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Bharti in African services deal

Johannesburg - Global telecommunications company Bharti Airtel said on Friday that it has agreed to a five-year services deal for its African operations with telecommunication and data communication systems provider Ericsson.

Ericsson will manage Airtel's mobile networks in Africa. Bharti has operations in 19 countries across Asia and Africa.

Under a separate two-year agreement, Ericsson will also modernise and upgrade Airtel's mobile networks in Africa with the latest technology, including its multi-standard RBS 6000 base station.

Ericsson will deploy the 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 and design and network deployment.

Manoj Kohli, international CEO and joint managing director of 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 to focus on its core operations of innovating and launching new products, services and mobile applications for over 44 million customers across the continent.

Hans Vestberg, president and CEO of Ericsson, said: "Ericsson is the industry leader in managed services, managing networks for operators worldwide that serve more than 800 million subscribers. This deal will allow us to assist Airtel with the complex task of managing operations in multiple countries.

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