Bell Canada and Nokia are teaming up to upgrade Bell’s 5G network with new technology that makes it faster, more flexible, and easier to manage.
The multi-year partnership will introduce Cloud RAN (Radio Access Network) and Open RAN, which allow Bell to rely less on a single equipment provider and instead use a mix of hardware and software from different companies. This makes the network more adaptable and future-proof.
“Our expanded partnership with Nokia represents a pivotal moment in Bell’s 5G journey. By leveraging Nokia’s cutting-edge Cloud RAN technology, we’re not only significantly enhancing our network capabilities today, but also building a robust foundation for the future adoption of Open RAN. This approach ensures network agility, scalability, and vendor diversity, ultimately delivering an exceptional experience for our customers and positioning Bell as a leader in 5G innovation,” said Mark McDonald, Senior Vice President, Networks, Bell, in a statement on Tuesday.
To make this happen, Bell will use Nokia’s Cloud RAN system, combined with Red Hat OpenShift software and Dell Technologies infrastructure. This setup will help Bell quickly adjust to changing demand, improve coverage, and roll out new features faster.
“This important contract extension with our partner, Bell, highlights the strength of our industry-leading RAN technology portfolio and our anyRAN approach that enables gradual RAN evolution with feature and performance consistency. We are proud to support Bell on their cloud journey, which will bring the readiness and scalability to enable new use cases and drive new revenue models for 5G monetization,” said Tommi Uitto, President of Mobile Networks, Nokia.
Nokia is also supplying energy-efficient 5G equipment and an AI-powered network management system to keep things running smoothly. With these upgrades, Bell says it aims to deliver better speeds, lower latency, and a more reliable 5G experience for customers.
Back in 2020, Bell announced its first 5G hardware partnership with Finland’s Nokia, as part of a move away from using equipment from China’s Huawei (although they are still in the process of removing the latter).
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