Ericsson signs sixth GSM contract this year with China Unicom
Ericsson signs sixth GSM contract this year with China Unicom Ericsson has signed a contract for expansion of China Unicom's GSM network in the Jilin province, valued at USD 15 million (SEK 125 million). With this contract, Ericsson has signed six GSM expansion contracts and one wireline contract with China Unicom during 1999, totaling more than USD 120 million (SEK 1,000 million). Within this latest contract, China Unicom will increase capacity in the province to 200,000 subscribers. The infrastructure will be provided by the Ericsson joint venture, Beijing Ericsson Mobile Communications Company Ltd. Ericsson has cooperated with China Unicom in Jilin since the company won the initial GSM contract in February 1998. Ericsson signed the first GSM contract with China Unicom in 1995. The five earlier GSM contracts with China Unicom this year are for expansions in the provinces of Sichuan, Anhui, Yunnan, Hannan and a previous contract for Jilin. Ericsson was also awarded an expansion of the Guangdong Gateway, connecting wireline and mobile networks. China Unicom currently offers GSM services over Ericsson-supplied systems in five provinces, plus the city of Wuxi. Ericsson China has more than 3,800 employees, 23 offices across the country and eight joint ventures that provide a full range of communications solutions and services. 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.se/pressroom FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT Johan Wiklund, Ericsson Corporate Communications Phone: +46 70 560 0134; E-mail: johan.wiklund@lme.ericsson.se Liu Chijin, Senior Vice President, Ericsson (China ) Co. Ltd. Phone: +86 10 6561 9988 Mark Tian, Corporate Press Relations Officer Ericsson (China) Co. Ltd. Phone: +86 10 6561 55 66; E-mail: geng.tian@etc.ericsson.se Company information Established in 1994, China Unicom is the second largest cellular operator in China. The company is the only fully licensed service provider in the country. In addition to cellular network operations, their paging network is the largest in China. In June, the company launched its mobile datacom business. Wireline long-distance and local telephony services are also included in the company's business portfolio. Currently, China Unicom serves close to three million users. China's largest cellular operator China Mobile was recently separated from China Telecom. ------------------------------------------------------------ Please visit http://www.bit.se for further information The following files are available for download: http://www.bit.se/bitonline/1999/08/30/19990830BIT00020/bit0001.doc http://www.bit.se/bitonline/1999/08/30/19990830BIT00020/bit0002.pdf