Nokia Networks has won a deal with Bharti Airtel to provide equipment and services to support the Indian telco’s 3G network deployment in eight telecom circles.
Bharti Airtel is embarking on a greenfield 3G rollout in five circles, and is expanding coverage in a further three.
"The Indian telecom environment is currently experiencing a rapid increase in the uptake of data-centric services. As market leaders, we at Airtel are deeply commi tted to delivering the best data experience for smartphone users and making continued network investments to help us realise the vast potential of this data opportunity," said Abhay Savargaonkar, director of Bharti Airtel’s network services group, in a statement on Tuesday.
The four-year deal with Nokia will see the vendor supply base stations for both macro and micro cell coverage, its IP radio network controller (RNC), and its cloud-ready OSS solution.
Nokia will also provide a raft of services covering network planning, optimisation, and implementation, as well as hardware and software maintenance, and training.
"The strong traction in India’s 3G market, driven by the rising demand for data-intensive apps and services, is the primary impetus behind Bharti Airtel’s 3G expansion initiatives with Nokia Networks," said Sandeep Girotra, head of India at Nokia Networks. "With this project, we have further strengthened Bharti’s 3G proposition in eight business-critical circles in India including five new circles, adding yet another dimension to our collaboration which continues to gain momentum with such strategic engagements."
