Nokia and state run telecom operator Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL), on Friday announced that they will work together to accelerate the development of a 5G ecosystem, opening up India to the potential of extreme high-speed wireless broadband with ultra-low-latency, and the ability to support the future network demands of connected devices associated with the Internet of Things (IoT) and Smart Cities.

The combination of high speed and low latency in 5G raises a host of possibilities, such as remote healthcare, virtual reality, augmented reality, connected cars, and full automation of homes and businesses, among others. Nokia and BSNL will work towards finding an efficient and cost-effective path for network evolution to 5G for enhanced speed and capacity.

Nokia will ensure the smooth transition of BSNL to a 5G-ready network by utilizing Nokia’s 5G FIRST end-to-end 5G solution, including its AirScale radio access portfolio and AirFrame datacenter platform to demonstrate 5G capabilities and simulate use cases of 5G extreme broadband and ultra-reliability and low-latency communication. The companies will also utilize technologies such as SDN (software defined networking), Multi-access Edge Computing and cloud to help BSNL evolve and leverage the opportunities of the programmable world.

BSNL will also leverage Nokia’s 5G-ready product portfolio and expertise to develop innovative use cases for both enterprise and retail customers. Nokia will further help BSNL in spectrum assessment and in optimization of the same to deliver on the promise of 5G.

“We are pleased to partner with Nokia to prepare for the next generation of communications networks. We are excited to leverage Nokia’s technology and thought leadership to help us transition to 5G and to be in a position to take full advantage of IoT. This joint initiative will go a long way to help us meet the future data demands in a most cost-effective way,” said Anupam Shrivastava, CMD of BSNL.

“In line with the Indian Government’s thrust to boost the digital infrastructure to enhance economic growth, Nokia is delighted to partner with BSNL in the development of 5G ecosystem for the Indian market. We will leverage our global experience in 5G-related industry projects and collaborations to enable BSNL to evolve their networks for the programmable world,” said Sanjay Malik, head of India Market, Nokia.