Ericsson sole supplier of HSPA expansion and all-IP upgrade for SmarTone-Vodafone in Hong Kong
Ericsson (NASDAQ: ERIC) has been selected by leading operator SmarTone-Vodafone in Hong Kong as the sole supplier for network enhancements to provide the operator's mobile customers with a greater variety of advanced mobile broadband and multimedia services.
Under the three-year agreement, Ericsson will be the sole supplier of a HSPA-enabled radio access network, including Multimedia Broadcast Multicast Service (MBMS), a functionality that enables mobile-TV services to be broadcast. The deal also includes a fully IP-based core network, including IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS), Ericsson's Mobile Softswitch Solution, and Redback's SmartEdge routers. The network enhancements will allow SmarTone-Vodafone to cost-efficiently introduce more new services and to further increase broadband speeds to support more advanced video and mobile applications over time.
Ericsson will also be responsible for a range of professional services, such as, network design, systems integration, spare parts management service, support services, as well as network deployment and integration.
Douglas Li, CEO of SmarTone-Vodafone, says: "This move will empower us to bring richer and more sophisticated services to cater to customers' ever-changing demands and growing expectations. In the very near future, our customers can look forward to an even greater array of compelling multimedia services with superior user experience. Ericsson's advanced products and solutions will strengthen our network capability and capacity, strengthening our position as one of the most advanced networks in the world."
Johan Adler, President of Ericsson Hong Kong, says: "This is another milestone in the 16-year partnership of Ericsson and SmarTone-Vodafone. Ericsson is proud to support SmarTone-Vodafone in meeting its business needs and enhancing efficiency, and in expanding and consolidating its network to bring the latest mobile broadband and multimedia services to their customers."
Ericsson is the sole supplier of SmarTone-Vodafone's core and radio networks, including GPRS and WCDMA/HSPA.
Notes to editors:
HSPA LTE and Beyond (press backgrounder)
Mobile TV, MBMS (press backgrounder)
IMS (press backgrouner)
Ericsson is the world's leading provider of technology and services to telecom operators. The market leader in 2G and 3G mobile technologies, Ericsson supplies communications services and manages networks that serve more than 185 million subscribers. The company's portfolio comprises mobile and fixed network infrastructure, and broadband and multimedia solutions for operators, enterprises and developers. The Sony Ericsson joint venture provides consumers with feature-rich personal mobile devices.
Ericsson is advancing its vision of 'communication for all' through innovation, technology, and sustainable business solutions. Working in 175 countries, more than 70,000 employees generated revenue of USD 27.9 billion (SEK 188 billion) in 2007. Founded in 1876 and headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden, Ericsson is listed on the Stockholm, London and NASDAQ stock exchanges.
For more information, visit www.ericsson.com or www.ericsson.mobi.
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About SmarTone-Vodafone
SmarTone-Vodafone is a leading provider of total communications services in Hong Kong, offering premium mobile and fixed services. Its goal is to better enrich customers' lives by bringing them closer to what matters to them. With unrivalled network performance, unique service innovation and award-winning customer service, it delivers superior customer experience as well as targeted and differentiated propositions. SmarTone-Vodafone is a partner network of Vodafone, the world's leading mobile telecommunications company. It is the sole marketing and sales channel of HomePhone+, a wireless fixed-line service redefining the fixed-line market in Hong Kong with unique benefits as well as exceptional ease of use, convenience and flexibility. Its holding company, SmarTone Telecommunications Holdings Ltd, has been listed in Hong Kong since 1996 and is a subsidiary of Sun Hung Kai Properties Limited, one of the largest property companies in Hong Kong.
About Ericsson's HSPA solution
HSPA stands for High-Speed Packet Access. An inherent advantage of HSPA is that the technology is a natural extension of existing WCDMA/GSM networks, or about 85 percent of the world's existing wireless networks, and therefore has the potential to be readily available to a large number of wireless users, creating a mass market for mobile broadband. By 2010, 71 percent of mobile broadband connections are projected to be HSPA based. Ericsson's HSPA mobile broadband solution, part of Ericsson's Full Service Broadband offering, today enables download speeds of up to 14.4Mbps and upload speeds of 1.4Mbps. The advanced technology lets operators more than double their system capacity and cuts response times for interactive services. On average, users will be able to download 20 times faster than with a GSM/GPRS connection. Future evolution steps will increase the HSPA download speed to 42Mbps and the upload speed to 12Mbps. Ericsson offers HSPA support on many frequency bands ranging from 850MHz to 2.6GHz.