With one and a half million customers, Vodafone is the third largest mobile operator in Sweden. Maximum coverage, as well as high-quality services and the ability to integrate and launch new features are essential to the operator. To keep its footing in the fiercely competitive Swedish market the operator needed to reduce costs and develop a scalable network at the earliest opportunity.

Developing flexible and reliable transmission systems would allow Vodafone to maximize its available capacity and respond to new demands on its market as swiftly as possible. The operator also requested the ability to provide business access services via their mobile infrastructure. The chosen supplier needed to have both transmission and mobile network knowledge and experience. Ericsson fulfilled the essential criteria and boasted a substantial local presence.

In 1995, the operator started to replace its leased lines with MINI-LINK, microwave radios from Ericsson, ensuring maximum coverage with effective and upgradeable pointto- point microwave links. Following this success, in 1998, Vodafone elected to replace its existing cross-connects solution product in favor of DXX network elements and DXX Manager from Ericsson. Magnus Sandqvist, Manager of Transport and Access Engineering, Vodafone Sweden, pinpoints the particular attraction of Ericsson's products for Vodafone: "Vodafone was looking for the best overall package of products. Ericsson provided the most efficient transmission solution - including products, competence and support. This has given Vodafone the ability to provide cost-efficient coverage to this large area with a relatively small population."

Since 1998, Ericsson and Vodafone Sweden have worked together to expand the network, introducing new structures to ensure traffic availability and working to prepare for future demands and 3G roll-out. The successful integration of MINI-LINK, DXX and optical networks has produced a flexible total access and transport solution. Thanks to a good interaction between the different systems within the management solution, Vodafone can now optimize its total network operation. Anders Eriksson, Business Developer DXX, Ericsson, underlines the key benefits for Vodafone: "This focus on optimizing the total transport network has resulted in a much higher degree of control and a lower operational cost for our customer. Thanks to the implementation of DXX, Vodafone is also able to provide business services via their mobile network."

In operation, Ericsson's solution has been highly effective. The combination of DXX, MINI-LINK and a variety of Ericsson's supplementary transport solutions has allowed Vodafone to develop the network it has in place today. This solution has proved to be both reliable and easy to implement in the field. As a result of Ericsson's flexible transport products Vodafone is now ideally placed to take advantage of any sudden changes in the Swedish market and is finally in full control of its network.

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