Samsung, Jio strengthening network partnership for India

Samsung Electronics’ network business President Kim Young-ky, right, shakes hands with Indian telecom company Reliance Jio Infocomm President Jyotindra Thacker during a press conference at the Mobile World Congress 2017 in Barcelona, Tuesday (local time). / Courtesy of Samsung Electronics

By Lee Min-hyung

BARCELONA ― Samsung Electronics has agreed to expand its network presence in India by beefing up a partnership with Reliance Jio Infocomm, a long-term-evolution (LTE) mobile service operator there.

Both firms said Tuesday in a joint press conference that they would further strengthen their network service alliance in one of the Asia’s largest telecom markets.

Under the new partnership, called Infill & Growth project, they pledged to expand Jio’s LTE network service coverage in India to more than 90 percent of the population there.

“We achieved 100 million subscribers in 170 days, making us the fastest-growing company in the world, and the numbers continue to rapidly grow,” Reliance Jio Infocomm President Jyotindra Thacker said on the sidelines of this year’s Mobile World Congress (MWC).

The partnership between the two companies began in 2012 when Samsung signed an exclusive contract with Jio to supply fourth-generation (4G) LTE network equipment.

Two years later, the Korean IT firm established a 4G LTE network environment all across India.

Samsung is providing a series of network-related devices, including equipment for core network operations, voice over LTE (VoLTE) and other telecom infrastructure. The tech giant also set up a new service organization in India, opening a monthly average of 7,000 base stations across the country.

Backed by the partnership, Jio has secured more than 100 million LTE user bases since it started the 4G service in September last year, becoming the fastest-growing telecom operator there.

At the press conference, both companies agreed to expand their partnership not only for 4G and 4G Advanced Pro, but also for the upcoming fifth-generation (5G) network which will be commercialized in 2020.

Kim Young-ky, president and head of network business at Samsung Electronics, said, “We will pave the way for a telecom paradigm shift to maximize subscribers’ user experiences under the close cooperation with the world’s fastest-growing mobile carrier in India.”

Samsung said it will tighten its grip on the Indian network industry through the alliance, helping local residents enjoy exclusive telecom services such as voice calls and data.

“We will strive to create a new paradigm for LTE-Advanced Pro and 5G by working with Jio as a unified workforce,” Samsung’s network chief said.

Jio is a telecom subsidiary of India-based conglomerate Reliance Industries, focusing on providing the 4G LTE service in the country without 2G or 3G-centered services.