Ericsson has unveiled a new suite of mobile solutions which aim to make mobile Internet investments in low to average revenue markets viable.
According to Ericsson, the new suite of solutions, introduced yesterday, is targeted towards mobile operators. They consist of software and hardware additions to the Ericsson radio system, an energy efficient modular system that enables mobile operators to transform their mobile operations and address growth opportunities in off-grid or rural settings.
The products, which include the PSI coverage, the Ericsson site manager and the remote radio unit, will enable operators to provide quality mobile broadband coverage, while identifying which sites in a GSM/EDGE coverage area have the highest number of mobile Internet users. Operators can then determine where it makes more sense to convert those sites to HSPA or 4G/LTE, so that more people will enjoy the benefits of mobile broadband, says the ICT solutions company.
Arun Bansal, head of Business Unit Network Products at Ericsson, says: "These are among the most important additions to our product portfolio for mobile broadband coverage growth ever. Ericsson supports the International Telecommunication Union's Connect 2020 target of ensuring that more than 50% of people in the developing world are using the Internet by 2020.
"In order to reach this goal, together we will need to connect roughly 500 000 new users to the Internet each day. Ericsson continues innovating so that operators can create viable business even in rural or off-grid settings, and to make the most difference with every investment," he explains.
The new solutions, he continues, address the significant divide in Internet adoption between developed and developing countries - only four out of ten people in developing countries are connected to the Internet and about 15% of the world's populations do not have access to electricity.
The innovations follow a trio of solutions for developing areas unveiled by the company in February: Flow of Users, Zero Touch and Mobile Broadband Expander.
Jean-Claude Geha, head of Region, Sub-Saharan Africa at Ericsson, says these solutions will open new opportunities in far-flung areas in the region, creating access to new services such as mobile money, e-health, e-education and e-government.
"As at 2015, GSM/EDGE still accounted for close to 70% of the total mobile subscriptions in Sub-Saharan Africa. We continuously seek to develop sustainable ways to provide quality mobile broadband coverage - even in the unconnected areas. These energy-efficient suites of solutions will enable operators to seamlessly identify underserved communities in the region, making it faster to introduce or improve the mobile broadband experience of their subscribers," he points out.
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