Vimplecom has selected ZTE to build a complete virtual network infrastructure providing 4G, 3G and 2G mobile data services to customers across five markets in 2016. Financial terms were not disclosed.
ZTE’s virtual Evolved Packet Core (vEPC) network will be introduced in Kyrgyzstan and Laos in February 2016. Following these two markets, VimpelCom plans to introduce the fully virtualized network in Uzbekistan, Armenia, and Tajikistan during the course of 2016. With virtualization, the networks in the five VimpelCom markets will move from a legacy-heavy network made up of separate network elements to a common software-driven, lean infrastructure.
Yogesh Malik, Group Chief Technology Officer at VimpelCom said: “VimpelCom believes in instant innovation. Investing in innovative solutions to reinvent our network is high on the agenda as we transform into the digital operator of the future. We are convinced that virtualization represents the new way forward for the industry. The reinvention of the current network to one that is software-driven and asset-light plays an important part in our digital transformation and is a leap forward in bringing the digital world to each and every customer as they navigate their digital lives.”
