The ferry company and the port authority, together with Telia, Ericsson and Intel, are testing the 5G mobile technology on-board Silja Europa.

Because 5G terminal devices do not yet exist, the ship's Wi-Fi network is used to provide access to the new network. In addition, the 5G network will replace the fibre optic cable that is connected to the ship during its docking.

The initial goal was to reach speeds of at least 500 Mbps for download and 100 Mbps for upload, but according to the project's partners the actual 5G speeds were much higher.

"As far as we know, we are one of the first in the world who have rolled 5G out to actual users, thereby enabling thousands of Tallink customers to use the lightning fast network. It is also noteworthy that all 5G tests have been done by using a terminal that is not stationery," Dan Strömberg, CEO, Telia Estonia, said.

Tõnu Liik, Chief Information Officer, Tallink, added, "Tallink already uses IT infrastructure which is in many ways the most advanced among today's technology. At the same time, the constant development of Tallink's business models, increasing needs of our customers and the overall trend of digitalization forces us to focus on the possibilities of tomorrow."