Bharti Airtel signs five year managed services agreement with Ericsson for its Africa operations

*Ericsson to modernize and upgrade Airtel’s networks in Africa
*Ericsson to provide Airtel customers the latest mobile technology that enables the provision of mobile broadband services and applications

Bharti Airtel, (“Airtel”) a leading global telecommunications company with operations in 19 countries across Asia and Africa today announced a five year managed services agreement with Ericsson (NASDA!Q:ERIC) for its Africa operations. As per the agreement, Ericsson will manage and optimise Airtel’s mobile networks in Africa in order to provide a superior customer experience.

Under a separate two year agreement, Ericsson will modernize and upgrade Airtel’s mobile networks in Africa with the latest technology including its multi standard RBS 6000 base station. Ericsson will deploy this superior 2G and HSPA 3G technology to ensure that Airtel’s customers have an enhanced voice and data experience. As part of the modernization, Ericsson will also provide technology consulting, network planning & design and network deployment.

Manoj Kohli, CEO (International) & Joint Managing Director, Bharti Airtel said: “Ericsson has been our managed services and network technology partner in the Asian operations. Given its expertise and strong track record we are confident that this partnership will be able to efficiently deliver the best networks and services to our customers in Africa. The new generation equipment from Ericsson will help reduce our total cost of ownership of the networks.”

Ericsson’s first multi-country Managed Services deal in Africa will enable Airtel focus on its core operations of innovating and launching new products, services and mobile applications for over 44 million customers across the continent.

Hans Vestberg, President and CEO, Ericsson, says: “Ericsson is the industry leader in managed services, managing networks for operators worldwide that serve more than 800 million subscribers. This deal will allow us to assist Airtel with the complex task of managing operations in multiple countries. It also provides an opportunity for us to extend our managed services into new, untapped African markets. We will use our global expertise in this field to provide Airtel’s customers with excellent service.”

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About Bharti Airtel Limited

Bharti Airtel Limited is a leading global telecommunications company with operations in 19 countries across Asia and Africa. The company offers mobile voice & data services, fixed line, high speed broadband, IPTV, DTH, turnkey telecom solutions for enterprises and national & international long distance services to carriers. Bharti Airtel has been ranked among the six best performing technology companies in the world by BusinessWeek. Bharti Airtel had over 228 million customers across its operations at the end of June 2011. To know more please visit, www.airtel.com

About Ericsson’s Managed Services offering

Ericsson has the telecom industry’s most comprehensive managed services offering. It ranges from designing, building, operating and managing day-to-day operations of a customer’s network, including end-user services and business-support systems, to hosting service-layer solutions and providing network coverage and capacity on demand. As the undisputed leader in managed services, Ericsson has officially announced more than 100 contracts for managed services with operators worldwide since 2002. In all current managed services contracts, excluding hosting, Ericsson is managing networks that together serve more than 800 million subscribers worldwide.


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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 180 countries, more than 90,000 employees generated revenue of SEK 203.3 billion (USD 28.2 billion) in 2010. Founded in 1876 with the headquarters in Stockholm, Sweden, Ericsson is listed on NASDAQ OMX, Stockholm and NASDAQ New York.