Tag Airtel

20 November 2024 Espoo, Finland – Nokia has been awarded a multi-year, multi-billion extension deal by Bharti Airtel (Airtel) to deploy 4G and 5G equipment across key Indian cities and states

As per the contract, Nokia will deploy equipment from its cutting-edge 5G AirScale portfolio including base stations, baseband units and the latest generation of Massive MIMO radios, all powered by its energy-efficient ReefShark System-on-Chip technology. These solutions will enhance Airtel’s network with exceptional 5G capacity and coverage and support its network evolution. Furthermore, Nokia will modernize Airtel’s existing 4G network with multiband radios and baseband equipment, which can also support 5G.

Airtel will also be leveraging Nokia’s MantaRay Network Management for intelligent network monitoring and management that uses AI-based tools covering digital deployment, optimization and technical support.

Gopal Vittal, Vice Chairman and MD, Bharti Airtel, said: “Airtel has been a pioneer in network innovation, consistently pushing the boundaries for delivering cutting-edge connectivity solutions. This strategic partnership with Nokia will future proof our network infrastructure and provide customers with unparalleled user experience along with a network that will be eco-friendly to minimize environmental impact.”

Pekka Lundmark, President and CEO of Nokia, said: “This strategic agreement further solidifies our long-standing collaboration with Airtel and our footprint in India. Our industry-leading AirScale portfolio and AI-based services will enhance the energy efficiency of Airtel’s network, enabling premium 5G capacity and connectivity with the highest quality of service for subscribers.”

Nokia has collaborated with Airtel for over two decades, providing 2G, 3G, 4G, and 5G network equipment. Their partnership has recently reached new heights with the launch of the Green 5G Initiative, aimed at improving the energy efficiency of Airtel’s network and reducing carbon emissions, in line with the company’s ambitious emission reduction targets.

September 2, 2024: Airtel, MediaTek and Nokia today announced the successful completion of trials that efficiently combine TDD and FDD mid-band spectrum on a time basis utilising the latest generation chipset. The trial aimed at maximising the uplink performance was conducted at Airtel’s tech lab and achieved uplink speeds of 300 Mbps, setting a new benchmark in 5G network performance. It underscores Airtel’s commitment to providing innovative solutions that meet the ever-growing demands of a connected world.

The trial enhanced UL speeds by aggregating frequency bands of 3.5 Ghz (n78) and 2.1 Ghz (n1), a groundbreaking innovation that significantly improves the uplink performance for demanding use cases by dynamically switching the uplink transmission across two carriers in TDD and FDD spectrum more efficiently. The innovative UL Tx switching promises faster connectivity, enhanced user experience, and improved network efficiency, catering to high-demand use cases such as video conferencing, live streaming and large file uploads.

Randeep Sekhon, Chief Technology Officer, Bharti Airtel said, “At Airtel, continuous innovation remains the bedrock of all our product and service offerings. This trial not only stands testament to our philosophy of enhancing our state-of-the-art network infrastructure and delivering an unmatched 5G user experience but will also greatly enhance our network’s uplink performance, resulting in faster data speeds and improved connectivity.”

Dr. Ho-Chi Hwang, General Manager of Wireless Communication Systems and Partnerships at MediaTek, said: “We are thrilled to collaborate with Bharti Airtel and Nokia on this groundbreaking trial in India where our Dimensity 5G mobile platform played a crucial role in achieving the highest uplink speeds on Airtel’s 5G network. This partnership underscores our commitment to delivering cutting-edge technology that enhances the connectivity experience for users”

Tarun Chhabra, Country Manager and Head of Mobile Networks Business at Nokia, India, said: “We are proud to partner with our long-term partner Airtel on this ground-breaking project. Uplink Tx switching will pave the way for superior 5G networks, enabling seamless data transfer in mobile devices and driving demand for data-intensive applications like XR. We congratulate Bharti Airtel for achieving this milestone and pushing the boundaries of connectivity to new realms.”

For this advanced trial, Airtel used equipment from Nokia’s next-generation 5G AirScale radio portfolio while MediaTek provided its Dimensity 5G mobile platform as the user equipment.

Gurugram (India), February 29, 2024: Bharti Airtel (“Airtel”), one of India’s leading telecommunications service providers, in partnership with IDEMIA Secure Transactions, today announced that it has switched from virgin plastic to recycled PVC SIM cards. This is in line with the company’s commitment to encouraging the adoption of circular business practices. IDEMIA Secure Transactions, a division of the IDEMIA Group, is a leading provider of payment and connectivity solutions for financial institutions, mobile network operators and automotive manufacturers.

 An industry first in India, Airtel is the only telecommunications service provider to switch to recycled plastic SIM cards. With this migration, the generation of over 165 tonnes of virgin plastic will be limited which will further reduce the generation of over 690 tonnes of CO 2 equivalent in one year.

 This migration is in line with Airtel’s continued commitment to reducing greenhouse gases and promoting circularity with supplier partners and other stakeholders with the aim of encouraging them to reduce waste, recycle and reuse products.

 Pankaj Miglani, Director – Supply Chain, Bharti Airtel, said, “We are delighted to announce yet another first as we continue to lead the Indian telecom industry. As a brand we endeavour to align our efforts to adopt various sustainable measures and contribute significantly towards India’s ambition to achieve net zero. Our collaboration with Idemia underscores our shared commitment to contributing to a sustainable future.”

 Rahul Tandon, Senior VP – Connectivity Services, India, IDEMIA Secure Transactions, said, “We are proud of our long-standing partnership with Airtel. We congratulate Airtel for taking the lead in reducing the carbon footprint and providing green solutions to their subscribers in India. I would also like to thank all our R&D teams for making such innovations possible.”

 Airtel has committed to reducing absolute scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions across its operations by 50.2% by FY 2030-31 with FY 2020-21 as the base year. The company has also committed to reducing its absolute scope 3 GHG emissions by 42% over the same time frame. In line with this commitment, some of the key initiatives at Airtel include promoting energy efficiency, utilising open- access green energy and adopting renewable energy across operations, as well as building a climate resilient network, resource efficiency and waste management.

 Carbon dioxide equivalent or CO 2 equivalent is a metric used to compare the emissions from various GHGs on the basis of their global-warming potential, converted to the equivalent amount of carbon dioxide.