Nokia deploy a 5G Standalone (SA) network for both indoor and outdoor coverage

Finnish vendor Nokia secured a ten-year extension to its existing nationwide 5G network deal with Antina, the joint venture formed by Singapore mobile network operators M1 and StarHur.

The vendor said it won the contract following a competitive tender process. Under the terms of the deal, Nokia will deploy a 5G Standalone (SA) network for both indoor and outdoor coverage as well as expand the existing network utilizing Antina’s 3.5 GHz spectrum holdings.

Nokia will also equip new buildings throughout Singapore with its AirScale indoor Radio (ASiR) small cell solution to provide indoor coverage. In addition, the vendor will provide equipment from its latest energy-efficient AirScale portfolio including 5G base stations, massive MIMO adaptive antennas for urban and wide-area coverage as well as dual-band remote radio heads (RRH).

Danny Tan, CEO at Antina, said: “We are building a game-changing 5G network in Singapore with ultra-high speeds that will deliver new use cases across entertainment, gaming, education, healthcare, and transportation. We are deepening our partnership with Nokia due to the performance of their 5G network services. I look forward to working closely with them in the coming years and delivering state-of-the-art 5G experiences to our customers across the country.”

“This long-term extension to our contract demonstrates Antina’s trust in our technology leadership and the strength of our product portfolio. Our high-performance networks deliver a premium 5G experience adding coverage and capacity where it is needed in both indoor and outdoor locations. Singapore is creating a world-class 5G environment and we are proud to work alongside them in this important project,” said Tommi Uitto, president of mobile networks at Nokia.

In March 2021, Antina had selected Nokia to support the establishment of a 5G SA Radio Access Network (RAN) Sharing network in the country.

Antina was set up to build and operate a shared Radio Access Network (RAN) and provide wholesale telecommunication services in Singapore. Antina allows both M1 and StarHub to operate each of their own 5G mobile networks and provide 5G mobile services to their subscribers and various mobile virtual network operators that utilize their network infrastructure.

Nokia has already reached a total of 269 commercial 5G commercial deals worldwide. The vendor said that a total of 98 5G networks globally are using its equipment.

Nokia said that some of the customers include AT&T, Bell Canada, BT, KDDI, Korea Telecom, LG Uplus, NTT Docomo, O2, SK Telecom, SoftBank, Sprint, STC, T-Mobile US, Telefonica, Telus, Verizon, and Zain Saudi Arabia.