Telstra is working with Swedish vendor Ericsson for the commercial launch of 5G, scheduled for next year
Australian mobile operator Telstra has activated its 5G network in selected areas on the Gold Coast.
Telstra CEO Andrew Penn said this was just the beginning of Telstra’s roll out of 5G technology, with more than 200 5G-capable sites planned to be live around the country by the end of 2018.
“Today we have switched on 5G-capable sites on the Gold Coast, which enable us to test 5G pre-commercial devices in real-world conditions and use unique innovations like our connected car to test our 5G footprint,” Penn said. “It also means we can connect compatible commercial 5G devices for customers in 5G areas as they become available (…) over the coming months, we will continue expanding our 5G coverage with plans to roll out to more capital cities, regional centres, and other high-demand areas.”
Telstra’s 5G network in the Gold Coast uses Ericsson’s Baseband 6630, AIR 6488, and 4G/5G system software, a 5G platform provided by Intel as well as spectrum in the 3.5GHz and 2100MHz bands.
“At the beginning of the year, we opened our 5G Innovation Center on the Gold Coast. This center has been the home for testing the next generation of mobile technologies in Australian conditions to support the early commercial deployment of 5G,” said Channa Seneviratne, executive director, network and infrastructure engineering at Telstra.
The telco said the main aim of the new 5G center will be to test next-generation technologies to support the early commercial deployment of 5G mobile services in Australia. Telstra aims to launch commercial 5G services in 2019.
The 5G center is central to a $58 million investment Telstra has made to upgrade infrastructure on the Gold Coast to support growing demand and major events in the area. Telstra will run extensive 5G trials on the Gold Coast during the Commonwealth Games in April this year.
Telstra previously said that said that it would work with Ericsson on key 5G technologies including massive multiple-input, multiple-output (Massive MIMO), adaptive beamforming and beam tracking, and OFDM-based waveforms in its Gold Coast center.
Earlier this year, Telstra announced plans to roll out small cells across the country in a move to boost capacity and speed in some of the country’s busiest locations.
The telco has already installed more than 50 4G small cells across the city of Melbourne as the first stage of a national small cell rollout initiative. Each 4G small cell deployment utilizes existing mobile infrastructure at locations such as information hubs and street light and electricity poles.
Telstra’s small cell program stipulates the deployment of 1,000 small cells in metro and regional locations within the next three years. Some of these areas include Sydney, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth.
