Ericsson selected for massive T-Mobile 5G network expansion across the United States
Per the agreement, Ericsson will expand and enhance T-Mobile’s 5G footprint by supplying equipment, software, and related services from the Ericsson Radio System portfolio.
This includes active and passive antennas, providing T-Mobile with support across its entire spectrum portfolio for the best 5G experience and cost-efficiency – low-band for far and wide coverage indoors and outside, complemented by Massive MIMO capacity over mid-bands and high-bands for blazing fast speeds and lowest latencies, providing an expanded foundation for a rapid 5G use-case evolution.
Ericsson technology will help T-Mobile develop and implement 5G use cases and improve 5G spectral efficiency. T-Mobile’s 5G buildout also includes 5G Standalone (SA) architecture, voice over new radio (VoNR), New Radio (NR) carrier aggregation, network slicing, and multi-user massive MIMO.
Neville Ray, T-Mobile President of Technology, said, “This agreement takes our twenty-year relationship with Ericsson to build, expand and enhance the T-Mobile network even further into the 5G era, enabling us to bring more 5G coverage, speed and capacity to more people across the country.”
Niklas Heuveldop, President and Head of Ericsson North America, said,“We are proud to expand our partnership with T-Mobile, further accelerating the 5G evolution in the U.S. Ericsson’s industry-leading radio access network portfolio enables T-Mobile to enhance its 5G network as they build out the critical mid-band spectrum.”
Seckin Arikan, Head of Customer Unit T-Mobile, Ericsson, said, “Ericsson and T-Mobile have worked closely together for several years to bring 5G to customers across the U.S. We’re excited to embark on the next phase of the 5G journey.”
The November 2020 edition of the Ericsson Mobility Report estimates that North America was expected to end 2020 with about four percent of its mobile subscriptions being 5G. Commercialization is now moving at a rapid pace and by 2026, Ericsson forecasts that 80 percent of North American mobile subscriptions will be 5G, the highest level of any region in the world.
T-Mobile and Ericsson have been working together to design, build and expand the T-Mobile 5G nationwide network since early 2018.