Ericsson sole supplier of Pannon's WCDMA/HSPA network in Hungary
Ericsson (NASDAQ: ERIC) is strengthening its leadership in WCDMA/HSPA networks with a new contract in Hungary. Telenor-affiliated operator Pannon has signed an agreement for the expansion of its mobile network, including deployment, integration and support services.
Pannon, which has more than 3 million subscribers, is Hungary's second-largest mobile operator. It recently reached an agreement with Ericsson to expand its WCDMA radio network, and deploy and integrate mobile broadband services using HSPA (High-Speed Packet Access) technology.
With this contract, Ericsson maintains its position as sole supplier of Pannon's 3G radio access network and will support the operator in its continuing evolution towards advanced HSPA-based services.
Ove Fredheim, CEO of Pannon, says: "We have chosen to establish a long-term partnership with Ericsson to deliver advanced mobile broadband services to our customers. Ericsson's leadership in WCDMA and HSPA is a strategic advantage for Pannon."
As part of this new, two-year agreement, Ericsson will provide turnkey rollout of the new network, including supporting services.
Gábor Éry, President of Ericsson Hungary, says: "This is a strategic contract for Ericsson, further strengthening our cooperation with Telenor. The extended agreement with Pannon takes our partnership to the next level."
Ericsson is shaping the future of Mobile and Broadband Internet communications through its continuous technology leadership. Providing innovative solutions in more than 140 countries, Ericsson is helping to create the most powerful communication companies in the world.
Read more at: www.ericsson.com
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About Pannon
Pannon GSM Távközlési Zrt, a member of the Telenor Group, is a leading telecommunications operator in Hungary, serving more than 3 million customers and controlling more than 33 percent of the Hungarian mobile market.
Operating since 1994, Pannon offers consumers and enterprises a continually expanding range of voice and data services, integrated solutions and multimedia content under the brand names Pannon and djuice.
In line with its commitment to quality service and technology innovation, the company started implementing its 3G mobile network in January 2005. It currently offers the widest mobile broadband (EDGE, UMTS, HSDPA) coverage in Hungary.
Read more at: www.pannon.hu/en/
About Ericsson's HSPA solution
Ericsson's HSPA solution is part of the Full Service Broadband offering and 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.