It’s 2021 and we are in the age of 5G. The fifth generation of network technology is now considered the most superior form of communication not only for cell phones, but also for industry. But 30 years ago nobody would have thought that our devices could communicate with one another using nothing but air. Delivering lightning-fast internet speeds that enable everything from base access to smart city development wasn’t on the radar. They were more concerned with how we humans communicate with one another over a cellular network. This is how the first GSM call, also known as a 2G call, happened 30 years ago today.
That was the only phone call that changed everything.
Nokia has always been at the forefront of network technology and 30 years ago enabled the first official GSM call between former Finnish Prime Minister Harri Holkeri and Tampere Deputy Mayor Kaarina Suonio. This was the only call that changed everything and served as a catalyst for future network technology for years.
GSM finally led to the SMS and data services that are taken for granted today. It was also the hour of birth of the cell phone as we know it.
In a blog post, Nokia’s current President and CEO, Pekka Lundmark, recalls how he and his team worked 24/7 for two years to make the first 2G phone call possible on July 1st. 1991.
The first successful test call was made on March 27, 1991 at 4 a.m.
He then was Account Manager at Radiolinja, the Finnish network operator and customer for Nokia’s GSM technology that made the call possible. The race to develop the first commercially viable network was in full swing and Radiolinja (now Elisa) was still waiting for the approved operator license.
“The first successful test call was made on March 27, 1991 at 4:00 am. If you look closely at the black and white photo of Kurt Nordman, CEO of the Helsinki Telephone Association, making another test call later that day, you can see a young man standing in the back looking very much like the Chief Worrier / Zombie, ”writes Lundmark in his post.
The official calls to the event used an analog backup system.
All eyes were on Pekka and his team when the final demonstration for the 2G call took place on July 1 of the same year.
Prime Minister Holkeri called Mayor Suonio from his car phone and noticed that the reception was as clear as talking to “someone in the next room”. The two leaders also discussed the benefits of GSM digital technology, including superior voice quality and security, as well as the fact that the phone’s identity is included on the SIM card, making it easier for consumers to choose the product they like .
Nokia CEO reveals that the world didn’t know at the time that official calls to the event were using an analog backup system. “I think it is safe to admit this 30 years later and now that there are no question marks about the viability of GSM,” he comments.
The following year Nokia launched its first GSM mobile phone, the Nokia 1011. 3G, 4G and 5G networks have followed since then, but it’s always good to remember where the digital revolution began. It was a three minute phone call that changed the world.