Eastlink Selects Nokia in Multi-Year 5G Network Deal in Canada

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Eastlink and Nokia (NYSE: NOK) announced a strategic access network partnership to further modernize Eastlink’s Canadian mobile network. Eastlink, a regional communications service provider based in Halifax, Nova Scotia, offers a range of broadband and mobile services to residential, business, and public sector customers in seven provinces across Canada and in Bermuda.

As part of the collaboration, Nokia will supply its AirScale 5G portfolio which includes baseband units, remote radio heads, and massive MIMO antennas for enhanced 5G capacity and coverage. The company says its AirScale units are relatively easy to deploy. The partnership also includes new site expansion and site upgrades. The first site utilizing Nokia technology is expected to go live sometime this month. 

The Nokia deal follows Eastlink’s announcement in May of a three-year extension to its 10-year partnership with Ericsson (NASDAQ: ERIC) to bolster 5G service in hundreds of communities that Eastlink serves across the country.

Eastlink launched its Ericsson-powered 5G network in March 2022, with the activation of its first sites in Halifax. As part of this newly expanded Ericsson partnership, the companies will activate Eastlink’s 3500 MHz spectrum that is designed to enable enhanced coverage, lower latency, and fast connection speeds.

The company says it is the first mobile network operator in Canada to fully sunset older 3G technology to make way for 5G advanced network capabilities. Since launching mobile network services across Canada in 2013, Eastlink has invested nearly $370 million.

Jeff Gillham, Eastlink CEO says, “We’re so pleased to welcome Nokia as part of our dual supplier radio network strategy. We expect [Nokia] to cover a sizable portion of our mobile radio access network over the next few years.”

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