Improved mobile data access for Japanese users
- Japan's Softbank Mobile invests in its HSPA Evolution network to boost quality and capacity for smartphone and tablet users
- Rapid growth in data usage boosts Softbank Mobile's revenues
- Operator upgrades its radio access network for Japan's three largest cities
Leading Japanese operator Softbank Mobile invests in capacity to ensure a high-quality user experience by upgrading its HSPA radio access network with Ericsson's (NASDAQ: ERIC) latest radio base station solution, RBS 6000. The upgrade will bring major benefits to the data-hungry users of smartphones and tablet computers who are the key contributors to the operator's financial success.
Digitally savvy Japanese are using mobile data to stay in touch, including always-connected social network services and popular "moba-gee" mobile games over those social networks. Softbank Mobile is determined to maintain customer satisfaction for high-capacity data subscribers as the company now earns more from data than from voice services.
Junichi Miyakawa, Executive Vice President and CTO of Softbank Mobile, says: "We are the first operator in the world to have higher revenues from data than from voice. Ericsson's solution for this coverage and capacity upgrade will satisfy our data-hungry subscribers. We want to ensure that our network performance remains among the world's best so we can make the most of both the data and subscriber growth we are enjoying."
Under the contract, Ericsson is deploying and integrating new radio base stations for the Tomeihan area which includes Japan's biggest cities: Tokyo, Nagoya and Osaka. This area covers 50 percent of the Japanese population and represents one of the densest areas in the world in terms of data traffic usage. The upgrade project has already begun, and is due to be largely completed by the end of the financial year 2010, which ends on March 31, 2011.
"With this Ericsson solution, Softbank Mobile will upgrade its network with the latest technology, enhancing data capacity and coverage, while improving energy efficiency and creating a sustainable path for future technology," says Fredrik Alatalo, President of Ericsson Japan. "We are committed to supporting Softbank Mobile as it caters for Japan's data-savvy subscribers."
Notes to editors:
Japan's SOFTBANK MOBILE chooses Ericsson mobile broadband solution
Upgrade of 3G network to meet increased data usage in Japan
Ericsson is the world's leading provider of technology and services to telecom operators. Ericsson is the leader in 2G, 3G and 4G mobile technologies, and provides support for networks with over 2 billion subscribers and has the leading position in managed services. The company's portfolio comprises mobile and fixed network infrastructure, telecom services, software, broadband and multimedia solutions for operators, enterprises and the media industry. The Sony Ericsson and ST-Ericsson joint ventures provide consumers with feature-rich personal mobile devices.
Ericsson is advancing its vision of being the "prime driver in an all-communicating world" through innovation, technology, and sustainable business solutions. Working in 175 countries, more than 80,000 employees generated revenue of SEK 206.5 billion (USD 27.1 billion) in 2009. Founded in 1876 with the headquarters in Stockholm, Sweden, Ericsson is listed on NASDAQ OMX, Stockholm and NASDAQ New York.
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