Wednesday, July 16, 2008

O2 Germany Expands and Improves Its Network

o2
O2 Germany has signed a new deal with Nokia Siemens, according to which the German carrier's nationwide network will be expanded and modernized. This will allow O2's subscribers across Germany to enjoy improved voice and data services plus new services that require the latest network technologies.

Both the 2G and 3G networks of O2 Germany will benefit from Nokia Siemens' enhancements. The Finnish-German joint venture will provide EDGE software upgrades as well as the HSDPA software functionality in order to bring O2 users high-speed data transfers.

Moreover, Nokia Siemens Networks will bring its energy-efficient radio access solution to O2 Germany, enabling the carrier to reduce both the operational costs and the power consumption of its network.

Owned by Telefonica, O2 currently has slightly over 13 million subscribers in Germany, being the country's fourth largest mobile operator, after T-Mobile, Vodafone and E-Plus.

Talking about the new network enhancement deal with Nokia Siemens, Thomas Riedel, Customer Business Team Head for Telefonica Europe, stated: "We are very pleased to extend our long-term relationship with this agreement and by doing so, to strengthen O2’s competitive position in the market."

Andrea Folgueiras, CTO of O2 Germany, also said: "Our objective is to use the most advanced technology, to further increase our coverage as well as to reduce costs. To achieve our goals, we need reliable partners who can supply us with state-of-the-art equipment and extensive services at best commercial conditions."

Besides Germany, Telefonica's O2 brand is present in other four European countries (UK, Ireland, Czech Republic and Slovakia) as well as in Asia.

The German network enhancement that Telefonica O2 and Nokia Siemens have planed will allow O2's German division to keep up with the other major carriers and maybe even outrun KPN's E-Plus in terms of subscribers.

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