Samsung's global 5G push continued this week as the company partnered with Videotron on the launch of the latter's latest next-generation mobile network. The service is now available in Montreal and will gradually expand throughout the rest of Québec, the Canadian telecom giant said. Videotron opted for Samsung's 5G RAN solutions in order to power the newly established network.
In its current implementation, the service supports AWS, 600MHz, 700MHz, and 2.6GHz spectrums. It's a non-standalone solution, meaning it works with both 5G New Radio and LTE, i.e. 4G.
Will 5G help Samsung expand its wireless business?
As this is Videotron's first foray into 5G, the company is unsurprisingly vague on the details about its future plans. Presumably, because it wants to see how this limited service pans out before committing to more costly expansions.
The good news for Videotron's prospective customers in Montreal is that the non-standalone nature of the network makes it a perfect fit for this transitional period in wireless communications. Since the aforementioned LTE connectivity support will always be there as a backup solution.
As for Samsung, this announcement is yet another signal of its growing wireless ambitions. Not just in Canada, but on the whole, seeing how the company's network business has recently been expanding in the United States, Japan, New Zealand, and its native South Korea.
5G, on its own, already presented a significant opportunity for Samsung to grow its wireless unit. But with Huawei out of the picture, things are looking better than ever for anyone selling RAN solutions, Samsung included.
