
Marielle Lindgren, Ericsson’s UK and Ireland CEO has mopped out suggestions that it was behind rival Huawei in developing and deploying 5G, insisting the Sweden-based vendor was now the world leader as she outlined her ambitions for her market.
Lindgren was keen to address certain “media misconceptions”, particularly around 5G, stating they stemmed from the fact Ericsson was perhaps not as a good as certain rivals in pushing and promoting its credentials.
She suggested there was no basis to claims by certain market commentators, including UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who said recently the country was not willing to block Huawei from 5G networks in the country, due to a lack of alternatives.
Pointing to a study conducted by law company Bird & Bird in August 2019, stating Ericsson holds the most essential 5G patents, Lindgren said the vendor had invested in 5G for many years, and was “more than ready to support the UK government and UK operators with their ambitions”.
Huawei restrictions
In January 2020, the UK government decided to ban Huawei, a vendor deemed high risk, from core parts of 5G networks, but allowed it to continue to compete for RAN deals, albeit with a 35 percent limit.
Lindgren said it was too early to determine the potential benefits from the government’s limitations on Huawei, but dismissed the idea regulations on “high risk vendors” would delay or increase the cost of 5G rollouts.
5G use cases
Lindgren insisted the UK was “critical” to Ericsson’s global ambitions, adding the market had proved its credentials as a front-runner by launching the technology relatively quickly.
For the technology to truly deliver its touted benefits, including an economic gain of an estimated €334 billion, the move beyond mobile broadband to more industrial use cases is essential, but this would only be unlocked with a full nationwide rollout.
She said the recent Shared Rural Network initiative, which will see UK operators jointly deploy 5G networks, was a “great example and “exactly what we needed to see”.
Open RAN threat
As more operators move to invest and deploy alternative virtualised network infrastructure, there have also been suggestions traditional vendors may be under threat.
However, Lindgren welcomed the competition, adding it was essential to be part of the discussions.
See What’s Next in Tech With the Fast Forward Newsletter
Tweets From @varindiamag
Nothing to see here - yet
When they Tweet, their Tweets will show up here.