• Nokia to supply Advanced 5G ready solutions from its industry-leading AirScale portfolio supporting AI applications.
• Continued partnership will see Elisa and Nokia deploy cloud-native Voice Core solution to drive deployment of new 5G Advanced services and improve operational efficiencies.
• Elisa to deploy Nokia data center fabric network automation solution for faster time to market and better service availability.

Nokia  announced that it has been awarded a new four-year contract extension by its long-standing partner, Elisa to significantly enhance the capacity, coverage and speed of Elisa’s network. The comprehensive deal, which will cover both Estonia and Finland, will prepare Elisa’s network for the Advanced 5G era supporting ultra-fast speeds and low latency at near-instantaneous levels, crucial for applications such as AI, virtual reality, augmented reality, and industrial automation.

Nokia’s industry-leading, energy-efficient AirScale Radio Access Network (RAN) portfolio will support Elisa’s pioneering efforts to deliver premium 5G services to its customers. Nokia will supply its latest generation of Advanced 5G-ready Habrok 32 Massive MIMO radios and its Pandion portfolio of FDD multi-band remote radio heads for comprehensive coverage across multiple deployment scenarios. Nokia will also supply its high-capacity compact Tuuli 26e and ultra-performance Ponente, Lodos and Levante AirScale baseband solutions. Nokia’s portfolio is powered by its energy-efficient ReefShark System-on-Chip technology for maximum performance, efficiency, and reliability. Elisa will also benefit from Nokia’s network management solution MantaRay NM. The deal also includes network optimization maintenance, and support services.

Nokia will also introduce its new AirScale Dual Boost base station technology designed to help CSPs maximise the potential of their base station assets. It utilizes Nokia’s advanced AirScale base station portfolio, baseband and radio hardware and software to enhance Nokia’s massive MIMO capabilities further by providing a significant leap in both uplink and downlink processing. This supports Elisa’s base station hardware and software assets more efficiently.

Nokia’s cloud-native Voice Core solution, Cloud Native Communication Suite (CNCS), will drive the deployment of new 5G services and improve operational efficiencies, including lower energy demand and hardware requirements.

CNCS streamlines network operations by bringing together multiple IMS voice 3GPP functionalities into a single cloud-native network function. CNCS generally improves energy efficiency by about 10 percent to 20 percent, relative to a standard IMS Voice Core, according to Nokia data.

Nokia will also provide Elisa with its modern, highly reliable data center fabric solution including SR Linux-based data center switches and the Nokia Event-Driven Automation (EDA) platform. Interconnection between telco cloud locations will be provided by Nokia’s 7750 Service Router-based data center gateways.

Other Nokia Core solutions Elisa will utilize include Subscriber Data Management, for centralizing user data into a single Unified Data Repository that hosts applications; Cloud Signaling Director, for ensuring security and confidentiality between networks including while roaming; and Nokia Cloud Platform, for streamlining network activities, enhancing automation, and minimizing manual intervention.

“As a pioneer in 5G, we are investing in new 5.5G features that enhance AI usage in phones, computers, and businesses. The world’s first customers are already using 5.5G in Elisa’s network, and together with Nokia, we are expanding access to this technology. We are developing our network to meet the changing customer needs and creating a strong foundation for new innovations,” said Sami Komulainen, Chief Operating Officer, Elisa.

“This important contract extension with our long-standing partner, Elisa will take their 5G network to the next level delivering ultra-fast speeds and low-latency with our latest Advanced 5G capable AirScale portfolio. Elisa’s pioneering efforts are a benchmark in the delivery of 5G services. The Advanced 5G era will drive innovation in industries such as manufacturing, healthcare, transportation, and energy, creating new jobs and economic opportunities,” said Tommi Uitto, President of Mobile Networks, Nokia.