Telefónica and NOS take 5G into military and defence use

Telefónica has demonstrated the military capabilities of its 5G infrastructure in an exercise involving drones and unmanned vehicles, marking one of the first concrete steps in its collaboration with Portuguese operator NOS Comunicações.

The two operators combined their 5G technologies in a demonstration called Experimentación Robótica y Prototipado con Sistemas Marítimos No Tripulados — Robotic Experimentation and Prototyping with Unmanned Maritime Systems. Telefónica said the joint exercise showed that shared infrastructure can support new services and use cases.

The event also produced a commercial commitment. Telefónica and NOS signed a memorandum of understanding covering joint development of future connectivity infrastructure, secure communications and digital services.

What is the priority for the two operators?

Defence and security applications sit at the top of the agenda for both companies. João Ricardo Moreira, a member of the board of NOS Comunicações, said the shifting security and defence context demands digital infrastructure able to operate in a coordinated manner beyond national borders.

That framing explains the technical focus. Network interoperability is one of the areas the two operators have agreed to explore, because coordinated cross-border defence operations require networks that work together rather than as isolated national islands.

The agreement goes well beyond radio access. The operators plan joint projects in:

• Edge computing
• Artificial intelligence
• 5G
• New network architectures

Telefónica said the partners will pay particular attention to how these technologies integrate with command-and-control systems, autonomous platforms and other emerging technologies. For vendors and integrators in the defence market, that wording signals where future procurement conversations are likely to concentrate.

Why did the deal take a year?

The companies needed a full year to finalise the details of the collaboration. That timeline is a useful data point for practitioners: defence-grade network partnerships between operators in different EU member states involve lengthy technical, security and legal alignment before anything is demonstrated publicly.

Javier López, director of defence and security at Telefónica España, said the project can contribute to strengthening European sovereignty. He also thanked the Spanish and Portuguese navies for providing the operational environment in which the technologies were tested and evaluated.

The involvement of both navies matters for the commercial read of this story. It means the demonstration ran in a real military setting rather than a vendor lab, which gives the interoperability claims more weight than a standard marketing trial.

What changes for the sector?

For European operators, the deal shows a new revenue path. Defence budgets across the EU are rising, and carriers with 5G infrastructure, edge assets and security credentials are positioning to capture a share of that spending.

For telecom suppliers, the Telefónica-NOS model — two national operators pooling 5G infrastructure for unmanned systems — could become a template. The MoU explicitly names autonomous platforms and command-and-control integration as work areas, which maps onto the priorities of European defence procurement programmes.

The sovereignty argument from López also carries regulatory weight. EU policymakers have pushed for European-built secure connectivity in defence contexts, and cross-border operator alliances of this kind align with that policy direction.

The commercial substance, however, remains at memorandum stage. The demonstration proves technical feasibility in an operational naval environment; the MoU establishes scope for edge computing, AI and 5G work. Neither company has yet announced contracts, deployment volumes or revenue targets tied to the partnership.

The partners say they will continue developing joint infrastructure, secure communications and digital services under the agreement, with defence and security applications remaining the primary focus of the collaboration.