TPG and Samsung to have Australia’s first go at 5G vRAN over mmWave

An imminent trial marks a significant step for Samsung in Australia as well as adding to a busy week for TPG.

Earlier this week Australian operator TPG got Nokia’s help with what it claimed was the world’s first 5G SA network over the 700 MHz frequency. Now it has switched to the other end of the spectrum by dabbling with 26 GHz, otherwise known as millimetre wave. On top of that it’s being trialled using Samsung’s virtualized RAN solution, which is the direction radio is headed.

“We are very pleased to partner with Samsung as part of our new Innovation Lab to drive product and technology innovation by trialing virtualization,” said Iñaki Berroeta, CEO at TPG Telecom. “Deploying mmWave spectrum on our 5G network together with vRAN architecture will allow us to develop exciting 5G use cases for industry verticals and enable the delivery of even faster speeds and greater capacity for our customers.”

“Samsung is excited to begin this trial with TPG Telecom powered by our innovative 5G vRAN solution and latest integrated 26GHz mmWave product, which will be the first in Australia,” said Woojune Kim, Head of Global Sales & Marketing, Networks Business at Samsung Electronics. “Through a combination of our powerful 5G solutions and ongoing efforts in 5G development, Samsung looks forward to helping TPG Telecom gain the full benefits of 5G to reshape the value of mobile experiences for users and enterprises.”

Samsung only launched its dedicated Australian networks business in April of this year, so it will be chuffed to have something to show for it so soon. The whole company teased its Q2 21 numbers today, too, and it managed to increase its profits by over 50%, well ahead of analyst expectations, thanks to the global chip shortage driving prices up.