Nokia bags Rs 7,500 cr deal from Airtel to deploy 5G network

Finnish telecom gear maker firm kia has bagged a Rs 7,500 crore deal from Bharti Airtel to deploy 5G rey network across nine service areas in country. Under deal, kia will deploy 3 lakh base stations for 4G services which can be upgred to 5G network once spectrum is available for next generation service, according to anuncement me by Bharti Airtel on Tuesday.

Bharti Airtel anunced a multi-year agreement to deploy kia's Single Rio Access Network (SRAN) solution across nine circles in India, helping telcos to enhance network capacity of its networks, in particular 4G, and improve customer experience. According to sources deal size is around Rs 7,500 crore.

" rollout, which will also lay foundation for providing 5G connectivity in future, will see approximately 3,00,000 rio units deployed across several spectrum bands, including 900 Mhz, 1800 Mhz, 2100 Mhz and 2300 Mhz, and is expected to be completed by 2022," Bharti Airtel said in a statement.

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First network expansion deal of year

This is first network expansion deal of year and during lockdown period, when demand for high-speed data has increased by about 20 per cent at pan-India level.

"We are committed to continuously invest in emerging network techlogies to provide a best-in-class experience to our customers. This initiative with kia is a major step in this direction.We have been working with kia for more than a dece w and are delighted to use kia's SRAN products in furr improving capacity and cover of our network as we prepare for 5G era," Gopal Vittal, MD & CEO (India and South Asia) at Bharti Airtel, said.

deal includes network expansion in Gujarat, Maharashtra, Mumbai, Mhya Presh, Kerala, Odisha, West Bengal, Bihar and UP East. se circles jointly account for more than half of Bharti Airtel subscribers and deal consolidates kia as le network vendor for Sunil Bharti Mittal led firm.

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"This is an important agreement for future of connectivity in one of world's largest telecom markets and solidifies our position in India. We have worked closely with Bharti Airtel for many years and are delighted to extend this long-standing partnership furr. This project will enhance ir current networks and deliver best-in-class connectivity to Airtel customers but also lay foundations for 5G services in future," Rajeev Suri, President and Chief Executive Officer at kia said.

According to global telecom body GSMA, India is second-largest telecom market in world and is expected to reach 92 crore unique mobile customers by 2025, which will also include 8.8 crore 5G connections. kia's MBiT Index 2020 found a massive increase in demand for data services with traffic increasing by 47 per cent in 2019 alone. work from home culture induced during lockdown is expected to push data demand furr.

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