Ericsson announces major appointment for Asia Pacific region

Ericsson announces major appointment for Asia Pacific region Ericsson has appointed Kjell Sörme to the position of Executive Vice President for market area Asia Pacific. Kjell Sörme, who will be based in Hong Kong, has also been appointed a member of the Corporate Executive Team. He assumes his position on September 1. The President of Ericsson Australia since 1990, Mr. Sörme has successfully led the company through Australia's deregulation of its telecommunications market and seen the company's Australian operations grow in revenue from $ AUD 420 million annually to $ AUD 1.1 billion in 1999. He has also directed and accelerated the company's shift from manufacturing to that of a leading service and solutions provider. Ericsson has built its Australian operations to a position of being one of the top 15 major markets for Ericsson worldwide. In his new appointment, Mr. Sörme will be responsible for the Group's Asia Pacific operations comprising offices in 16 countries and centers of global excellence in certain key centers. Commenting on his appointment, Mr. Sörme said he looked forward very much to driving the company forward from his new base in Hong Kong. "At Ericsson we view the Asia Pacific region as vitally important and one presenting major growth opportunities for us in the new telecoms world of mobility, data, voice and the Internet," said Mr. Sörme. Kjell Sörme joined Ericsson in 1966 and has held various positions within the company, including Vice President Systems Design. The position as head of market area Asia Pacific has been vacant since June when Kurt Hellström left Hong Kong to become President of Ericsson. A photo of Kjell Sörme is found at http://www.ericsson.com/pressroom/comp_man.shtml Ericsson is the leading provider in the new telecoms world, with communications solutions that combine telecom and datacom technologies with freedom of mobility for the user. With more than 100,000 employees in 140 countries, Ericsson simplifies communications for its customers - network operators, service providers, enterprises and consumers - the world over. Please visit Ericsson's Press Room at: http://www.ericsson.com/pressroom FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT Helena Norrman, Press Manager Phone: +46 8 719 3829, +46 70 344 4088 E-mail: helena.norrman@lme.ericsson.se Lars Östlund, Press Manager Phone: +46 8 681 2656, +46 70 326 2656 E-mail: lars.ostlund@lme.ericsson.se