Ericsson to operate TV4 Group’s playout services

Swedish broadcaster TV4 Group has selected Ericsson (NASDAQ:ERIC) to operate its nationwide playout services as part of a ten-year contract. In addition, Ericsson and TV4 Group will establish a joint technology and business development forum.

TV4 Group has chosen Ericsson to run the day-to-day transmission of its TV channels for delivery to service providers. This will improve efficiency and enable TV4 to focus on its core business.
“Through this contract between TV4 Group and Ericsson, we are securing our playout services and technical development for many years to come,” says Jan Scherman, CEO of the TV4 Group. “The partnership also means that we will jointly develop the TV solutions of the future with Ericsson, a leading telecom and multimedia vendor. This will be beneficial for both companies.”

Ericsson’s Mikael Bäckström, Head of Market Unit Nordic and Baltics, says: “This agreement establishes Ericsson as a partner for media companies. This is a strategic step for us as we see telecom, media and internet converge. Beside the advantages of outsourcing for TV4, we see this as a way to learn from TV4’s leading industry competence.”

In the technology and business development forum, the two companies will evaluate new business opportunities as TV4 Group develops its offering from standard linear TV to on-demand TV, giving viewers a more personalized viewing experience.

Since 2007, Ericsson has managed the playout services in the Nordic region for Canal+, which was acquired by TV4 group in 2008. With today’s announcement, Ericsson will now be responsible for all playout services for the TV4 Group.

As a result of the agreement, 40 employees from TV4 Group will be transferred to Ericsson, strengthening Ericsson’s global services organization in this area.

Notes to editors:
Video with Mikael Bäckström interview is available at the broadcast room: www.ericsson.com/broadcast_room


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 1 billion subscribers and has a leading position in managed services. The company’s portfolio comprises of 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 “to be the prime driver in an all-communicating world” through innovation, technology, and sustainable business solutions. Working in 175 countries, more than 75,000 employees generated revenue of SEK 209 billion (USD 32.2 billion) in 2008. Founded in 1876 with the headquarters in Stockholm, Sweden, Ericsson is listed on NASDAQ OMX Stockholm and NASDAQ New York.

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About TV4 Group
The TV4 Group is the Nordic region’s leading TV company. The TV4 Group has delivered engaging news coverage and a broad range of high quality entertainment to Swedish viewers for almost two decades. In addition to TV4, the group’s portfolio includes 10 other channels, 25 local TV stations and four Finnish channel editions. The company also owns Canal+, the leading provider of pay TV in the Nordic region with 16 channels offering world class sports, films and television series. In addition to its linear TV channels, Canal+ offers pay-per-view and video-on-demand services both on the internet and through various distributors. As one of the leading online content providers in Sweden, TV4 New Media offers a number of different web sites and mobile phone services as well as a video-on-demand service. For more information, visit tv4group.se

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, as well as providing network coverage and capacity on demand. As the undisputed leader in managed services, Ericsson has officially announced more than 100 contracts with operators worldwide since 2002. Including all of its current managed services contracts, excluding hosting, Ericsson is managing networks that together serve more than 350 million subscribers worldwide.