Deutsche Telekom Global Carrier, Sunrise and AIS Thailand have for the first time successfully set up an intercontinental 5G standalone (SA) roaming connection between two networks in Europe and Southeast Asia. The partners completed the connection in a lab environment with live SIMs and devices and successfully roamed between the 5G SA networks of Sunrise and AIS Thailand. Their achievement marks a significant milestone as the industry moves closer toward the international adoption of 5G SA services.

The direct SEPP-to-SEPP (Security Edge Protection Proxy) connectivity between the home and the destination networks was carried out via GSMA’s SEPP protocol. SEPP enables secure connection between 5G networks by ensuring end-to-end confidentiality for all 5G interconnect-roaming messages between the originating and destination networks and by following 5G SA roaming security design in the 3GPP standard.

Nicholas Nikrouyan, Vice President, Voice & Mobile Solutions at Deutsche Telekom Global Carrier, said: «We want to accelerate innovation during the current transformation to 5G by encouraging active partnerships that allow the industry jointly to learn and master this technology. Our latest success in completing a 5G SA roaming connection together with Sunrise and AIS Thailand paves the way for further developments that will see 5G SA enable all sorts of next-generation telco service offerings for consumers and enterprises alike. SEPP can also be hosted efficiently on Deutsche Telekom Global Carrier’s IPX network, if operators wish to outsource its implementation and management.»

Robert Redeleanu, Chief Business Officer at Sunrise, commented: «We’re proud to have achieved the 5G SA roaming connection between our network and that of AIS Thailand. Together with Deutsche Telekom Global Carrier, we look forward to converting this success into super-fast and reliable 5G SA connectivity services for our private and corporate customers here in Europe and across the globe.»

Saran Phaloprakarn, Head of Mobile and Consumer Products Development at AIS Thailand, said: «This cooperation with Deutsche Telecom Global Carrier and Sunrise confirms our intention to provide the best cutting-edge digital experiences to our customers and partners. 5G SA roaming is an innovation for ultra-fast data transmission, with efficient support for a wide range of solutions. It will provide huge lifestyle convenience for customers when they’re travelling.»

The successful implementation of these partners’ intercontinental 5G SA roaming connection is part of Deutsche Telekom Global Carrier’s innovative 5G roaming environment, which allows early movers to trial and scout their roaming needs in any 5G implementation scenario before making strategic decisions. Within the environment, there are currently four different proof-of-concept [PoC] trials ongoing in the areas of 5G signaling and security, value-added services for 5G roaming, network slicing for roaming, and regional and local breakout.

Over the past year, Deutsche Telekom Global Carrier together with international mobile roaming specialist Comfone also completed the first phase of their inter-carrier 5G SA roaming PoC, and implemented a low-latency data-roaming connection between Germany and Spain together with Telefonica. Deutsche Telekom Global Carrier’s ultimate aim is to lend momentum to the industry so that it moves from passive collaboration to active cooperation in service delivery.

Press Release (PDF)
 

About Deutsche Telekom Global Carrier

Deutsche Telekom Global Carrier is the international wholesale division of Deutsche Telekom. We offer a comprehensive portfolio for all the needs of a rapidly transforming telco industry. One that is continually updated to provide fast, innovative solutions for future technologies and challenges. As one of the world’s leading carriers, we are able to satisfy the requirements of Deutsche Telekom Group’s international affiliates and more than 900 external customers worldwide. With more than 25 years of experience in the international wholesale communication market, Deutsche Telekom Global Carrier offers next-generation platforms, extensive networks, a global backbone, 360 degrees of security, tailor-made solutions, worldwide connectivity and much more. For more information, please visit https://globalcarrier.telekom.com/

About Sunrise

Sunrise LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Liberty Global, is the largest private telecommunications company in Switzerland. Sunrise offers industry-leading mobile, Internet, TV and landline services for private and business customers. With its hybrid fiber network combining fixed and mobile networks, Sunrise is the leading broadband Internet provider in Switzerland and at the end of 2022 had almost 3.196 million mobile customers, 1.246 million broadband customers and 1.273 million TV customers (RGUs). For more information: www.sunrise.net

About AIS Thailand

Advanced Info Service Public Company Limited (AIS) is the 5G digital service provider with the broadest spectrum for services, totaling 1420 MHz. The company has the most subscribers in Thailand, counting over 46 million in December 2022. AIS is ready to power Thailand with 5G technology which currently covers 77 provinces through three core businesses: mobile phones, high-speed home broadband through AIS Fibre, and digital services in five areas: video, the cloud, digital payments, the Internet of Things (IoT) and services provided jointly with partners. The company is also expanding into AIS eSports and AIS Insurance Service. All of this serves the vision of becoming a cognitive tech-co, to support a robust digital infrastructure for the country, to boost the industrial sector’s competitive potential and upgrade quality of life for all Thais. Find us at www.ais.th