5G vendors claim India’s next-gen network rollout will still happen as scheduled

• The CEO of Nokia, Rajeev Suri, said that regardless of whether vendors are banned, the 5G rollout will be still happen as scheduled at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2019.
• The Managing Director for Ericsson also believes that India’s 5G roll out will happen as scheduled.
• But India’s issue more about the timeline of the 5G spectrum allocation rather than 5G infrastructure and technology.

Chinese companies have been facing a lot of heat since the US banned Huawei over security concerns. But the CEO of Nokia, Rajeev Suri, maintains that regardless of what happens, 5G roll-out won’t be delayed either way.




Suri shared that after developed economics, emerging markets like India and Latin America will see the 5G roll outs happen by 2021 — emphasizing that security will be a top priority considering that millions of trade secrets will be shared over the 5G network.


According to him countries like India which have seen skirmishes with China, haven’t taken stand to ban Huawei, but allowed the company to take part in 5G trials. Huawei claims the US government has been doing its best to block the sales of the Chinese company’s 5G equipment in India.



Nokia, the second-biggest player when it comes to networks after Huawei, warned that 2019 will be slow beginning for them. Nonetheless, Suri told Reuters that he expects sales to recover and show growth in 2020 as 5G deployment increases over time.


Nitin Bansal, the Managing Director of Ericsson, also believes that India is on schedule with it’s 5G roll out stating, “From a products and solutions perspective we are ready,” in a conversation with Business Insider India.


But the issue in India isn’t whether vendors are prepared or not, but more to do will the spectrum allocation to telecom operators. Although India is targeting 2020 for its 5G roll out, there is still disagreement over spectrum allocation even of 5G trial of use cases and its duration.


See also:


India will go 5G by 2020, but you won't feel the difference

Ericsson's pact with Vodafone Idea is the next step towards a $27 billion goal

Huawei says that the US government is trying to impede its 5G push in India