Under the agreement, the partners will focus on the evolution of infrastructure to better support these new technologies
Italian carrier TIM and New York-based Corning Incorporated announced today they have entered a joint agreement to explore cooperation on a number of network applications and services including 5G.
Under the terms of the agreement, TIM and Corning plan to explore innovations in fiber technologies and 5G, as well as internet of things (IoT), smart cities, and artificial intelligence (AI).
The two partners will focus on the evolution of infrastructure and broadband customer network platforms to better support IoT and 5G requirements as these trends grow.
The memorandum of understanding (MoU) will also allow TIM and Corning to foster cooperationwith other technology providers and industry forums, enabling ongoing innovation and sharing of best practices.
“TIM’s goal is to cooperate today with companies that can help us remain a leader in communication services into the future as we accelerate our evolution towards the network and services of tomorrow,” said Lucy Lombardi, Head of Digital and Ecosystem Innovation at TIM. “We have chosen to work with Corning based on their leadership in materials science, innovation and fiber technology. This MoU is based on a shared vision of transformation through network openness, virtualization and simplification to drive a superior digital customer experience.”
“Corning prides itself on technology investments that help create new markets and drive industries to challenge what was once thought impossible. We collaborate with telecommunications operators and network solutions providers around the world to develop the smart infrastructure that our future global economy will rely on,” said Claudio Mazzali, senior vice president of technology, Corning Optical Communications. “This partnership intends to accelerate the delivery of effective solutions that enable 5G, IoT, and AI as part of TIM’s digital transformation to bring next-generation services to its customers in Italy.”
In September 2018, TIM and Fastweb, in partnership with Chinese vendor Huawei, had activated what they claimed is the first commercial 5G base station in the city of Bari, the second city in the Bari Matera 5G project being supported by the Italian government.
TIM, Fastweb and Huawei used this opportunity to jointly demonstrate a total of ten 5G use cases at Fiera del Levante in Bari. These use cases focused on smart city and transportation, environment a, smart health, smart port, AR/VR, smart culture and tourism, smart roads and smart agriculture.
In March 2018, the three partners had activated the first 5G antenna in the city of Matera as part of the Bari Matera 5G trial. The project enables the two Italian cities to be among the first areas in the world to be covered by 5G.
In November last year, TIM and Samsung Electronics have signed a strategic collaboration agreement for the joint launch of TIM’s 5G services in Italy. The two companies said they intend to use every technical and commercial tool available to them to commercialize 5G during 2019.
Under the terms of the agreement, Samsung will provide all the technical support needed during the product development and certification phase and will develop, together with TIM, a communication plan for the joint launch of the 5G service.
The collaboration will also include the development of specific initiatives on internet of things (IoT) services, with particular focus on smart home solutions.
