Telenet announced the selection of Ericsson, Nokia and Google Cloud as partners for the rollout of its 5G network in Belgium.
Micha Berger, CTIO of Telenet, said: “Choosing the right suppliers is crucial. This partnership and cooperation between parties is unique and will keep us at the heart of innovation with cutting edge technology.”

Early 2020, Telenet — also known for its BASE brand — started the procedure to select partners for the rollout of its 5G network. Telenet selected Finland-based Nokia and Sweden-based Ericsson, taking into consideration technological, operational, financial, security and sustainability criteria.

Ericsson is already operating the mobile network of Telenet and the existing partnership is extended to include 5G RAN technology. Ericsson will deliver the equipment on the antennas (the so-called ‘radio access network’ / RAN equipment) with the latest high-quality and high-performance hardware and software. The company will also provide Telenet with the necessary solutions for all future 5G developments.

Nokia will become an important partner for the rollout of the future 5G network as well. Nokia will provide the core network that will support the next generation of mobile technology, with associated advantages such as ultra-fast response times for critical applications and reserved capacity for specific services.

Telenet and Nokia will be using Google Cloud, more specifically Anthos, in the Telenet data centers. Google Cloud’s Anthos for Telecom allows operators to run the Nokia core equipment and other applications that formerly had to be integrated into the network via physical hardware, via cloud-native services.