TPG Telecom taps Nokia to launch world’s first live 5G standalone 700MHz service

In what is seen as an essential element in fulfilling its ambition to connect anything and everything as part of the internet of things (IoT), and the first time this has happened in the world, TPG Telecom has called on Nokia to switch on a live 5G standalone (SA) network in Australia on the 700MHz spectrum band.

Claiming to be the second-largest telecommunications company listed on the ASX, the Australian telco is home to comms brands including Vodafone, TPG, iiNet, AAPT, Internode, Lebara and Felix. It owns and operates nationwide mobile and fixed networks that are connecting Australia for the better. These include Australia’s second-largest fixed voice and data network, with more than 27,000km of metropolitan and inter-capital fibre networks and a mobile network comprising more than 5,600 sites and serving more than 23 million Australians.

Furthermore, TPG Telecom said it possesses a “strong challenger spirit” and a commitment to delivering “the best services and products to customers”.

These services will now be delivered over what is the lowest 5G frequency band deployed in Australia with the largest range, and is designed to provide a basis for TPG Telecom to provide wide outdoor 5G services, as well as deep indoor 5G coverage in urban and suburban areas to its customers. Low-band 5G is designed to go further outdoor and deeper into buildings than existing 5G deployments, and Nokia believes it will allow operators like TPG Telecom to bring 5G to even more customers.

“We’re excited to be the first network in the world to realise the true potential of low-band 5G SA at 700MHz,” said Barry Kezik, executive general manager mobile and fixed networks at TPG Telecom. “TPG Telecom’s low-band 5G will expand our 5G coverage, supporting our goal of reaching 85% of the population in Australia’s top six cities by the end of the year and changing the way people and things connect to the TPG Telecom 5G network.”

Under the partnership, Nokia is supplying equipment from its latest ReefShark-based AirScale product range, including its unique triple-band remote radio unit that supports 700MHz, 850MHz and 900MHz bands. The unit also supports 3G, 4G and 5G simultaneously across all of TPG Telecom’s low-band frequencies. TPG Telecom’s 5G SA service is now active in parts of Sydney, which means the operator’s customers will benefit from greater 5G availability.

“Nokia is proud to support another 5G world-first,” said Nokia Oceania’s chief technology officer, Robert Joyce. “We have a long-standing partnership with TPG Telecom, and we have jointly developed our unique triple-band radio solution specifically for them. Today, we get to see the result of that joint effort and collaboration which will deliver premium wide-area 5G SA coverage for TPG Telecom and its customers.”