In addition to supplying the platform and integrating the application with the carriers' networks, Ericsson will operate and manage the MMS service offerings around the clock. Furthermore, through Ericsson's Mobility World initiative, each carrier will benefit from relationships with thousands of application and content developers whose services are compatible with Ericsson networks around the world.

"It's especially important in today's telecommunications market for vendors and service providers to work together as strategic partners," Ericsson Inc. President and Chief Executive Officer Angel Ruiz said. "For both Midwest Wireless and Rural Cellular Corporation, this approach was the most practical way to bring MMS to market quickly while controlling capital and operational costs."

"Our overall goal was to deliver a consistently reliable MMS solution to our customers as quickly and cost-effectively possible," said Dennis Miller, President and Chief Executive Officer, Midwest Wireless. "Of all the alternatives we considered for delivering MMS to our customers, we felt the Ericsson solution would be the most practical both in terms of reliability and service flexibility."

"Ericsson's MMS solution fits well into our next generation strategy for both our GSM/GPRS and our CDMA2000 networks going forward," said Ann Newhall, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, Rural Cellular Corporation. "While the Ericsson solution is practical, more importantly it allows us to execute on a quality feature offering our customers are asking for."