US operator Verizon Business completed the first phase of certification to add a Nokia private 5G platform to a range of approved offerings, advancing a move it stated would ultimately expand the hard and software options it can offer across its licensed spectrum.

The Nokia Digital Automation Cloud (DAC) will also be used to improve indoor coverage for Verizon consumer and enterprise customers.

Nokia’s platform will be available in Verizon’s innovation labs for enterprise customers to trial once it is fully certified and added to the operator’s portfolio.

A Verizon representative told Mobile World Live it is certifying several of Nokia’s radios for its low-band, C-Band and mmWave spectrum.

The DAC combines Verizon’s 4.9G/LTE and 5G network connectivity with Nokia’s on-premise mission critical industrial edge (MXIE), which includes edge cloud capabilities.

It will provide Verizon Business customers with data management and processing to support real-time applications spanning smart manufacturing, predictive maintenance and remote operations.

David de Lancellotti, VP of Enterprise Campus Edge business at Nokia, stated after working with Verizon for years on dedicated and unlicensed CBRS spectrum implementations across Europe and the US, the addition of the DAC in North America would accelerate 5G and industry 4.0 transformations.

Verizon has deployed private 5G networks across US sports venues and health organisations using its C-Band and mmWave spectrum.

During its Q2 earnings call, CEO Hans Vestberg stated using managed spectrum for private networks offers “a great opportunity” to combine it with the operator’s mobile edge compute capabilities.