MTN Nigeria and Ericsson have joined forces in a partnership that is planned to see the deployment of LTE infrastructure in the country, at a time when the Nigerian government has not yet issued 4G licences.
The mobile network operator plans to deploy Ericsson’s Smart Services Router (SSR 8020), a new wireless technology network that is expected to boost network capacity by offering 2G, 3G, WI-FI and even LTE services.
Lars Linden, head of Ericsson Sub-Saharan Africa said, “Ericsson will be working with MTN on the evolution of their mobile networks with a view to building a data network for the future.”
The deal, which is expected to enhance MTN subscribers’ mobile broadband experience, comes before the Nigerian government has even issued 4G licences to telecoms players.
“The government has not yet offered 4G licenses for sale. We therefore cannot speculate when 4G licenses will become available,” explained Funmilayo Omogbenigun, general manager for corporate affairs, MTN Nigeria.
Nevertheless, the size of the Nigerian market makes it rolling 4G compatible infrastructure early key to both companies' expansion plans.
“With over 120 million mobile subscriptions, Nigeria is Africa's largest and fastest growing telecoms market. MTN is faced with the challenge of providing adequate network capacity to cater for it’s growing subscriber base and improving the quality of its network,” said Linden.
“This partnership is part of customer promises to continually upgrade products and services,” he concluded.
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