- The company has already commenced field trials of the technology along with some global operators
- The company also aims to boost the headcount at its R&D facility in India
Oppo Electronics Corporation (Oppo), a renowned Chinese consumer electronics & mobile communications firm, would reportedly be investing over $1.5 billion in the company’s research & development (R&D) activities with increased focus on 5G development as it launched its first smartphone that is based on the next-gen technology.
Reports cite, the company also has additional plans to significantly boost the employee headcount at its R&D facility in India by more than three-folds to approximately 500 individuals over a two-year period.
According to a report by News18, the company would be ready for conducting trail runs of the technology in India by the second quarter of the year, however, the decision of selecting the exact date & timeline for the proposed tests would be made by the nation’s telecom operators.
The VP and Head of R&D at Oppo India, Tasleem Arif stated that the company would be ready with a 5G smartphone by the year’s second quarter and is in talks with all three of the nation’s telecom operators, Reliance Jio, Vodafone Idea & Airtel, who would be deciding on the trials. On the company’s Indian R&D facility, Arif stated that the facility contributes toward the development of cameras, mobile systems as well as network technologies including 5G. the company’s existing 160 employee counts would be reaching 500 by next year’s end.
Meanwhile, the company has also entered into partnerships with global telecom firms, Optus, Swisscom, SingTel and Telstra with the Director of Standards at Oppo, Henry Tang stating that the company has already commenced with field trials along with some of these operators.
According to reports, the company partnered with semiconductor & telecommunications equipment firm, Qualcomm, for the development of a 5G smartphone on its own chipset.
