Orange and NTT form R&D partnership to accelerate 5G, AI and IoT rollout

Orange has joined forces with Japanese telecoms and technology giant NTT to undertake a new and research and development framework agreement that will see the pair collaborate on 5G, AI and IoT initiatives until 2022.

The full remit of the framework agreement includes, 5G, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Internet of Things (IoT), cybersecurity, cloud services, smart cities, sports, tourism and culture. The collaboration will give rise to a number of innovative services and solutions that can be deployed across Orange's markets in Africa and Europe, and the Asia Pacific region covered by NTT.

In the 5G arena, the pair have earmarked Software Defined Networks (SDN), Network Function Virtualisation (NFV), Open Ecosystems and Software Asset Management as potential areas for immediate collaboration.

“As Europe embarks on its own 5G journey, our collaboration with NTT will be very precious. Both parties share a commitment to continuous learning and cultural exchange, which I fundamentally believe is essential in today’s global environment. The mutualisation of our respective research learnings will enable us to identify and develop better services for customers in our respective regions and support the development of our multinational business customers internationally,” said Stéphane Richard, chairman and CEO, Orange Group.

The cooperation agreement was signed on the 19th February, between Orange's CEO, Stéphane Richard, and NTT's CEO Jun Sawada.

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