Ericsson and Elisa Grab Finland 5G Public Safety Contract

Ericsson and mobile operator Elisa have been selected by Erillisverkot Group, the state-run body responsible for national communications networks for public authorities, emergency services and other critical services in Finland, to provide 5G network. The next-generation Public Protection and Disaster Relief (PPDR) network initiative, called Virve 2.0, is based on commercial mobile 3GPP technology with enhancements to meet security, availability and resilience.

Public safety agencies are increasingly turning to mobile solutions due to the capabilities provided by 4G and 5G development, such as the secure and speedy sharing of data, images and video. The ten-year deal taps Ericsson’s dual-mode 5G Core portfolio on a common cloud-native platform. This delivers efficient total cost of ownership and enables the smooth introduction of 5G services. NFVI, Dynamic Orchestration and VoLTE solutions are also included, alongside related deployment, learning and support services.

The Ericsson 5G Core solutions will enable Erillisverkot to manage and control its mission critical broadband network, safeguard information security and protect data integrity. The network is planned to be operational mid-2021. Erillisverkot expects all current Virve services to be completely migrated to next-generation Virve 2.0 technology by 2025. The services will work in parallel until the migration is complete.

Elisa noted the upgraded network would use imaging and video to provide a better and more up-to-date view of operations by critical service providers, with the IoT element allowing automatic monitoring of rescue personnel and use of drones. The operator added it would provide the world’s most advanced public safety network.