Zain Iraq to Deploy Ericsson Virtual EPC

Press release

Published August 28th, 2017 - 08:14 GMT

Rafiah Ibrahim, President of Ericsson Middle East and Africa

Zain Iraq has selected Ericsson (NASDAQ: ERIC) to upgrade its existing network using Ericsson’s virtual Evolved Packet Core (vEPC) offering to meet the growing data demands of its customers in the region.

Under this collaboration, Ericsson will modernize the current infrastructure of Zain Iraq’s network by implementing a solution that will enable the operator to quickly introduce new services for customers, while maintaining high performance network requirements.

Ericsson will modernize Zain Iraq’s existing infrastructure into Ericsson NFV infrastructure (NFVi) solution, which provides a software-defined infrastructure with Hyperscale Datacenter System 8000. Also as part of the solution, Ericsson will provide system integration and support services.

Ali Al-Zahid, CEO, Zain Iraq, says:“We trust that Ericsson’s Network Functions Virtualization solution will be enable us to meet our strategic goals as well as our customers’ demands, and continue to provide superior performance while meeting growing data needs.

“This investment and ongoing modernization of our network is yet another example of our dedication to future-proofing our operations for the benefit of all stakeholders. It also reflects our commitment to providing the mobile community in Iraq with the highest quality of service available, delivered via cutting edge infrastructure and technology to ensure a superior mobile experience for our customers.”

Rafiah Ibrahim, President of Ericsson Middle East and Africa says: “Today’s deal represents a significant milestone for Ericsson as it further strengthens our partnership with Zain Iraq and is another testament of our commitment to our customer’s success. Iraq is an important market for mobile network development and innovation. As Iraqi users are passionate adopters of new technology, network modernization and adoption of new technologies become critical to meet Iraqi users’ demand for capacity and coverage.”

Ericsson vEPC supports high-capacity environments and provides verified solutions, addressing many vertical use cases to open up new opportunities for operators.

Background Information

Zain

Zain is the pioneer of mobile telecommunications in the Middle East. We began life in 1983 in Kuwait as the region’s first mobile operator, and since the initiation of our expansion strategy in 2003, we have expanded rapidly. Today, we are a leading mobile voice and data services operator with a commercial footprint in 8 Middle Eastern and Africa countries with a workforce of over 6,000 providing a comprehensive range of mobile voice and data services to over 50 million active individual and business customers as of March 31, 2019.

Company Profile

Ericsson

Ericsson is one of the leading providers of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) to service providers, with about 40% of the world’s mobile traffic carried through our networks. We enable the full value of connectivity by creating game-changing technology and services that are easy to use, adopt and scale, making our customers successful in a fully connected world. For more than 140 years, our ideas, technology and people have changed the world: real turning points that have transformed lives, industries and society as a whole.