Samsung Expands 5G Footprint With Videotron

Canadian telecommunications operator Videotron tapped Samsung Electronics to provide 4G LTE-Advanced (LTE-A) and 5G radio access networks, marking the vendor’s first foray into the Canadian market. Canadian telecommunications operator Videotron tapped Samsung Electronics to provide 4G LTE-Advanced (LTE-A) and 5G radio access networks, marking the vendor’s first foray into the Canadian market. Videotron deployed its wireless business in 2010 and currently provides 4G LTE service. The operator plans to launch commercial LTE-A and 5G services in late 2020 using Samsung’s networking gear. This coincides with Canada’s 5G commercial launch, which is expected to take place in late 2020. Starting in early 2020, Samsung will provide 4G LTE-A equipment across Quebec and Ottawa including massive multiple-input, multiple-output (MIMO) and dual-band base stations to support the operator’s 4G LTE frequencies as well as 5G gear for both 3.5GHz and 28GHz spectrum. “This partnership will allow us to deliver the most advanced telecommunications solutions to Quebecers,” said Jean François Pruneau, president and CEO of Videotron. The operator wants “to be with our customers through these major changes” from 4G to 5G  “and the choice of Samsung as a supplier is not a coincidence, we are convinced that they represent the best option to achieve this objective,” he added. Samsung is already working with carriers in Korea, the United States, and Japan as they deploy their 5G networks. In September, Samsung inked a deal with KDDI, Japan’s second-largest mobile network operator, to provide various RAN equipment including virtualized RAN. KDDI expects to begin deploying 5G services in March 2020 in the run-up to the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. And Verizon last year selected Samsung gear for its first 5G market: Sacramento, California.