Nokia Rises in OpenRAN Arena with Major Deutsche Telekom Partnership

Finnish telecommunications equipment supplier Nokia has solidified its partnership with Deutsche Telekom, one of Europe's leading telecom operators. This collaboration involves the deployment of over 3,000 OpenRAN network sites in northern Germany. OpenRAN, an innovative technology, allows telecom operators the flexibility to select components from various suppliers rather than relying on a single source for network equipment.

This significant deal marks a large-scale commercial deployment of OpenRAN technology. The technology promises higher flexibility and interoperability across different hardware and software, encouraging an ecosystem where multiple vendors can coexist harmoniously. Nokia's technology in this project will interface with radio communication equipment from Japan’s ICT company, Fujitsu.

Deutsche Telekom's relationship with Nokia and Fujitsu isn't new; the companies have previously collaborated to deploy OpenRAN test network sites across Germany. With this expanded agreement, Nokia's OpenRAN-compliant technology will progressively replace the current technology provided by other network suppliers.

This development follows in the wake of Nokia losing out on a significant $14 billion OpenRAN contract with AT&T to its Swedish rival, Ericsson. Despite this setback, Nokia is persisting with its OpenRAN initiatives and considers this deal with Deutsche Telekom a major triumph. Nokia's head of mobile networks, Tommi Uitto, highlighted the importance of this achievement, stating that while others speak of embarking on OpenRAN projects, Nokia is already implementing them on a large scale.