India’s third-place MNO has set its launch date for its new 5G network. Vodafone Idea will begin activating 5G sites in March, but it is now a very long way behind its rivals – with Reliance Jio having 148 million 5G customers, and Bharti Airtel on 105 million. The MNO added 46,000 new sites in 2024, and expanded capacity at 58,000. It has not broken out what proportion of the new sites were 5G deployments, however. Vodafone Idea is mainly using a mix of 3.5 GHz C-band spectrum and 1.8 GHz for 5G. Ericsson, Nokia, and Samsung are providing equipment, as part of a three-year deal that was announced back in September 2024. Crucially, this signaled that deals had been…