Nokia has signed its latest infrastructure deal with China Mobile, with the one year, €1.36 billion agreement focused on helping the operator shift to a flexible cloud network.
The Finnish vendor will deploy its “5G ready” AirScale Base Station, which is compatible with running multiple radio technologies in the same unit at the same time, and can be scaled up to support future 5G and Internet of Things networks.
Other parts of Nokia’s core and mobile radio portfolio will be provided, as well as fixed access, IP routing and optical transport, customer experience management, operational support system and global services.
Mike Wang, President of the joint management team of Nokia Networks China and ASB, formerly Alcatel-Lucent Shanghai Bell, said: “This is a highly significant agreement with our longstanding partner; it strengthens Nokia’s position as a leading provider of next-generation technologies in China, and reflects our larger footprint in the country following the acquisition of Alcatel-Lucent. We are committed to delivering mobile broadband capabilities that will allow operators to optimize their networks and open up new opportunities for them and their subscribers.”
The deal will strengthen delivery of mobile services in the busiest LTE market globally. Nokia cited that 620 million of China’s 688 million internet users turn to mobile devices to connect.
Figures from the Global mobile Suppliers Association published this morning revealed China added 96.3 million LTE subscribers during the first quarter of this year.
Nokia most recently worked with China Mobile in April, when it built a small cell network to provide connectivity for a motor race in Shanghai.