Indian multinational telecommunications services company Bharti Airtel has conducted India's first 5G trial in the 700 MHz band with mobile and telecom equipment manufacturing company Nokia.
The demonstration, which was conducted on the outskirts of Kolkata, was also the first 5G trial in Eastern India, the companies said in a joint statement. They achieved high-speed wireless broadband network coverage of 40 kilometres between two 5G sites in real-life conditions.
For the trial, Airtel used Nokia’s equipment from its 5G portfolio, including AirScale radios and standalone (SA) core.
Randeep Singh Sekhon, CTO – Bharti Airtel said: “Back in 2012, Airtel launched India’s first 4G service in Kolkata.
Today, we are delighted to conduct India’s first 5G demo in the coveted 700 MHz band in the city to showcase the power of this technology standard. We believe that with the right pricing of 5G spectrum in the upcoming auctions, India can unlock the digital dividend and build a truly connected society with broadband for all.”
Naresh Asija, VP and Head of Bharti CT, Nokia, said: “5G deployment using 700Mhz spectrum is helping communications service providers across the world to cost-effectively provide mobile broadband in remote areas, where typically it is challenging for them to set up the network infrastructure. Nokia is at the forefront in the development of the global 5G ecosystem, and we look forward to supporting Airtel on its 5G journey.”
Airtel is spearheading 5G in India. Earlier this year Airtel demonstrated India’s first 5G experience over a live 4G network. It also demonstrated India’s first rural 5G trial as well as the first cloud gaming experience on 5G. As part of #5GforBusiness, Airtel has joined forces with leading global consulting and technology companies and brands to test 5G-based solutions.
