SOFTBANK MOBILE signs LTE contract with Ericsson in Japan

Japan's SOFTBANK MOBILE selects Ericsson

to build an LTE radio access network that will serve Japan's major cities, home to more than half of the country's population * Ericsson will upgrade, expand and perform systems integration of SOFTBANK MOBILE's existing packet core network to Evolved Packet Core * This is Ericsson's largest LTE contract in Japan, supporting the latest consumer electronics devices Video-sharing and streaming in high definition, facilitated mobility and richer multimedia content, enhanced security and improved latency are one of the many advantages that LTE users could enjoy. And soon SOFTBANK MOBILE's subscribers will be able to share these advantages, thanks to a new LTE network contract signed by SOFTBANK MOBILE with Ericsson

. The Ericsson network will cover Japan's major cities - Tokyo, Osaka and Nagoya - which together account for 70 percent of the country's total data and voice traffic. SOFTBANK MOBILE is currently Japan's third-largest mobile operator, with more than 29 million subscribers. Ericsson will upgrade SOFTBANK MOBILE's packet core network, including systems integration and deployment of an Evolved Packet Core (EPC) solution, and build a new LTE radio access network using RBS 6000 multi-standard base stations. This will allow SOFTBANK MOBILE users to experience the best possible networks in one of the world's most densely populated areas such as Tokyo, Osaka, and Nagoya. Junichi Miyakawa, Executive Vice President, Director and CTO of SOFTBANK MOBILE Corp., says: "To fulfill our customers' expectations, we continue to improve our networks. With LTE, customers get increased speed and decreased latency, while they will enjoy a wide range of new services and applications. With Ericsson's support, we will be able to offer our customers high quality LTE services."