13 July 2022

Reliance Jio has started talks with Nordic tech giants Ericsson and Nokia to buy 5G equipment, in a move to diversify from its current 4G partner, Samsung, according to a report by Business Standard.

Swedish firm Ericsson and Jio had initially tied up for 5G trials in Delhi, but the plan did not materialise.

The two companies are set to begin their quick trials at the new location, considering the deadline of permission is July 26, the day from which the 5G spectrum auction will begin.

Both firms also looked to conduct trials in Jamnagar, Gujarat, but a decision has yet to be made.

Jio has already conducted trials of its homegrown 5G equipment in Mumbai and Jamnagar, and with Samsung in Jamnagar.

The report said talks have also begun with Finland’s Nokia, though no trials have been planned.

Jio said it intends to take its homegrown 5G stack to global markets after testing it on a pan-India scale. In recent weeks, it has demonstrated several use cases such as connected drones and metaverse for retail using the trial 5G airwaves allocated by the government.

Nokia and Ericsson did not comment on the report.