Bharti Airtel on Thursday announced a five-year managed services agreement with Ericsson for its Africa operations.
According to the agreement, Ericsson will manage and optimise Airtel's mobile networks in Africa in order to provide a superior customer experience. The two companies did not disclose the deal size. A similar deal was announced with Huawei recently, which was estimated to be around $400 million.
Separate pact
Under a separate two-year agreement, Ericsson will modernise and upgrade Airtel's mobile networks in Africa. “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 modernisation, Ericsson will also provide technology consulting, network planning & design and network deployment,” said a press statement.
Mr Manoj Kohli, CEO (International) and 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.
Mr Hans Vestberg, President and CEO, Ericsson, said, “This deal will allow us to assist Airtel with the complex task of managing operations in multiple countries..”