Ericsson Launches Enhanced 5G Deployment Options

With 5G deployments gathering momentum, Ericsson continues to develop its service-provider-focused 5G platform through the launch of new software and hardware solutions to expand 5G deployment options. The new solutions extend network capacity and coverage, enabling smooth network evolution, and facilitating new consumer and industry use cases, the company claims.

While already supporting frontrunner service providers through the rollout of commercial 5G using non-standalone 5G New Radio, Ericsson has now introduced standalone NR software. In addition to extending deployment possibilities, it makes for the new network architecture, delivering key benefits such as ultra-low latency and even better coverage.

Ericsson says it is also evolving its cloud solution with an offering optimized for edge computing to meet user demand. This will enable service providers to offer new consumer and enterprise 5G services such as augmented reality and content distribution at low cost, low latency, and high accuracy.

The new standalone 5G NR software can be installed on existing Ericsson Radio System hardware. Coupled with 5G dual-mode Cloud Core solutions, the new products are aimed at opening new business opportunities for service providers, especially having established an architecture that facilitates agility, provides advanced support for network slicing and enables the speedy creation of new services. Most operators will start with NSA and once the 5G coverage has been established, also deploy standalone.

To help service providers meet network requirements and offer new consumer and enterprise services, Ericsson is evolving its cloud solution with the launch of Edge NFVI (Network Functions Virtualization Infrastructure), optimized for the network edge. It is part of the end-to-end managed and orchestrated distributed cloud architecture, which makes it possible to distribute workloads, optimize the network and enable new services in the cloud. Ericsson is also launching the partner VNF Certification Service, a partner certification program for virtual network functions.

“Ericsson’s latest 5G offerings equip service providers with an even broader 5G portfolio by adding the Standalone NR option. The series of solutions being added to the Ericsson 5G platform will allow service providers to deploy 5G sensibly and address new business opportunities with full flexibility. What you get is faster, cheaper, makes better use of existing assets and with fewer truck rolls. That’s pretty cool,“ said Industry Analyst Hugh Ujhazy, Vice President, IOT & Telecommunications at IDC, Asia Pacific.

“Improved E2E 4G/5G network architecture flexibility and new 5G use cases require distribution to the edge. To be successful in providing new services it is essential to have a cost-efficient platform for distributed workloads. Ericsson’s initiative with the Edge NFVI solution and distributed cloud architecture will contribute to service providers’ success in 5G,“ said Dana Cooperson, Research Director, Analysis Mason.