Taiwan operator Chunghwa Telecom selected Ericsson and Nokia as 5G RAN vendors, with plans to introduce commercial service in July based on the non-standalone (NSA) architecture using multiple spectrum bands.

The market leader, with a 34 per cent share by subscribers at end-2019, will run the next-generation mobile service on the 3.5GHz and 28GHz bands. It is planning to launch standalone (SA) 5G in “the near future”.

Chunghwa Telecom paid TWD45.7 billion ($1.51 billion) for 90MHz in the 3.5GHz band and TWD618 million for 600MHz of 28GHz spectrum in an auction held in January.

In a statement, Nokia said it is deploying the operator’s radio network in the central and southern regions of Taiwan, adding it worked closely with the operator to prepare for 5G, including technology verification, interoperability and development testing.

Ericsson said Chunghwa Telecom will used its base stations and 5G core, as well as fronthaul, IP backhaul transport and spectrum sharing systems. It didn’t identify the region where its gear is being installed.

The vendor noted it worked with the operator on 5G since 2017, and they are jointly developing related enterprise applications to promote industrial transformation.

Chunghwa Telecom is the second win for Ericsson in recent days, with rival operator Far EasTone also naming the vendor as a 5G RAN supplier.