Verizon and Ericsson sign $8.3 billion deal to improve carrier's 5G Ultra Wideband performance

Networking equipment supplier Ericsson and wireless provider Verizon have signed an $8.3 billion multi-year agreement that is expected to speed up the availability of Verizon's next-gen 5G network in the U.S. Under the terms of the deal, Verizon will use Ericsson's 5G MIMO (multiple-input, multiple-output) solutions for the C-band, low-band, and mmWave band to expand and improve coverage of Verizon's 5G Ultra Wideband coverage.

Among the solutions that Ericsson will deliver are Massive MIMO, Ericsson Spectrum Sharing, and Ericsson Cloud RAN. While MIMO uses two or four antennas connecting from the base station to the user's handset, Massive MIMO requires that a large number of antennas be placed at the base station. Spectrum Sharing, already used by Verizon for its low band nationwide 5G service, allows 4G and 5G to coexist using the same spectrum.

Kyle Malady, Chief Technology Officer for Verizon, said, "With this new agreement, we will be able to continue driving innovation and widespread adoption of 5G. We are pleased to continue this work through our long-standing relationship with Ericsson."

Niklas Heuveldop, President and Head of Ericsson North America, commented that ""This is a significant strategic partnership for both companies and what we're most excited about is bringing the benefits of 5G to U.S. consumers, enterprises, and the public sector. We're looking forward to working with Verizon to leverage solutions like Cloud RAN and our Street Macro, adding depth and versatility to 5G network rollouts across the U.S."

Verizon's Ultra Wideband service uses high-band spectrum to deliver extremely fast 5G download data speed. The signals do not travel far and are easily blocked by structures. The service is available in only a limited number of U.S. cities.