Telefónica, Ericsson And Qualcomm Launch First Commercial Mobile 5G mmWave Network In Spain At Mobile World Congress 2023, Barcelona

Highlights:

• Telefónica, Ericsson and Qualcomm collaborated to launch the first commercial mobile 5G mmWave network in Spain during the mobile industry’s largest connectivity event.
• The deployment is poised to create a unique 5G user experience for Mobile World Congress visitors.
• Qualcomm will showcase the broad range of global 5G mmWave devices powered by leading Snapdragon mobile platforms.

Telefónica, Ericsson and Qualcomm Technologies, Inc., today announced the launch of the first commercial mobile 5G millimeter (mmWave) network in Spain at Mobile World Congress 2023, Barcelona.

This technology milestone will allow compatible user devices partners to access the Ericsson-powered Telefónica 5G mmWave network during the event. At the event, Qualcomm Technologies will showcase the broad range of global 5G mmWave devices powered by Snapdragon mobile platforms that drive industry advancement forward.

The use of 5G mmWave spectrum is the optimum way to achieve high speeds and high capacity and to deliver the best 5G experience in crowded areas. Especially interesting is the role of 5G mmWave in the area of Fixed Wireless Access, digitalization and Industry 4.0, providing extremely high-performance coverage and enabling a completely new range of use cases to be explored. Based on its high network capacity and extraordinary performance boost, this 5G mmWave deployment will enable an extraordinary 5G user experience for Mobile World Congress visitors to Hall 3 at La Fira allowing the ultra-fast mobile connectivity at lower latency that will transform the way they realize mobile connectivity.

Telefónica is the only service provider in Spain that has acquired a full 1 GHz spectrum, which will make Telefónica the first company able to offer in the future download speeds beyond 5 Gbps and upload speeds of 1 Gbps. This massive spectrum will enable the use of bandwidth-intensive applications like multiview cameras and user-generated content in crowded sport venues like football stadiums. It will enhance immersive experiences such as VR and AR and provide industry and manufacturing companies with the critical communications tools they need to go fully wireless and become more competitive, by adopting technologies such as artificial intelligence and automation in a fully flexible environment.

The 5G mmWave deployment will cover Hall 3 of the Mobile World Congress Barcelona event using ample mmWave spectrum bandwidth secured by Telefónica from the recent Spanish spectrum auction. Ericsson is providing its mmWave radio AIR 5322 and high-capacity RAN Processor 6651 coverage to enable the 5G millimeter coverage. The radio access network equipment are powered by Ericsson Silicon chipset, enabling industry-leading lightweight and energy efficiency advantages, as well as unique performance and innovative features.

Qualcomm Technologies 5G mmWave device bar at its booth (Hall 3, 3E10) will demonstrate 5G mmWave devices powered by Snapdragon mobile platforms, including commercial premium smartphones, PCs, CPEs, hotspots, and more.

Millimeter band connectivity will allow for multiple benefits, targeting areas with intensive traffic needs like hot spots in indoor and outdoor environments, enhancing existing city macro sites, densification of urban and suburban street sites or using of macro tower sites to extend coverage of fiber-like fixed wireless access service as a complement to fiber deployment in difficult areas.

“This commercial deployment of 5G mmWave services we are launching as a result of our work with Ericsson and Qualcomm Technologies, along with the massive spectrum that Telefónica has obtained in the last auction, is the last milestone in a series of 5G long term projects that Telefónica has been developing in collaboration with enterprises and institutions in the last 3 years,” said Gerardo Rovira, access radio director at Telefónica España. “It goes a long way in showing the commitment that Telefónica has in the development and leadership of a strong 5G ecosystem that will be a key factor in bringing compelling services for both the public and private sectors.”

“Our collaboration with Telefónica and Qualcomm Technologies to achieve this 5G mmWave technological leap in Spain will dramatically change the experience of mobile connectivity for consumers and enterprises, making it faster, more accessible and more reliable,” said Somaya El-Marrakchi, head of networks, Ericsson Iberia. “Millimeter band opens a new paradigm in the deployment of 5G technology that will provide operators a powerful tool to complement existing network deployment strategy to increase performance and capacity with different needs.”

“We are proud to continue working with industry partners such as Telefónica and Ericsson to push boundaries of connectivity and enable robust consumer experiences,” said Dino Flore, vice president, technology, Qualcomm Europe, Inc. “Being able to show the first commercial deployment of commercial 5G mmWave services in Spain at MWC 2023 Barcelona is an example of another significant milestone for 5G mmWave in Europe.”

For more information visit the Telefónica, Ericsson and Qualcomm Technologies booths at MWC Barcelona, or visit telefonica.com/en/mwc, ericsson.com/en/events/mwc or qualcomm.com/mmWave.

About Telefónica
Telefónica is one the largest telecommunications service providers in the world. The company offers fixed and mobile connectivity as well as a wide range of digital services for residential and business customers. With more than 383 million customers, Telefónica operates in Europe and Latin America.

About Ericsson
Ericsson enables communications service providers and enterprises to capture the full value of connectivity. The company’s portfolio spans the following business areas: Networks, Cloud Software and Services, Enterprise Wireless Solutions, Global Communications Platform, and Technologies and New Businesses. It is designed to help our customers go digital, increase efficiency and find new revenue streams. Ericsson’s innovation investments have delivered the benefits of mobility and mobile broadband to billions of people globally. For more information, visit www.ericsson.com

About Qualcomm
Qualcomm is enabling a world where everyone and everything can be intelligently connected. Our one technology roadmap allows us to efficiently scale the technologies that launched the mobile revolution – including advanced connectivity, high-performance, low-power compute, on-device intelligence and more – to the next generation of connected smart devices across industries. Innovations from Qualcomm and our family of Snapdragon platforms will help enable cloud-edge convergence, transform industries, accelerate the digital economy, and revolutionize how we experience the world, for the greater good.

Qualcomm Incorporated includes our licensing business, QTL, and the vast majority of our patent portfolio. Qualcomm Technologies, Inc., a subsidiary of Qualcomm Incorporated, operates, along with its subsidiaries, substantially all of our engineering, research and development functions, and substantially all of our products and services businesses, including our QCT semiconductor business. Snapdragon and Qualcomm branded products are products of Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. and/or its subsidiaries. Qualcomm patented technologies are licensed by Qualcomm Incorporated.