Ericsson is also acquiring Kathrein’s antenna and filters division with around 4,000 skilled professionals to complement its in-house capabilities and competences.
Ericsson President and CEO Börje Ekholm on Monday announced that his company will switch on 5G globally in 2019, backed by a strong, secure and available portfolio.
Addressing media and analysts at Mobile World Congress 2019 in Barcelona, Ekholm also stressed the role of 5G as a critical national infrastructure and emphasized the advantages for early adopters.
“We are truly switching on 5G around the world in 2019,” he said.
Ericsson has signed commercial 5G deals with 10 service provider customers, as well as 42 memorandums of understanding. The company is currently rolling out 5G networks in the US, Europe, Asia and Australia.
“Consumers and enterprises are waiting for 5G,” Ekholm said.
He added, “According to Ericsson ConsumerLab research, one-third of smartphone users globally will change either immediately or within six months to a service provider that switches on 5G. Today, the US and Asia are leading in 5G development.”
Mobile broadband consumers to be the first commercial scale 5G beneficiaries
Ekholm noted that the first commercial scale 5G beneficiaries will be mobile broadband consumers with massive and highly cost-efficient capacity expansions facilitating new applications in augmented reality and virtual reality in areas such as gaming and sports broadcasts.
But he also stressed that 5G would move the industry beyond consumer products and transform industrial infrastructure. He cited ongoing collaborations in both mobile robotics and all-electric, autonomous vehicles as examples.
Ekholm claimed that Ericsson Radio System hardware has been 5G-ready since 2015 and can be used for 5G New Radio (NR) with a remote software installation.
Ericsson’s unique spectrum sharing capabilities and common core and dynamic orchestration solutions would put Ericsson customers in the lead with 5G, he said.
“Our unique Ericsson Spectrum Sharing is the most economically feasible way to introduce 5G in existing bands achieving immediate nationwide coverage. We can dynamically mix 4G and 5G traffic on the same spectrum. Some said this kind of spectrum sharing was impossible. Wrong! Our engineers are truly world class. With spectrum sharing, our customers have a real 5G frontrunner advantage,” Ekholm asserted.
Ericsson to acquire Kathrein’s antenna and filters business
The Swedish telecom equipment maker is also acquiring Kathrein’s antenna and filters division with around 4,000 skilled professionals to complement its in-house capabilities and competences. The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter of 2019.
Fredrik Jejdling, Executive Vice President and Head of Business Area Networks, Ericsson, commented: “The acquisition of Kathrein’s antenna and filters business will expand our capabilities and competences in the advanced active and passive antenna domain further. With the additional focus on the antenna and filter business led by Kathrein professionals, we will broaden our offering to further optimize site space, which is vital for the introduction of 5G.”
With the acquisition, Ericsson will be adding around 4,000 highly-skilled professionals in R&D, production and sales based in more than 20 locations, including Germany, Romania, the U.S., Mexico and China.
