By Catherine Sbeglia
Samsung announced its first network installation in New Zealand, where it has worked with Spark New Zealand to launch a 5G network in Christchurch, the most populous city in South Island of New Zealand.
“We’re pleased to collaborate with Samsung to launch 5G in central Christchurch, New Zealand to have access to 5G speeds at home with our wireless broadband or on-the-go with a compatible 5G phone,” said Rajesh Singh, GM of value management at Spark New Zealand. “Samsung’s 5G Massive MIMO radio enables major improvements in both throughput and efficiency for Spark.”
The deployment includes Samsung’s Massive MIMO radio, which the vendor claimed is one of the lightest and most compact network radios on the market. The Massive MIMO radio also uses 3D beamforming technology, allowing it to deliver improved capacity and network coverage.
The two companies have been working together on 5G trials since 2019 and revealed plans to jointly build Spark’s 5G network just a few days before the launch announcement.
Prior to working with Samsung in Christchurch, Spark tapped Nokia to help it deliver 5G services to Auckland, including Spark’s 5G Race Zone, located in the city’s Viaduct precinct, which is a 5G-powered experience specifically designed for sailing fans. The race zone includes a multi-crew simulator, a 4D immersive experience and a wind tunnel that visualizes wind data like never before, allowing fans to be “at the heart of the action.”
At the time of this writing, Nokia has 196 commercial 5G agreements and 55 live 5G operator networks, according to the company website.
