Ericsson, Vodafone and Qualcomm demo first RedCap data call in Europe

Ericsson, along with its partners Vodafone and Qualcomm Technologies, has demonstrated the first RAN Reduced Capability (RedCap) data call in Europe, paving the way for exciting new use cases for enterprises and consumers.

The demo took place on 21 September 2023 in Spain's Ciudad Real city, running on Ericsson's RedCap RAN software using Vodafone Spain's live testing 5G network 'CREATE' ( short for Ciudad Real España Advanced Testing Environment). The demo utilized the Qualcomm Snapdragon X35 platform, the world's first NR-Light modem RF, and is part of preparations to introduce Snapdragon-based commercial devices which are expected to be available in 2024.

Commenting on this milestone, Isidro Nieto, Global Customer Unit Vodafone, Head of Technology Networks, Ericsson, said, "We are very happy to be partnering with Vodafone and Qualcomm to perform Europe's first 5G Reduced Capability data call. 5G Redcap opens up new use cases for both enterprise and consumer segments such as industrial sensors, lower-cost 5G routers as well as wearables. Ericsson embraces new ways to fully realize the value of 5G services and this joint demo shows that the support for RedCap is gaining market momentum."

Ericsson's RedCap RAN software allows many more devices to connect to 5G networks and transmit data at low power and lower cost, enhancing existing 5G use cases and unlocking new ones. It allows communication service providers to introduce services beyond enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB) on 5G standalone architecture, from consumer wearables such as smartwatches to a wide range of IoT devices like smart water meters.

The technology, called New Radio Light (NR-Light), works with smaller, more cost-efficient devices that enjoy longer battery life than traditional mobile broadband devices. NR-Light can also complement the network APIs developed by Vodafone for its customers to extend the battery life of their devices, according to Ericsson's press release.

"This successful demonstration is an exciting moment for OEMs, network operators and network users because it highlights a clear path to new devices and commercial use cases. The use of commercial 5G networks for lower-bandwidth applications is an important milestone, not least because this offers a migratory path for low-power devices with a 5G architecture, which also draws on the current and future benefits offered by 5G standalone (5G SA)," said Dino Flore, Vice President, Technology, Qualcomm Europe Inc.