Ericsson on Thursday announced the launch of 5G Radio Access Network software and said its previously released radio products would support 5G New Radio.
The Swedish telecom equipment giant said the 5G software would be available in the fourth quarter of 2018 and conform to 3GPP standards. It would support multiple bands and allow operators to use new spectrum as it becomes available.
The software would also complement already launched baseband and 5G radios. In a separate statement, the company said a remote software update would allow all Ericsson radio products delivered since 2015 to support 5G, including running 4G and 5G in the same band.
“Operators who want to be early with 5G now have the essential pieces for launching 5G networks already this year,” said Fredrik Jejdling, Ericsson’s Head of Business Area Networks. “With our expanded platform, they will get more efficient networks as well as opportunities to create new revenues from emerging consumer and industrial use cases.”
Ericsson added that its Distributed Cloud would be able to be deployed across central, distributed and edge sites and that new products would support Massive MIMO technology.
The company also announced a new line called Street Macro, which officials characterized as a layer of radio product “between macro and micro” cell sites. In cities “with limited available radio locations,” Ericsson officials said Street Macro radios could be placed on building facades to provide sufficient strength and coverage with a smaller footprint.
Filed Under: 5G
