Samsung is to conduct 4G and 5G trials in Warsaw, Poland, with mobile operator, Play. The companies will verify the capability and performance of Samsung’s 4G and 5G network solutions in the trial, which will be carried out in Play’s labs and commercial networks, beginning in the current quarter of this year.
Samsung R&D Institute Poland, one of the largest research and development centres in the nation, will also take part in the trial, which will additionally test the interoperability between Play’s 2G/3G legacy networks and Samsung’s latest solutions.
Play is a leading mobile network operator in Poland, providing mobile voice, messaging, data and video services for both consumers and businesses and has acquired over 15 million subscribers across the nation, covering 99 percent of the Polish population.
“Samsung is pleased to work with Play in delivering 5G services, and excited to demonstrate our network capabilities in Poland. This trial will serve as a meaningful milestone for the two companies’ collaborative efforts in Poland,” said Thomas Riedel, Head of Europe, Networks Business at Samsung Electronics.
“Leveraging our advanced 5G solutions and technical leadership, we will continue to expand our global and European presence with leading operators like Play to take 5G user experience to new heights,” he continued.
Samsung will provide its latest 4G and 5G technology solutions for the trial, including 4G radios, 5G Massive MIMO radios and baseband units, on low and mid-band spectrums.
Slim and lightweight, Samsung’s Massive MIMO radios ensure easy installation and quick deployment for mobile operators, such as Play, and also increase coverage, boost data speeds in order to enrich 5G experience for users. They have been commercially deployed since 2019 and are currently in operation across the globe.
The company’s baseband unit offers improved performance with enhanced capacity and throughput, while supporting both 4G and 5G frequencies in a single unit. They allow operators to increase flexibility in network management and achieve cost efficiency.
“At Play we are open to the innovative technologies offered by our partners. The partnership with Samsung is another initiative that allows us to choose the best solutions for the rollout of our network. It is its extension and modernisation that have a direct impact on the comfort of our customers,” said Michał Ziółkowski, Management Board Member and Chief Technology Officer at Play.
Huawei currently supplies the majority of Play’s current network but new legislation that Poland has introduced prevents operators from buying products sold by “high-risk vendors” and requires them to remove products they have already deployed within the next five years. Ericsson also currently supplies a small portion of Play’s network.
