Fixed Mobile Convergence

Aircel, the Indian subsidiary of Malaysia’s Maxis Group that’s part of the company’s growing pan-Indian presence, has entered into a partnership with Nokia (News - Alert) Siemens Networks.

 

The partnership will provide the residents of three Indian states -- Haryana, Punjab and Rajasthan --with the access to attractive GSM services starting in the month of April.

 

“At Aircel, we have set ourselves ambitious goals to become not only a strong nationwide service provider, but also the operator of choice for millions of Indian subscribers with our proposition of high-quality services,” Gurdeep Singh, chief operating officer, Aircel said. “With Nokia Siemens (News - Alert) Networks as our partner, we have launched networks in record time while delivering superior service quality and end-user experience to our customers. We are confident that the company will help us efficiently realize our targets yet again.”

 

“Aircel has a relentless focus not only on extending its offerings to many more users in the country, but also on providing them unmatched voice, data and value-added services,” Urs Pennanen (News - Alert), head of the Indian region at Nokia Siemens Networks said. “Nokia Siemens Networks is committed to supporting Aircel in its endeavor to offer differentiated services in India’s fast-growing and intensely competitive market with our extensive products, solutions and services portfolio.”

 

The deal, so signed between Aircel and Nokia Siemens Networks (News - Alert) is worth in excess of 300 million USD, according to which Nokia will supply the radio, core and microwave network equipment and roll it out quickly and cost efficiently. The offerings made by Nokia will help Aircel to reduce its network’s carbon footprint and also prepare it to launch 3G services in the future.

 

In order to help Aircel monitor, manage and optimize the network Nokia Siemens Networks will deliver and implement its Flexi EDGE Base Station and IP-ready FlexiHybrid Microwave radio products as well as its mobile softswitch core network, and NetAct network management system and NetViewer element manager.

 

With Nokia Siemens Networks’ implementation and care services, Aircel will benefit from a faster time-to-market and enhanced network performance. Further, Nokia Siemens Networks, under a managed services contract, will operate and manage the network in these three circles for four years.

 

Earlier, Nokia Siemens Networks has supplied a GSM network and related services to Aircel for the cities of Delhi, Kolkata and Mumbai and is considered to be the number one provider of managed services in India.

 

In related news, Aircel and Infosys (News - Alert) Technologies Ltd have teamed up to announce the launch of a mobile application store. The store will offer for consumers several ready-to-use experiential applications suitable for various devices.