Portugal: Demystifying 5G

The mobile market is dominated by the incumbent Portugal Telecom, owned by Altice Group and operating as Meo, followed by Vodafone and NOS.

2G is on 900 and 1800 MHz, 3G is on 2100 MHz with MEO and NOS and on 900 MHz with Vodafone. 4G/LTE was launched in 2012 on all three networks on the 800, 1800 and 2600 MHz bands. It already reaches the majority of population and is open for prepaid on all network providers.

MEO now owned by Dutch Altice Group is the market leader with a 40% share. However the market share held by Meo has fallen steadily in recent years. Altice Labs began working with Ericsson to develop 5G services and applications in 2017.

They recently hosted an event (see video below) which was staged using an experimental network, in collaboration with Ericsson, and simulated a car crash to demonstrate how 5G’s lower latency, higher bandwidth and faster speeds can support emergency workers.

This demonstrated how 5G can support drone footage from accident sites and the delivery of vital information about victims and their condition in real-time.This event also marked the launch of the 5G experimental network for the City of Aveiro, which is aiming to be fully covered by 5G by 2020.

Altice Labs insist technology has no meaning if it is not for improving people's lives and they wish want to demystify 5G. The intense deployment of fibre optics and the modernisation of base stations in recent years across the country puts Meo in a more comfortable position in the evolution to 5G.

 


Vodafone Portugal is the major competitor of MEO in the country with a 33% share and according to Open Signal the best coverage and highest speeds on both 3G and 4G. It lets prepaid customers join their 4G network as part as an ongoing promotion for free. Also on top of 2100 MHz they also have 3G on 900 MHz allowing for better indoor coverage which is rare in Europe and not carried by all devices.

NOS, previously called Optimus, has the smallest network with a 20% share, but still gives a good performance.Vodafone and NOS recently signed an agreement to share fibre infrastructure, which pushed Vodafone’s addressable market to some four million premises. As a result of these efforts DSL is no longer the dominant platform for broadband access.



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• NOS, Portugal demonstrates 5G for Smart Cities

NOS, Portugal demonstrates 5G for Smart Cities

NOS did a live demonstration of 5G at Portugal Smart Cities Summit. According to NOS LinkedIn company page (using Google translate):

NOS announces today the company's solutions to meet the challenges of digital transformation of cities and marks the event with the first demonstration supported in 5G Second, Manuel Ramalho Eanes, executive director of NOS: "With the NOS tomorrow's super cities are already being built today. All the partnerships we have been doing (...) aim to leave the municipalities already prepared for the potential of the new mobile generation. The 5G will be a key enabler in building 5.0 partnerships, where machines will be at the service of citizens. "

According to Telecom Paper:

Portuguese operator Nos is conducting a live 5G demonstration at the Portugal Smart Cities Summit in partnership with Huawei. The demo is focused on remote driving of vehicles, simulating a safety and emergency situation. 

Nos said the demonstration will show the difference the new generation of mobile communications brings in terms of response time (latency). It will also illustrate the application of technology in the field of safety in the community, with a view to future response capacity and autonomy of emergency prevention and combat services. In order to conduct the 5G demo, Nos requested from Anacom spectrum in the 3.5 GHz band.

According to PortugalResident:

It was a simulation of an emergency situation where vehicles had to be action “from a distance”.

Various reports have explained how NOS regularly tests its developing technology and has “absolute faith” in its Huawei partners.

“International concerns” are not going to do away with 18 months of work and investment within the company, said Ramalho Eanes, stressing that aside from its partnership with Huawei, NOS is “working with Nokia to ensure the availability to the Portuguese market of 5G masts and technology”.

Yesterday’s test event involved a Huawei mast being installed at the corner of FIL’s Pavilion 1.

“In the middle of the pavilion were two driving simulators with virtual reality goggles”, explains Observador.

Operators were able to show how, with 5G, its possible to control emergency vehicles, like fire engines, from a distance.

Granted, the speeds at which these vehicles travel do not exceed 20 km/ h yet, but the advantages, in terms of removing the risks to humans in hostile environments were highlighted.

NOS is not revealing for now how much it has invested in 5G, but Ramalho Eanes stressed the company’s commitment to rolling out the network in partnership with Huawei.

According to Algarve for explorers:

Portugal on the Smart Cities Summit in Lisbon NOS is in the process of being presented in five major themed areas: the environment, energy, waste, mobility and security. Installed in the data centers of the communication group's solutions are already being implemented in test communities, according to NOS. According to these figures, in the areas of energy efficiency in buildings, smart street lighting, remote management of water supply networks, weather-dependent irrigation in parks and gardens, waste management, smart parking, vehicle fleet management, reporting and event organization.

During the three-day event in Lisbon NOS representatives wanted to discuss the issue of cyber security and resource efficiency and other issues, according to the press release. Since Huawei's participation is likely to be one of the hotter iron.


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