Nokia has inked a deal with BT, a British telecom company, to become the largest equipment provider to the latter after China’s Huawei was banned from the UK’s 5G networks, media reports said.
The deal marks the extension of BT’s telecom infrastructure products to additional cities and towns such as Southampton, York, Aberdeen, Cambridge, Dundee and Exeter.
It is reported that the Finnish major will pave the way for EE customers’ devices to carry out calls and transmit data via BTs’ radio access network, by providing them base stations and antennas. The deal is expected to replace Huawei in BT’s 2G and 4G networks services. Moreover, EE already utilises Nokia to provide 3G services.
Huawei’s elimination from the UK’s telecom sector comes after the UK government said that all mobile providers in the country are prohibited from purchasing new Huawei 5G equipment from China, with effect from December 31 and also eliminate Chinese firm’s 5G kit from their networks in the next seven years.
The UK government’s decision based on national security grounds saw an end to a strong relationship between BT and Huawei.
According to BT, a third of its 4G sites used Nokia’s equipment, which were upgraded to 5G, while the remaining ones used Huawei’s kit. Nokia currently provides coverage to EE customers in some areas of London, the Midlands and other rural areas.
The landscape of the global telecommunications sector has changed in the last few years due to cutting edge innovations and geopolitics.