Wednesday 17 June, 2026
ms
Network latency can be below 10 milliseconds under optimal conditions.
€
The enhanced FWA service costs additional €25 a month, generating new revenue for Telia.
GHz
Cloud-native 3.5GHz network cuts latency through distributed Lithuanian nodes.
%
The new 5G SA connectivity is
available to 70% of Lithuania’s population.
Challenge
In Lithuania, the expanding digital economy is driving 30% annual growth in mobile data usage, with both enterprises and consumers seeking high-quality mobile and fixed wireless connectivity. Telia Lithuania’s fixed wireless access (FWA) service is seeing surging usage at peak times, as more households stream entertainment in high-resolution, play online video games and make video calls.
Solution
Telia Lithuania has deployed a 5G standalone (5G SA) network that enables it to offer FWA customers faster throughput and lower latency. Employing high capacity 3.5 GHz spectrum, the new network has a cloud-native core, which has been deployed at nodes across Lithuania, reducing the round-trip time for data traffic. The new 5G SA connectivity is available to 70% of Lithuania’s population.
Introduction
To meet the growing demand for high quality connectivity, Telia Lithuania has deployed a 5G standalone (5G SA) network that enables it to offer FWA customers a premium experience. The new network has a cloud-native core, which has been deployed at nodes geographically dispersed throughout Lithuania, reducing the round-trip time for data traffic. As a result, network latency can be reduced to below 10 milliseconds under optimal conditions, compared with typical 4G latency levels, according to Telia.
Customers can also benefit from faster and more predictable throughput in both the downlink and the uplink. “Our new offering works like a fast-track lane at the airport – even if queues form during busy times, those with priority status move forward without stopping,” explains Arūnas Strolia, Head of Networks, Telia Lithuania. “For customers, this is a milestone. It means faster and more secure connectivity in densely populated areas, even during evening data-consumption peaks.”
Customers that reside within the footprint of Telia’s 3.5 GHz coverage (about 70% of the population) can upgrade their FWA service for an additional €25 a month. The modem that Telia provides to its existing FWA customers is already compatible with 5G SA.
The launch of the 5G SA FWA proposition in December 2025 followed hard on the heels of Lithuania’s first private 5G SA network, which went live at the Baltic Sea port of Klaipėda in late November last year.
Early customers appreciate the premium experience
Telia says it has already seen strong uptake of 5G SA among gamers and other customers looking for highly responsive connections. The early sales of the 5G SA proposition have been in line with Telia’s business plan, adds Arūnas Strolia. “With 5G SA, we managed to make the experience more predictable and smooth across all Lithuania, however the biggest difference will be noticed by the customers who really demanded a premium type of service in the areas where they already encounter congestion problems,” he explains. “It is proving to be very successful.”
Telia is monitoring both the network performance and customer feedback, as well as the impact on other customers, given there is a finite amount of spectrum and therefore bandwidth available in each neighbourhood. “If there’s congestion, the focus is on managing capacity in a way that improves the experience for customers who need higher performance, while maintaining service quality for everyone else,” explains Majid Iqbal, Group Product Lead, 5G Standalone Enablement at Telia.
Orchestrating mission-critical services
While 5G SA is already improving consumer services, such as FWA, Telia expects its biggest impact in sectors where connectivity quality directly affects productivity, safety or resilience. “In transport and logistics, we have already been working on a number of proof of concept and trials, as well as manufacturing and healthcare,” says Majid Iqbal. “We are working with a range of public and private organisations across our footprint.”
He also anticipates strong demand from media and entertainment, as well as from business-critical and mission-critical domains, such as law enforcement, first responders and other essential public services. “5G SA allows mobile networks to move closer to being foundational infrastructure for a resilient society, supporting critical production systems and essential public services,” notes Majid Iqbal.
Over time, Telia Lithuania expects to be able to refarm 2G, 3G and 4G spectrum for 5G, increasing its scope to offer differentiated propositions via 5G SA. The goal is to evolve from offering best effort connectivity to become a programmable platform that enables the intentional monetisation of new network capabilities, rather than giving them away as implicit features. Mobile operators could “become an orchestrator of digital services,” believes Majid Iqbal. “Lower latency and service differentiation have real value, and SA gives us the tools to price and package that value transparently for consumers and enterprises.”
Over time, and in line with customer demand and ecosystem maturity, Telia may introduce more specialised configurations that optimise uplink performance or latency for clearly-defined use cases, locations or time periods. “This will be approached incrementally, with a strong focus on operational robustness and commercial readiness,” says Majid Iqbal.
“From a group perspective, the focus will be on scaling what works and maturing the end-to-end offering, and this means learning from early deployments, which we have done in Finland, and now in Lithuania, and expanding availability across additional customer segments and geographies
Majid Iqbal, Group Product Lead, 5G Standalone Enablement, Telia
Key takeaways
The positive impact of 5G SA on FWA for households suggests many enterprises could also benefit from the technology: Telia is anticipating strong demand from enterprisies that rely on high-quality connectivity for productivity, safety or resilience. The operator believes 5G SA networks have the potential to be foundational infrastructure for a resilient society, supporting critical production systems and essential public services. The cloud-native core will help Telia evolve from offering best effort connectivity to become a programmable platform.
Lessons learned
Given there is a finite amount of 3.5 GHz spectrum and therefore bandwidth available in each neighbourhood, Telia is monitoring customer feedback on the 5G SA service and the impact on other customers. The operator is looking to strike a balance between improving the experience for customers who need higher performance, while maintaining service quality for everyone else.
Success factors
When rolling out new services, Telia places a major emphasis on operational robustness and commercial readiness. Within the group, it tests new propositons in different markets, such as Lithiania and Finland, and then scales successful services to additional customer segments and geographies. The telco is also being careful to ensure it can monetise new network capabilities, rather than giving them away as implicit features.
Scalability and future outlook
Telia Lithuania is planning to bring 5G SA to both consumers’ smartphones and to the enterprise market. It has already conducted proofs of concept and trials in the transport and logistics, manufacturing and healthcare sectors. As the ecosystem matures, Telia may introduce more specialised configurations that optimise uplink performance or latency for clearly-defined use cases, locations or time periods. As it refarms 2G, 3G and 4G spectrum for 5G, Telia will have greater scope to offer differentiated propositions via 5G SA.
Key partners
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