Ericsson signs contracts for Rostelecom Mobile and Content Delivery Networks

Rostelecom expands its partnership with Ericsson through contract for cutting-edge mobile and content delivery networks solutions - including RBS 6000 base stations across 4,000 locations
The expanded network will provide converged mobile and fixed services across Russia and reach more than 60 percent of the population
Rostelecom's 43 million households will benefit from enhanced video and media content experience and improved 2G/3G nationwide coverage
With its 143 million habitants, Russia represents Europe's largest mobile market by mobile connections, reaching 227 million in the first quarter of 2012. In recent years, more subscribers have also gained mobile connections in Russia per quarter than in any other country in Europe. To meet the growing demand for greater access to high-speed internet and data transfers, Rostelecom - the country's fourth-largest national operator with a presence in all Russian regions - has signed a contract with Ericsson (NASDAQ:ERIC) to launch a new mobile and content delivery network. As a result, Rostelecom's 43 million households will be able to enjoy converged mobile and fixed services as well as an enhanced video and media content user experience, thanks to the cutting-edge solutions that Ericsson will provide.

The network will support the largest area coverage and customer reach in Russia, covering more than 60 percent of the population, and will be built with Ericsson's equipment and complete mobile solution, including Operations Support Systems (OSS), packet core and radio. Ericsson will install RBS 6000 base stations that support GSM/EDGE, WCDMA/HSPA and are LTE-ready across 4,000 locations, and the network will have a total capacity of 1Tbit per second.

In urban centers such as Moscow and Saint Petersburg, mobile penetration has been as high as 210 percent in recent years, and Rostelecom's new network will cover these major cities, as well as Novosibirsk and Yekaterinburg.

 Ivan Zima, Vice president, CTO, Rostelecom, says: "The new network will enable us to offer our users a full range of converged information and telecom services in mobile and fixed networks across the country. By meeting the demand for anytime connectivity and access to mobile services, we hope that more people will benefit from the positive effects that connectivity brings."

Robert Puskaric, Head of Ericsson's Region Northern Europe and Central Asia, says: "The solution will benefit Rostelecom's subscribers with improved user experience in terms of content quality and speed. It will also benefit the operator in terms of savings in data transmission and bandwidth, and enable revenue-generating opportunities from new video services that the network supports. All this will improve Rostelecom's competitive edge."

Under the terms of the agreement, Ericsson will deliver equipment for the new Rostelecom 2G and 3G networks, including multi-standard RBS 6000 radio base stations, circuit- and packet-switched networks with Evolved Packet Core and OSS.

The multi-standard radio base station is a core component of Ericsson's philosophy for network development, providing a cost-effective deployment for the next-generation of high-speed mobile broadband, video, and web-application services, while providing subscribers with a superior user experience.

About Rostelecom

Rostelecom (www.rt.ru/en) is Russia's national telecommunications operator and now also includes the regional incumbent telecommunications operators (CentreTelecom, SibirTelecom, Dalsvyaz, Uralsvyazinform, VolgaTelecom, North-West Telecom and Southern Telecommunications Company) and Dagsvyazinform. Rostelecom has the largest domestic backbone network (approximately 500 thousand km) and last mile connections to approximately 43 million households in Russia.

The Company holds licences to provide a wide range of telecommunications services (telephony, data, TV and value-added solutions) to residential, corporate and governmental subscribers and third party operators across all regions of the Russian Federation. The Rostelecom brand is one of Russia's ten most trusted brands (source: Romir market research).