Large industries want to take an active role in shaping 5G platforms and even building and running networks, to ensure 5G meets their requirements, not just those of mobile operators. This is providing new opportunities for equipment vendors to look beyond their core customer bases, and China is perhaps the most fertile ground. Nokia has grasped the chance, offering bold platforms and partnerships which have enabled it to secure a highly strategic 5G partnership, focused on vertical markets, with Chinese web giant Tencent. Coupled with new, more conventional contracts with China Mobile, the Finnish firm is showing how a flexible platform and an innovative approach to partnerships can help it overcome the home advantage of Huawei. A new approach to…