Summary:
Bharti Airtel and Ericsson are reinforcing their long-standing collaboration with a new agreement focused on bolstering Airtel’s Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) services across India. This strategic move aims to enhance Airtel’s core network capabilities and capacity specifically for FWA, thereby elevating the customer experience for users of Airtel’s high-speed broadband offering. Ericsson will deploy a new, high-capacity Local Packet Gateway (LPG) platform with a smaller footprint and improved total cost of ownership, building upon their existing dual-mode 5G Core solution deal that supports Airtel’s transition to 5G Standalone (SA) and its broader ambition of bridging the digital divide.
How this partnership will enhance India’s Fixed Wireless Access landscape:
Bharti Airtel, a leading Indian telecom and digital services provider, is deepening its quarter-century-old relationship with Swedish technology giant Ericsson to significantly advance its Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) services in India. This latest agreement is a pivotal step in expanding high-speed broadband accessibility, especially in areas where fiber optic rollout might be challenging or uneconomical. The core of this collaboration lies in enhancing Airtel’s network infrastructure to support the rapidly growing demand for FWA, a technology that delivers broadband internet to fixed locations using wireless networks, often leveraging 5G capabilities.
Key Aspects of the Collaboration and its Impact:
- Enhanced FWA Capability and Capacity: The primary objective of this agreement is to boost Airtel’s core network’s ability to handle and deliver FWA services more efficiently. This means increasing the network’s capacity to serve a larger number of FWA subscribers and ensuring consistent, high-quality connectivity, even during peak usage times. This directly translates to an improved experience for Airtel FWA customers, offering them reliable and robust internet performance.
- Introduction of Ericsson’s Local Packet Gateway (LPG): A cornerstone of this new deployment is Ericsson’s innovative Local Packet Gateway (LPG) platform. This new solution is designed for high-capacity FWA, meaning it can process and manage large volumes of data traffic from FWA users. Key benefits of the LPG include:
- Smaller Footprint: This implies that the necessary equipment will be more compact, potentially reducing the physical space required for deployment, which can be advantageous for urban as well as rural installations.
- Better Total Cost of Ownership (TCO): A smaller footprint often leads to lower operational costs, including power consumption and maintenance, contributing to a more cost-effective network infrastructure for Airtel.
- High Performance with Efficiency and Scale: As highlighted by Andres Vicente, Head of Market Area Southeast Asia, Oceania and India at Ericsson, the LPG is specifically engineered to deliver high performance while being efficient and scalable, making it an ideal solution for powering Airtel’s ambitious 5G FWA plans.
- Building on 5G Core Foundation: This new FWA-focused agreement is a natural evolution of a previously established deal between Airtel and Ericsson. Earlier, Ericsson provided a dual-mode 5G Core solution for Airtel’s 5G packet core. This created a unified, future-ready network infrastructure that underpins Airtel’s journey towards 5G Standalone (SA) architecture. The FWA deployment will leverage this robust core, allowing for seamless integration and optimization of services.
- Meeting Growing Data Demands: Randeep Sekhon, CTO, Bharti Airtel, emphasized that Ericsson’s “innovative Packet Core deployment architecture represents a foundational enhancement, enabling critical improvements in network quality and reliability.” He further stated that this strategic implementation is “specifically designed to accommodate rapidly increasing customer data requirements, ensuring robust performance and seamless connectivity even under peak demand.” This highlights the importance of the partnership in addressing India’s ever-increasing data consumption needs.
- Bridging the Digital Divide: Both companies recognize the broader societal impact of this collaboration. Andres Vicente noted that this partnership is “not just about advanced technology – it’s about enabling inclusive digital transformation and bridging the digital divide in the country.” FWA is particularly effective in extending high-speed internet to semi-urban and rural areas where laying fiber is challenging, thus contributing significantly to digital inclusion.
- Long-Standing Partnership and Shared Commitment: The agreement builds on a partnership spanning over 25 years and multiple generations of mobile technology, from 2G to 5G. This long-term relationship underscores the trust and shared vision between Bharti Airtel and Ericsson in powering India’s digital future.
In essence, this partnership between Bharti Airtel and Ericsson is a strategic investment in strengthening India’s digital infrastructure, promising enhanced broadband experiences for millions and accelerating the country’s journey towards ubiquitous high-speed connectivity.
