Vodafone India’s big 4G push: Awards Rs 2,040 crore contract to Ericsson

Vodafone India has awarded a 4G deployment contract to Ericsson in a bid to expand it’s 4G network and take on rivals like Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel. The $300 million (Roughly Rs 2,040 crore) contract comes at a time when Reliance Jio has completely shaken up the 4G game with it’s disruptive pricing and pan-India network. 

The contract is valid for UP West, Rajasthan, Odisha, North East and Assam telecom zones and comes as a reaction to the proposed Reliance Jio - Idea cellular merger. 

An unnamed Vodafone executive said “The deployment of 4G LTE network is expected to be completed by the third quarter of 2017. Ericsson, under this contract, is deploying its full radio system portfolio that offers 50% improved energy efficiency”. 

Vodafone India already has a $450-500 million 4G LTE deployment/expansion deal with Nokia which covers 10 circles and with Huawei in the Delhi, Karnataka and Kerala circles. 

Relance Jio’s launch in September 2016 shook the telecom sector to it’s core and pushed almost all of the major players to pull up their socks and reduce their prices in order to compete. Vodafone India as of now has launched 4G services in 17 circles and is on a rapid expansion push. 

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