Bharti Airtel, Juniper Networks sign network upgrades deal

On Wednesday. Bharti Airtel and Juniper Networks announced a network upgrades deal. The deal will see the latter supply equipment upgrades to the former's broadband network.

Juniper to Upgrade Airtel's Broadband Network

In a written statement, Juniper said that Airtel's FTTH network has reached over 400 towns. The telco has plans to reach over 2,000 cities and 30 million households over the next three years. As such, to match the demand, and gain footholds across the cities will require big upgrades to the network. Therefore, the telco has signed a deal with Juniper Networks; the statement added that it is "building on the long-term relationship between the two".

According to the statement, Juniper will supply, install and support upgrades to the MX Series routers and line cards. This will also allow Airtel to manage its subscribers and services. Furthermore, Juniper will also supply carrier-grade NAT (CGNAT) solutions to ensure secure encryption across the network.

Sajan Paul, MD & Country Manager, India & SAARC, Juniper Networks, said, “we are privileged to have been Airtel’s partner for the last 15 years, growing alongside them as they have expanded their broadband and ISP network, in service of India’s home, SMB, and large enterprise customers".

Further, Paul added, "as Airtel gears up their network for 5G, we are excited to continually contribute towards their network transformation, not just in support of their fiber-to-the-home broadband services expansion, but also for other use cases and applications across various business segments.”

Airtel has been conducting 5G trials in Manesar, Gurugram, where it has been developing enterprise-centered use cases. The second-largest telco recently announced its #5GforBusiness initiative.

Given 5G’s capabilities, specifically the low latency and high network capacity, Airtel now has set its sights on enterprise customers. These customers can deliver high financial dividends, and to some extent, bragging rights. After all, India’s telecom market has a history of oneupmanship, and Airtel wants to one-up everyone in the 5G department.