Broadband  |  2025-07-16

SailGP to Benefit from Private 5G Network Slicing Technology

Source: The Critical Communications Review | Gert Jan Wolf editor

BT will provide critical connectivity across critical operations during the July 19–20 event in Portsmouth.

For the first time, BT Group will be deploying many concurrent slices at a single event when it deploys its standalone (SA) 5G network slicing technology during the forthcoming sailing Grand Prix in the UK in collaboration with the global sailing championship SailGP.

BT will provide two dedicated network slices as the event's official technology supplier to allow critical connectivity and critical communications across critical operations during the July 19–20 event in Portsmouth. The solution, which is supported by subsidiary EE's SA 5G infrastructure, attempts to guarantee steady network performance even in the face of increasing traffic demand.

In order to provide end-to-end network slicing across radio mast sites spanning Portsmouth Harbor, BT teamed up with Nokia as part of the program. In order to support use cases including real-time boat communication for audio, telemetry, and onboard video across all 12 racing boats, as well as point-of-sale transactions and media transmission, the operator is also working with Ericsson, SailGP's worldwide technology partner.

With BT's SA 5G network, photographers will be able to upload high-resolution photos in real time from Sony's connected camera system. Additionally, broadcast production will send HD video to 212 nations using Sony's 5G live capabilities.

Additionally, a brand-new 360-degree AR and VR experience will be unveiled at the event, providing fans with an immersive onboard perspective facilitated by low-latency, high-capacity 5G radios that were jointly developed by Ericsson and BT.

The rollout, according to BT Business COO Kerry Small, shows how SA 5G can "streamline event operations and bring fans closer to the action."

In fact, the operator's most recent experiment expands upon earlier slicing deployments, such as the one at Belfast's Christmas market the previous year. The UK operator boasted in a statement that over 30 million consumers in more than 50 UK cities are currently covered by EE's SA 5G service.