2009-11-30

Central Europeans get mobile broadband boost

• Telekom Austria Group gears up for the next generation of mobile services
• 18,5 million users in eight countries to get higher speed and improved services
• Microwave solution increases capacity and reduces costs

Mobile phone subscribers are doing an increasing amount with their handsets, and Telekom Austria Group is expecting a significant increase in capacity demands; data traffic in Austria alone has increased fivefold over the past two years. To meet these demands, all Telekom Austria Group companies in eight European countries are, besides other innovative technologies, upgrading their mobile networks with Ericsson's (NASDAQ:ERIC) latest, microwave solution, which enables increased capacity while reducing costs for mobile operators.

Johann Pichler, Group CTO of mobilkom austria group, says: "To guarantee that our customers can enjoy the benefits of mobile broadband and take advantage of new possibilities in the future, the work to smoothly upgrade our networks needs to begin today. Ericsson's highly cost-effective solution helps us meet our objective of having a complete mobile broadband offering. "

Roland Nordgren, Head of Ericsson Central Europe and President of Ericsson Austria, says: "Demand is increasing fast in Central Europe, and now 18.5 million user in eight countries will get higher speed and improved services. In addition, we are also reducing costs for our operator customers with our sustainable, cost-effective solutions."

The Telekom Austria Group will upgrade its networks in Austria, Belarus, Bulgaria, Croatia, Macedonia, Liechtenstein, Serbia and Slovenia, according to market needs. Rollout has already started, which includes an IP-based microwave transmission network, a management system and related integration and support services.

Ericsson and Telekom Austria Group have been working together for more than 10 years, achieving several breakthroughs in commercial launches of mobile broadband technologies in Europe.

Information about the company: Telefon AB LM Ericsson