Malaysia’s U Mobile has signed a three-year contract with Nokia under which the latter will deploy a Single Radio Access Network (RAN) network as well as microwave and IP-based mobile transport technologies to enable the cellco to expand the delivery of mobile data services across the country. In a press release announcing the deal, the pair also confirmed that via a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) they will also collaborate on a 5G live network trial later this year.
Commenting, Woon Ooi Yuen, U Mobile’s chief technical officer, said: ‘U Mobile has been aggressively expanding our network across Malaysia in our drive to bring our customers a superior experience. We are delighted to be able to leverage on Nokia’s expertise in our network expansion journey. We are of course also looking forward to working with Nokia as part of our Road To 5G Strategy. We have in our plan to conduct several 5G live trials with Nokia later this year for various use cases. Currently, we already have in place Nokia’s AirScale base stations which are 5G-ready and hence, ready for trials.’