Brazilian operators select LTE providers

Brazilian operators Vivo and Oi have named the suppliers for their LTE networks. Vivo, Telefônica’s subsidiary in the country, has announced that Swedish vendor Ericsson will supply and implement its 4G network in the North and Mid-Western regions of Brazil, as well as the states of São Paulo, Minas Gerais, Bahia and Sergipe.

Ericsson will also be responsible for network implementation, including network rollout, design and support services. Ericsson has implemented Vivo’s GSM, WCDMA and HSPA technologies in the past.

Rival Oi has also selected Ericsson, along with Nokia Siemens Networks (NSN) and Alcatel Lucent for its LTE network, the operator told local reporters according to Reuters. Ericsson said that with these deals it has now signed 89 LTE contracts across 38 countries.

The news follows a report from the GSMA, which claims that mobile services will shape Brazil’s economic future. The country is the fourth largest mobile market in the world with more than 260 million active mobile connections, 60 million of which are mobile broadband, according to the association. It is set to maintain a strong pace of growth and reach 135 million mobile broadband connections by 2014.