Airtel deploys 4G/LTE network in Seychelles with Ericsson

India's telecom operator, Airtel has partnered with global telecom equipment provider Ericsson in order to deliver a new, nationwide LTE (Long Term Evolution) 800 MHz network in Seychelles and meet growing customer demand for mobile broadband services while delivering superior network performance. This is Airtel's first commercial LTE network in Africa.

The network is expected to cover 10,000 LTE subscribers in the first phase and will greatly enhance connectivity giving Airtel's customers an improved smartphone experience, with faster web browsing, downloads and improved quality of service.

Amadou Dina, Country Manager, Airtel Seychelles says: "We are committed to enriching the lives of our subscribers, this means putting the customer experiencing at the heart of everything we do. LTE transforms the mobile-broadband user experience, providing superior data speeds needed for services such as internet TV, mobile video-blogging, online video games and the mobile office-environment. As a leading telecom service provider, this is a service we are very proud to offer our customers and Ericsson is our partner in delivering this."

The agreement includes equipment, software and support services, as well as incorporating multi-standard radio base station equipment from the Ericsson RBS 6000 family, LTE RAN software and upgrading existing 2G and 3G access network software.

Fredrik Jejdling, Head of Ericsson Sub-Saharan Africa says: "This further demonstrates our commitment to our long term strategic business relationship with Airtel. The deployment of the next generation mobile network across the Seychelles will enable subscribers enjoy an enhanced mobile experience and reliable services, and will facilitate new exciting opportunities for business, society and people in the country."

Ericsson is the market leader in LTE. Today, 50 percent of the world's LTE smartphone traffic is served by Ericsson networks, which is more than double the traffic of our closest competitor. More than 190 LTE RAN and Evolved Packet Core networks have been delivered worldwide, of which more than 140 have gone live commercially.

Ericsson is present today in all high-traffic LTE markets including the US, Japan, South Korea, Australia and Canada, and has been selected by the top 10 LTE operators, as ranked by LTE subscriptions worldwide.