Optus has acknowledged that Australia’s ban on Huawei technology has compelled the company to build parts of its 5G network without access to the most advanced equipment.
“From a pure technology perspective, Huawei is probably ahead of the other three,” Optus CEO Allen Lew told The Sydney Morning Herald. “But what we’ve got from the other suppliers will enable us to provide a globally competitive service.”
The operator adjusted its supplier mix after the ban, and Lew expressed confidence that the rollout and delivery of future services will not be hindered.
Commenting on the ban last Wednesday, Huawei Australia Chairman John Lord warned:
“If you remove one of the key players out of a major bidding process, you weaken your competition.
You’ve removed the largest and leading player out of the competition, and I think that’s to Australia’s disadvantage.
We may not end up with one of the best 5G networks like other countries.”
Optus launched an early version of its 5G home broadband service today. Initially available in two Canberra suburbs and one Sydney site, the service includes a 50 Mbps satisfaction guarantee and promises up to 1 Gbps peak speeds as the network matures.
“This is a historic day for Optus as we begin our exciting 5G journey with the announcement of Optus’ 5G Home Broadband service,” Lew said.
Optus expects to have 47 additional sites online by March 2019. Rival operator Telstra announced earlier that it had signed agreements with certain smartphone manufacturers to introduce 5G phones exclusively on its network in the first half of the year.
Because it cannot use Huawei equipment, Optus is pursuing a multi-vendor strategy for its 5G rollout. Nokia is supplying the 5G radio access network (RAN) and Fastmile 5G customer premises equipment (CPE) for Optus’ initial 5G home broadband offering.
The security advantages of deploying multiple vendors were highlighted last year by a Canadian intelligence official when Canada opted not to ban Huawei from its 5G networks. Scott Jones, head of Ottawa’s Canadian Centre for Cyber Security, noted that excluding some manufacturers can increase risk: if a single vendor’s equipment is compromised, that compromise would affect a larger proportion of the network.
Governments worldwide continue to consider restrictions on Chinese telecom equipment over concerns about state influence and espionage.
Huawei has repeatedly stated it would refuse any government request to conduct surveillance or carry out attacks on another country. Company officials have argued that being caught engaging in malign activity even once would be devastating to its global business.
This week the United States filed 23 charges against Huawei and has urged allies not to deploy Chinese 5G infrastructure.
Interested in hearing industry leaders discuss these topics and share their experiences? Consider attending the Cyber Security & Cloud Expo World Series, which holds events in Silicon Valley, London, and Amsterdam, to learn more.