Huawei has signed an agreement with MTS to promote 5G technology and launch pilot 5G networks in Russia in 2019-2020. This had happened in Moscow, in the run-up to the Saint Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF).
The signing ceremony took place at the intergovernmental level in the Kremlin, with President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin and President of the People’s Republic of China Xi Jinping in attendance. PJSC MTS President Alexey Kornya and Huawei Rotating Chairman Guo Ping signed the agreement.
US ban forces China to support Huawei
While the US puts a ban on Huawei and asks other countries to do so for 5G network development, China prioritizes on supporting World’s largest telecom vendor Huawei for the 5G. So, they inked the deal in the sidelines of President Xi’s visit to Russia.
The document in question sees the two companies developing the roadmap for 2019-2020, where 5G and IoT technology and solutions will be integrated with the telecom company’s existing infrastructure, MTS LTE network will be updated to 5G-ready, 5G test areas and pilot networks will be launched for multiple application scenarios, including infrastructure facilities.
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MTS President Alexey Kornya said: ‘As a result of our long-term mutually beneficial relationship MTS and Huawei continue strengthening their position in their respective markets. Today’s agreement designed to promote 5G brings our partnership to a brand-new level – we both add momentum to strategic cooperation between the two companies in high tech, thus building a foundation for commercial 5G rollouts in Russia in the nearest future, and promote further development of business relationships between Russia and China.’
Guo Ping, Huawei Rotating Chairman, said: ‘We are delighted to sign this new agreement with MTS, especially in this vitally important field of developing 5G. The fact that both Russian and Chinese presidents were present at the ceremony was yet another testament to the importance of Russia and China’s cooperation in technology. Huawei has vast experience in 5G technology development, as it leads the way to the 5G era. Huawei has over 16,000 5G-related patents, which makes it number one worldwide. We hope that our joined efforts will help Russia enter the 5G era sooner.’
Collaboration for 5G
The agreement provides for the following collaborative efforts:
- Consulting in the efficient and effective use of a frequency spectrum;
- Launching Gigabyte LTE areas with high access speed and network capacity;
- Deploying LTE Evolution networks with extra-low delay;
- Launching 5G networks for fixed wireless access;
- Launching 5G NR in MTS’ commercial network;
- Cooperating to develop a 5G business case (Robot ARM);
- Implementing IoT solutions for manufacturing, smart cities, utilities, and agriculture;
- Co-development and deployment of a 5G network segment (factoring in spectrum distribution);
- Implementing 5G application scenarios (including smart cities, smart manufacturing, and self-driving vehicles);
- Creating test areas with 5G networks in sophisticated infrastructure facilities (high-speed trains, subways, apartment blocks, etc.).
