Telia and Ericsson roll out 5G innovation program

STOCKHOLM – Telia and Ericsson are launching NorthStar – a 5G innovation program for industrial enterprises, for the development and implementation of new digital solutions. NorthStar aims to accelerate the 5G adoption and transformation of industries, thereby strengthening the country's international competitiveness. The first customer to join is AstaZero, the world's first full-scale independent test environment for automated transport systems.

NorthStar is born from a long-standing partnership between Telia and Ericsson who jointly engaged with Swedish enterprises about new ways of exploring the benefits of 5G, developing new use cases, and adding value to society.

The program will initially focus on customers´ innovation and R&D units in the automotive and transportation sectors. NorthStar gives them the tools and resources needed, like network slicing and positioning, and the secure, safe, and reliable connectivity to develop new use-cases.

Apart from technology, the program will bring together 5G-experts and specialists from both Telia and Ericsson to support the program and its customers.

The first customer to join is AstaZero, a test environment for future road safety. Located outside Gothenburg, Sweden, it is owned and operated by the research organization RISE, partnering with Volvo, Veoneer and Scania.

NorthStar's 5G network utilizes Ericsson's dual-mode 5G Core, and connects to Telia's existing public 5G network, currently being rolled out across Sweden. This means that organizations using NorthStar's 5G environment will benefit from high-speed connectivity across large geographical areas.

Additionally, customers will be able to build their own networks at their own locations, for example test sites and R&D facilities, and connect them to the NorthStar network.

Ericsson is a global leader within 5G technology, participating in more than 100 industry organizations, standards bodies, and other technology alliance groups to ensure cross-industry collaboration. Delivering innovative connectivity solutions to more than 7,000 organizations across multiple sectors, Ericsson brings profound experience and expertise to the NorthStar program.

Read the full press release here.

Ericsson