Ericsson and Vodafone Sign Five-Year Agreement to Modernize European Networks

Ericsson (NASDAQ:ERIC) and Vodafone Group Plc (LSE:VOD) have entered into a new five-year strategic agreement aimed at transforming Vodafone’s network infrastructure across several key European markets.

As part of the deal, Ericsson will serve as Vodafone’s exclusive radio access network (RAN) supplier in Ireland, the Netherlands, and Portugal, while continuing as a major vendor in Germany, Romania, and Egypt.

The partnership is designed to enhance Vodafone’s leadership in network quality and user experience by deploying Ericsson’s latest 5G hardware and software, enabling advanced 5G Standalone capabilities to support a wide range of connectivity requirements.

Vodafone will integrate Ericsson’s next-generation, Open RAN-ready Massive MIMO radios and RAN Compute systems, alongside 5G Advanced RAN software features, to boost performance and flexibility across its networks.

The agreement also covers the rollout of the Ericsson Intelligent Automation Platform and AI-driven applications to optimize RAN performance, improve energy efficiency, and support the management of multi-vendor networks.

Germany will be the first country to implement the platform and rApps for both Ericsson and multi-vendor RAN operations, with deployment scheduled to start in the fourth quarter of 2025.

This new collaboration builds on Vodafone’s previous SEK 12.5 billion, eight-year agreement signed in September with Ericsson to power most of its next-generation mobile network in the UK.

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