Erillisverkot Finland Taps Ericsson 5G Core for public safety network

Ericsson has been selected by Erillisverkot Group, the state-run body responsible for national communications networks for public authorities, emergency services and other critical services in Finland, to provide 5G next-generation core network products and solutions for its mission critical broadband network.

The next-generation Public Protection and Disaster Relief (PPDR) network initiative - called Virve 2.0 - is based on commercial mobile 3GPP technology with enhancements to meet security, availability and resilience.

Public safety agencies are increasingly turning to mobile solutions due to the capabilities provided by 4G and 5G development - such as the secure and speedy sharing of data, images and video.

The ten-year deal taps Ericsson’s dual-mode 5G Core portfolio on a common cloud-native platform. This delivers efficient total cost of ownership and enables the smooth introduction of 5G services. Ericsson NFVI, Dynamic Orchestration and VoLTE solutions are also included, alongside related deployment, learning and support services.

The Ericsson 5G Core solutions will enable Erillisverkot to manage and control its mission critical broadband network, safeguard information security and protect data integrity. The network is planned to be operational mid-2021.

Erillisverkot expects all current Virve services to be completely migrated to next-generation Virve 2.0 technology by 2025. The services will work in parallel until the migration is complete.

Timo Lehtimäki, CEO, Erillisverkot, says: “The importance of Virve in critical operations cannot be overstated. The next generation of Virve will be one of the most important governmental ICT project in the coming years, and naturally, a high priority for us at Erillisverkot. Virve will facilitate seamless cooperation between the authorities and other public safety operators, crucial in daily life but also in crisis situations, such as the current coronavirus pandemic.”

Arun Bansal, President Europe and Latin America, Ericsson says: “Critical networks demand the very best standards of reliability, security and performance in the core. We are working closely with Erillisverkot to ensure that is exactly what they will get from Ericsson’s dual-mode 5G core products and solutions to benefit critical services in Finland. It's fantastic to see Finland take such bold steps to ensure the safety and support of the nation in such a forward-thinking way and I look forward to other countries following suit.”