Canadian regional telecom operator SaskTel is deploying a Samsung cloud-native 4G and 5G core to bolster network operations and provide another feather in Samsung’s Canadian operator cap.

The deployment will see SaskTel install the Samsung core in support of the carrier’s 3.5 GHz and 3.8 GHz spectrum bands radiating across its network in Saskatchewan. That Samsung core is built using a containerized architecture to support more agile network operations.

SaskTel spent approximately $110 million to acquire those licenses during recent Canadian government auctions.

SaskTel said it also planned to deploy Samsung’s 5G standalone (SA) core “for the next phase of its network modernization.” That move will align the regional operator with moves made by Canada’s nationwide players Bell Canada, Telus, and Rogers.

“From developments in AI, to smart agriculture and virtual healthcare, to immersive gaming and IoT, this technology lays the foundation for a future where connectivity empowers people, organizations and communities to reach their full potential,” SaskTel CEO Charlene Gavel said of its modernization program.

Samsung’s Canadian cadence

Samsung’s SaskTel deal comes on the heels of the vendor being selected by Telus to deploy the first AI-powered radio access network (RAN) intelligent controller (RIC) in that country.

The deployment involves Telus using Samsung’s RIC platform and accompanying applications from Samsung’s CognitiV Network Operations Suite (NOS). The initial list of applications includes the KPI Anomaly Detector and RAN Anomaly Inisight to proactively identify and analyze network issues; the Energy Saving Manager for dynamic traffic prediction and automated orchestration of energy saving features; and the Load Balancing Manager to optimize resource utilization and improve network performance.

The RIC operates in the middle of an open RAN deployment as a kind of linkage to the wider network. It allows operators to deploy xApps and rApps that then allow operators to design and control RAN functions, providing administrative RAN sovereignty over functions that are typically implemented as proprietary features on base stations.

These “apps” are microservices-based applications operating in near-real time (xApps) and non-real time (rApps) that provide an operator with more control over their open RAN environments.

Bernard Bureau, VP of wireless strategy and 5G services at Telus, touted Samsung’s ablity to support both legacy hardware-based and more modern virtualized network architectures. This provides support for Telus’ multi-year move toward modernizing its entire network architecture.

Bureau added that this was one of many reasons why Telus selected Samsung for this project.

“All RAN equipment suppliers have their own version of RIC with varying levels of maturity,” Bureau said. “Not all of them are open to manage stuff that goes beyond managing their own equipment, so that's the first differentiator, and Samsung did exceptionally well on that.”