Nokia, VimpelCom sign five-year managed services contract in Russia

Nokia and the Russian communications and technology company "VimpelCom" (brand "Beeline") have signed a five-year agreement under which Nokia will become the major supplier of managed services for VimpelCom's fixed, mobile and transport network operations.

Nokia, which has been managing services for VimpelCom's network in central Russia, will extend this responsibility to manage VimpelCom's 2G, 3G and 4G networks, provided by a variety of equipment vendors, leveraging its innovative network management tools, processes, and software automation. Field maintenance work will be carried out by Nokia in the Southern, North Caucasian and Central regions of Russia, including Moscow.

By consolidating and transforming network operations, VimpelCom will benefit from reduced network and operational complexity, faster time to market and lower total cost of ownership in running multiple networks. In turn, VimpelCom will enhance service quality for more than 58 million mobile and 2.2 million fixed broadband customers in Russia.

Nokia will also deliver full network planning and optimization services, network implementation, project management and ongoing network support from its global delivery hub in Voronezh, Russia. Nokia will draw on its extensive understanding and experience of end-to-end service delivery with multiple technologies and vendors to serve VimpelCom's specific network needs and provision of high quality network performance.

Martin Skop, Executive Vice President for Infrastructure Development PJSC "VimpelCom" said: "Today we are at a dynamic stage in our business transformation. The transition to a new operating model for "Beeline" network management is another step towards a new "VimpelCom" technological reality. The partnership with Nokia enables us to restructure business processes, improve financial performance, keep pace with global trends and drive technological innovations. In addition, smart managed services will help us improve our overall efficiency."

Igor Leprince, head of Global Services at Nokia said: "This agreement highlights the breadth of Nokia's global services and technology expertise across fixed, mobile and transport networks. Working with VimpelCom we will manage network operations and field maintenance with a focus on driving the highest levels of quality and efficiency into operations to enhance network performance and availability. Our innovative service delivery draws from world-class capabilities and the power of extreme automation."