COUNTRY FOCUS: BAHRAIN
TECHNOLOGY
ROADMAP
For this month’s country focus, Intelligent CIO
examines some of the implementations across
Bahrain that are propelling the Gulf state into a
new age of technological innovation.
B
atelco Bahrain and
Ericsson have announced
an MoU to join forces and
collaborate on the development
of 5G and Internet of Things (IoT)
use cases. The agreement will
help drive innovation and early
IoT applications on 5G mobile
network technology based on the
market requirements in Bahrain.
The primary objective of the
collaboration is to develop a joint
understanding of 5G use cases,
requirements and deployment
scenarios, as well as to evaluate
performance and applicability
of potential 5G key technology
components.
Under the new agreement,
Batelco Bahrain and Ericsson will
jointly recognise and develop
proof of concepts for feasible
use cases to meet the needs of
industries in Bahrain. The two
companies will also collaborate on
corresponding vertical use cases
and will implement narrowband
IoT (NB-IoT) for massive machine-
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type communication while
advancing cloud architecture
to enable 5G and NB-IoT
technologies. The aim is to trial
5G capable radio technology and
5G Plug-in software in the existing
4G networks.
Muna Al Hashemi, CEO, Batelco
Bahrain, says: “Part of our
commitment to the people and
industries in Bahrain is to create
new possibilities by continuously
upgrading our platforms and
offering cutting-edge technology.
Through this collaboration with
Ericsson, we aim to take significant
steps into the future of connected
devices, as a technology leader
that empowers the transformation
of Bahrain’s industries and society.”
Ericsson 5G Radio Prototypes are
the first products designed to
enable operators to conduct live
field trials in their own networks.
Ericsson enables operators to move
beyond the 5G hype of lab-based
speed tests and gain a greater
understanding of the potential
for 5G in their own network
environments and markets.
Rafiah Ibrahim, Head of Ericsson
Region Middle East and East
Africa, says: “As 5G technology
expands and evolves over the
coming years, collaboration
amongst the industry players
is key to set the foundation for
the Networked Society, where
anything that can benefit from
a connection, will be connected.
We are happy to collaborate
with our partner Batelco to
empower people, business and
society in Bahrain to pave the
way for advanced and innovative
technologies that 5G will enable.”
Batelco Bahrain, an early adopter
of LTE with commercial launch
in December 2011, has been
serving corporate and consumer
markets through the delivery
of advanced fixed and wireless
telecommunications solutions
in the Kingdom of Bahrain, and
together with Ericsson, recently
delivered LTE-Advanced and VoLTE.
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