5G

• Unprecedented £11bn investment is one of the largest privately funded infrastructure programmes in the UK, connecting all four nations and every community  
• VodafoneThree is the only mobile network operator with a fully funded, regulated and guaranteed

Five organisations have jointly developed and conducted a live demonstration of a new 5G non-terrestrial network (NTN) satellite technology for mobile connectivity in remote areas.

The UK Government has announced 50 existing mobile masts across England, Scotland and Wales have been upgraded to improve rural mobile coverage.

The masts, which were initially only used to connect EE customers and those calling 999, have now been upgraded to provide coverage from all mobile network operators. 

Vodafone Group Plc (“Vodafone”) and CK Hutchison Group Telecom Holdings Limited (“CKHGT”), a wholly owned subsidiary of CK Hutchison Holdings Limited (“CK Hutchison”), are pleased to announce that the merger of Vodafone UK and Three UK successfully completed on 31 May 2025.

Three UK has successfully completed the first stage of a landmark trial – the UK’s first deployment of Open RAN technology in a dense urban environment. The trial was designed to test the viability of deploying Open RAN in a complex city setting.

Vodafone and chip firm MediaTek say they have reached a milestone by successfully testing 5G uplink speeds of up to 277 Mbps.

Ericsson and UK Connect have teamed up to provide upgraded connectivity solutions to Surrey Search and Rescue, who were previously often relying on paper maps.

O2 has upgraded its mobile network in and around Wembley Stadium ahead of a roster of big sports and music events.

More than 2.5 million people are apparently set to flock to the stadium this summer for events including the FA Cup final, seven Oasis shows and the Dua Lipa O2 Priority gig.

The Institute of Telecommunications Professionals (ITP) has officially been approved as a registered training provider for the Level 4 Cellular Network Field Engineer (CNFE) apprenticeship — a move that directly responds to the UK’s growing need for skilled telecoms engineers.

• Together with Ericsson, Vodafone has introduced a new era of tunnel connectivity with the deployment of innovative multiband mobile radio antennas in the Arlinger Tunnel near Pforzheim, Germany
• This installation marks the first operational use of Ericsson’s advanced antenna technology from Ericsson Antenna S

Kit vendor Ericsson will inject €200 million over the next three years into its Athlone facility in central Ireland, in order to research open network management and automation capabilities for 5G.

• India’s two main telcos, Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel, have built nationwide 5G networks
• As well as marketing 5G mobile packages, they have both been offering 5G fixed wireless access (FWA) broadband services
• Jio is currently dominating India’s 5G FWA sector with a near 85% market

Vodafone, Austria-based A1 and Ericsson have reached a new 5G standalone (SA) milestone that shines a light on the technical complexity of taking this technology across borders.

Londoners experience a poorer quality of experience on 5G mobile networks than residents of other UK cities and the gap appears to be widening, according to new data published this week.

European leadership in the development of next-generation 6G mobile technologies is set to be boosted with the launch of a new €104 million call to support cutting-edge research and innovation in mobile networks.

Hello, I’m Dimitrios Pezaros, a professor of Computer Networks at the University of Glasgow.

According to a recently published report from Dell’Oro Group, the trusted source for market information about the telecommunications, security, networks, and data center industries, telecom operators scaled back wireless and wireline investments in 2024.

Telia, Nokia and the Finnish Defense Forces have conducted the world’s first standalone 5G slice handover between multiple countries in a live network. The groundbreaking trial demonstrates how 5G is ready to provide mission-critical capabilities for defense and other key sectors.

As connectivity becomes crucial for business, industry, and society, the UK's Department for Science, Innovation, and Technology (DSIT) seeks innovative solutions through its Open Network Programmes.

In sum – what you need to know

Private wireless surge – private wireless growth catches Dell’Oro by surprise, as private 4G/5G RAN sales jump by over 40% in 2024, reaching 3-5% of total RAN sales.

Qualcomm announced the acquisition of MovianAI Artificial Intelligence (AI) Application and Research JSC (MovianAI), the former generative AI division of VinAI Application and Research JSC (VinAI) and a part of the Vingroup ecosystem.

Ericsson and SoftBank Corp. (“SoftBank”) have entered a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to establish a strategic partnership towards 2030.

Nokia’s new 5G Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) gateway with Wi-Fi 7 is supposed to enable wifi speeds of up to 4Gbps.

The FastMile Gateway 4 is loaded with high-gain antennas (up to 8 dBi), and dual-band Wi-Fi 7 that can apparently be self-installed by the consumer in the home.

Qualcomm might just have something to worry about, as early indications suggest that Apple's first 5G modem is up to snuff.