Cellnex joins the 5G Barcelona initiative

December 5, 2018

Cellnex Telecom and 5G Barcelona have signed an agreement to collaborate on the development and implementation of pilot projects with which to test the use of 5G technology in different sectors.

One of the first projects to be performed is a pilot trial for analysing connectivity in safety and emergency services, through the application of 5G in the early detection of all types of incidents (fires, accidents, etc.) based on real-time data and image uptake and transfer to the security forces and/or emergency services. The objective is to encourage a reduction in response times, the remote and ongoing monitoring of the situation and the adaptation and modulation of the resources necessary to attend to and resolve it.

Cellnex is therefore joining 5G Barcelona, an initiative promoted by the Autonomous Government of Catalonia, Barcelona City Hall, Mobile World Capital Barcelona, the i2CAT Foundation, the Centre Tecnològic de Telecomunicacions de Catalunya (CTTC), Atos and the Polytechnic University of Catalonia (UPC) the purpose of which is to convert the city into a European benchmark 5G digital hub.

The agreement covers the definition and development of new cases of use, implementation of trials in real settings as pilot projects within the city of Barcelona, and the creation of 5G technology prototypes. The agreement will also provide Cellnex with access to the laboratories of 5G Barcelona and to the consortium’s other infrastructures and services in the city.

“We wish to be close at hand to the cases of use and to the applications that will be supported by the new standard”, stated Oscar Pallarols, Cellnex Global Innovation Director. “This also enables us to test the different elements of the 5G ecosystem as far as infrastructures are concerned: from small cells to the need to extend Fibre to the Antenna (FTTA) connectivity, plus bringing processing and computing capability closer to different network nodes, the so-called “edge computing” which is supposed to allow for the extremely low latency levels required by critical applications such as connected cars and telemedicine.” Pallarols lastly added that “the 5G Barcelona platform offers a suitable environment for developing and validating 5G deployment models in different sector-specific areas and environments of use and access”.

On behalf of 5G Barcelona, Carlos Grau, CEO of Mobile World Capital Barcelona, also stressed the importance of the agreement for 5G Barcelona and stated that “Barcelona is already a benchmark for 5G technology as it has key public and private agents in the sector, all of whom are committed to transferring the impact of these technologies, economically and socially, with each pilot trial performed.” According to Grau, Cellnex “will offer a clear example of how by working together we can generate knowledge of value with which to innovate and demonstrate the real potential of 5G to companies and to the public at large”.

About Cellnex

Cellnex Telecom is the main European operator of wireless telecommunications infrastructures and has a total portfolio of 28,000 sites and deployment forecasts up until 2022. The company operates in Spain, Italy, Holland, France, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.

Cellnex works in four core areas: services for telecommunications infrastructures, broadcasting networks, safety and emergency network services, and solutions for the smart management of infrastructures and urban services (smart cities and Internet of Things (IOT).

The company is quoted on Spanish stock exchange continuous market and is listed on the selective IBEX35 and EuroStoxx 600. It also features in the FTSE4GOOD, CDP (Carbon Disclosure Project), Sustainalytics and Standard Ethics sustainability indices.

About 5G Barcelona

5GBarcelona is a public-private partnership that constitutes a neutral, open hub for the testing and roll-out of 5G technology and applications in a real city environment. It is sponsored by the Regional Government of Catalonia, Barcelona City Hall, the Mobile World Capital Barcelona Foundation, the i2CAT Foundation, the CTTC (Centre Tecnològic de Telecomunicacions de Catalunya), Atos and the UPC (Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya).

5GBarcelona aims to transform Barcelona’s metropolitan area into a leading 5G innovation laboratory with an open experimental structure for testing, creating prototypes and implementing new digital solutions.