Ericsson and Etisalat’s e& United Arab Emirates (UAE) say they have successfully conducted end-to-end verification of RedCap software on e&’s 5G Standalone (5G SA) network, which will enable it to support IoT devices as it evolves to 5G Advanced.
According to a statement from Ericsson on Tuesday, its RedCap software solution was successfully enabled in both FDD and TDD spectrum on e&’s live 5G SA network. The next stage is to scale RedCap implementation across e& UAE’s commercial network in line with its evolution towards 5G Advanced.
Ericsson and e& UAE said they have also jointly developed a testing framework for certifying new RedCap devices before introducing them in e&’s device ecosystem.
RedCap (Reduced Capability) is an enhancement of 3GPP Release 17 that enables less complex, low-power devices to use 5G NR networks, which gives operators another potential avenue for monetizing 5G services.
“RedCap supports devices such as wearables, and industrial sensors and cameras with adequate speeds, and with improved spectral efficiency in more cost and energy-efficient ways,” said Ekow Nelson, VP and head of the Global Customer Unit for e& at Ericsson Middle East and Africa.”
“[Ericsson’s] RedCap solution opens the door to a new world of possibilities, allowing us to extend our current diverse 5G connectivity options to new segments for consumers, enterprises, and industrial users,” said Marwan Bin Shakar, senior VP of Access Network Development at e& UAE.
Ericsson added that the test with e& is the first implementation of its RedCap solution in a commercial network in the Middle East and Africa region.
The news comes months after e&’s rival operator du, from Emirates Integrated Telecommunications Company (EITC), wrapped up a RedCap trial on its commercial 5G network in Dubai in partnership with Nokia in December last year.
