Telecom Finland has contracted with L.M. Ericsson to build a new DCS-1800 system and expand Telecom Finland’s existing Global System for Mobile communications network.
Ericsson values the contract at $105 million. The company said the contract is an indication of the “ever fiercer competition to provide new and innovative telecommunications services.” The Swedish manufacturer will deliver network products and services, as well as MiniLinks transmission equipment.
MiniLinks operate in the microwave band, and the latest generation offers average coverage of 50 to 60 kilometers. Ericsson uses MiniLinks to tie together mobile network nodes.
“This contract is a continuation of Telecom Finland’s cooperation with Ericsson, which commenced with the implementation of the [Nordic Mobile Telephone] network,” said Matti Makkonen, director of mobile communications at Telecom Finland.
NOTABLE QUOTE
“We are set up like a paging carrier without the frequency. We’re doing all the customer service, the marketing, the pagers, the dispatch. It isn’t cost-effective for carriers to do dispatch.”
-Alexander Ott, president of Affordable Message Center. Story on Page 11.
