Indian operator Bharti Airtel partnered with Nokia to power its Voice over LTE (VoLTE) network in India, a move the companies argued would improve the reliability of the operator’s calling services and enhance customer experience.

In a statement, Nokia said it CloudBand-based software offerings were the foundation of what it claimed to be the biggest cloud-based VoLTE network in India, supporting more than 110 million people in the country.

The network spans India’s 22 telecom service areas and uses commercial off-the-shelf IT hardware with cloud-based virtualised network functions (VNFs), resulting in the consumption of “much less power and space compared to the traditional 2G/3G Circuit Switched legacy core”.

Following the deployment, Airtel is able to free up spectrum by winding down its 3G network and make call connectivity faster, more reliable and cost-efficient, the vendor said.

Randeep Sekhon, CTO of Bharti Airtel, noted the tie-up would allow it to “build a future ready and agile network” as it aimed to simplify its architecture and accelerate delivery of innovative services and improved customer experience.

Airtel will also use Nokia’s CloudBand Infrastructure Software to create revenue opportunities for 5G and internet-connected devices by adapting network capacity according to shifting consumption patterns in real-time.

In April, Airtel picked Nokia for the deployment of around 300,000 radio access units to lay the foundation for 5G in the country.

The operator also stepped-up efforts in the cloud services area by joining forces with Google.