algar Telecom and Sercomtel. Also, six new entrants secured 5G spectrum in the auction.
Vivo spent over 1.7 billion reais to acquire 5G licenses, followed by Telefonica’s Vivo, with over 1.1 billion reais and TIM, with an overall investment of over 1 billion reais. The government confirmed that these three telcos acquired spectrum in the 2.3 GHz, 3.5 GHz and 26 GHz bands.
The rules previously approved by telecommunications watchdog Anatel stipulate that 5G should be deployed across Brazilian state capitals by July 31, 2022.
Brazilian cities with more than 500,000 inhabitants will have 5G by July 31, 2025, while the deadline for the rollout of the service in locations with more than 200,000 inhabitants is July 31, 2026. Also, Brazilian cities with more than 100,000 inhabitants will have 5G by July 31 2027, and the service will be available in locations with more than 30,000 inhabitants by July 31, 2028.
