Parallel Wireless has announced that Kalimat Telecom, a subsidiary of Kuwait’s Trade Links, has selected Parallel Wireless to build out their mobile broadband network in Iraq.
According to the GSMA Mobile Economy: Middle East and North Africa 2018 report, Iraq has only a 52% wireless Internet penetration rate, presenting a great opportunity for telecom service providers in that market. Poor infrastructure and high operating costs are currently stunting development.
Kalimat recognized the inflexibility of legacy cellular solutions to bring digital services to the Iraqi population that is hungry for digital services. Parallel Wireless’s fully-virtualized HetNet and core solutions enable Kalimat to deploy a distributed virtualized mobile broadband network delivering consumer and enterprise wireless services across the region cost-effectively and on an accelerated timeline. The Parallel Wireless software-based architecture delivers ease of deployment and the flexibility required to meet the changing needs of this market. This will be one of the largest fully virtualized commercial mobile broadband networks in the region.
With Parallel Wireless, the overall CAPEX, OPEX and complexity associated with building out and managing the network is significantly reduced through network automation. As a result, the high-speed mobile broadband network will provide the region with a range of advanced new residential and business voice and data services, helping with the digital society realization.
Supporting quotes
Wilson Varghese, Group CEO Trade Links and CEO, Kalimat Telecom, said, “We initially selected Parallel Wireless based on their innovation in the area of Open RAN and virtualization and their work with some of the world’s leading MNOs. Our decision has been reinforced many times throughout the initial deployment, as we were continually impressed by the speed with which we were able to move from lab trials to roll-outs; a process that took very little time for us to virtualize the core services required for the success of the project to deliver a better service to our customers, rural, suburban or urban, across regions.”
Amrit Heer, Head of Business Development, EME, Parallel Wireless, said, “We are committed to our role to help eliminate the digital divide. We work with partners such as Kalimat Telecom to help them cost-effectively enable connectivity by simplifying installation and increasing flexibility and sustainability through our software for new wireless network buildouts. As a result, the costs associated with building or modernizing mobile networks is reduced and connectivity can be brought to every single person in the world.”
