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Dish is building its network ground up and has so far chosen
non-traditional telecoms vendors and a new technology called
Open Radio Access Network (RAN) that uses software to run
network functions on the cloud, reducing the use of physical
equipment.
The agreement with Nokia marks Dish's first deal with a
traditional telecoms equipment supplier.
Dish, which is sitting on an unused wireless spectrum portfolio
worth $20 billion, is working with Fujitsu, Nvidia, Altiostar
and Mavenir to supply various parts of the network.
Nokia has distanced itself from other telecoms equipment firms
by being a vocal supporter of Open RAN and had earlier partnered
with Japan's Rakuten - the first firm to use an Open RAN-based
network - in deploying its 4G network.
Dish's network will have a much larger footprint than Rakuten's.
As part of the deal, Nokia will offer subscriber data
management, device management and integration services, among
others, the companies said in a joint statement.
A core network is where the most critical controls are located
and the sensitive information is stored, while the peripheral
radio network is typically larger and includes masts, antennas
and other passive equipment.
After China's Huawei was banned from U.S. telecom networks,
Nokia and Ericsson are dominating the race for 5G deployment in
the country, with Samsung slowly catching up.
(Reporting by Supantha Mukherjee in Stockholm and Anne Kauranen
in Helsinki; Editing by Mark Potter)
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