The Swiss carrier said it expects mobile data demand to double every twelve months over the five year period, and has deployed Ericsson to modernise 6,000 mobile sites for optimisation on all of Swisscom’s networks. The operator has mobile data users all over Switzerland, and the partnership is intended to be greatly beneficial to subscribers residing in the inner cities where traffic is dense.
“By continuing to provide our subscribers with the best network possible while meeting the growing usage of mobile data, we will invest several hundred million Swiss Francs in mobile network modernisation over the next five years,” said Heinz Herren, head of network & IT at Swisscom. “Thanks to our long-lasting partnership, we are familiar with Ericsson’s expertise in deploying new technologies.
Ericsson is expected to upgrade and modernise Swisscom’s mobile-core and radio network. The European-based vendor has served as the core equipment vendor to the Swiss carrier for a number of years, and has been the main equipment provider for radio, 2G and 3G mobile networks.
“We’re pleased to help Swisscom introduce LTE and allow its users to enjoy the benefits of LTE on their smartphones, laptops and tablets,” said Anders Runevad, head of western and central Europe at Ericsson. “As Ericsson sees mobility and broadband as pillars of the networked society, in which everyone and everything is connected, this extended partnership marks yet another step towards realising that vision.”
The roll-out will begin in January 2012 and all Swisscom’s mobile sites are expected to be modernised by mid 2014.
