Nokia inks big small cell deal with China Unicom

Nokia Flexi Zone small cellsChina Unicom will start the deployment of Nokia Flexi Zone small cells and AirScale radio head in 31 provinces in China.

China Unicom aims to densify busy city 3G and 4G LTE networks and further enhance performance in suburban and rural locations.

China Unicom recently said its 4G subscriber base increased by approximately 55 million to over 160 million.

China Unicom will be deploying the Nokia Flexi Zone small cells to densify the network where it isn’t possible to add a macro base station because of space or cost constraints. China Unicom is aiming to extend coverage and capacity inside offices and homes, as well as in high-traffic locations such as train stations and shopping malls.

The decision to upgrade the small cell via software to deliver narrow-band IoT (NB-IoT) support will lay the foundation for the future introduction of IoT and 5G services. NB-IoT will enable China Unicom to have sensors for the delivery of many smart city services, including smart transport and metering systems as well as the introduction of smart healthcare.

“We developed a small cell portfolio that will allow operators to cost-efficiently densify and scale their networks, boosting 3G and 4G performance to stay ahead of demand. By combining this small cell technology with our extensive global services expertise, we can optimize any deployment for China Unicom,” said Gao Bo, head of Customer Business Team for China Unicom at Nokia Shanghai Bell.

China Unicom will be procuring Nokia Flexi Zone Mini-Macro, Nokia AirScale Micro RRH, Nokia Flexi Zone Micro and Nokia Flexi Zone Pico.

The 31 provinces represent 20 percent of China Unicom’s network and include Heilongjiang, Inner Mongolia, Hebei, Liaoning, Jiangsu, Anhui, Hunan, Sichuan, Shanghai, Guangxi, Xinjiang, Guizhou, Fujian, Gansu, Shaanxi and Jiangxi.