Nokia Siemens Networks kicks off the

Vendor and partners to showcase sustainable rural communications solution

Nokia Siemens Networks kicks off the “Connecting Brazil” expedition
Vendor and partners to showcase sustainable rural communications solution

Nokia Siemens Networks, in partnership with Oi ,Nokia and Hughes, today sets off on an expedition into rural Brazilian where it will showcase the potential of its innovative Village Connection solution to bring mobile communications services to places previously unserved by networks.

The “Connecting Brazil” roadshow has the Village Connection solution installed on a vehicle that will visit the cities of Cravolandia, Muniz Ferreira and Lajedinho in the hinterlands of the state of Bahia.

The vehicle will arrive at the destinations with all the required equipment to make mobile telephony and internet services available to locals who, with the help of Nokia Siemens Networks professionals, will have the opportunity to make calls, send text messages and surf the web.

From a technical perspective, Village Connection works as a standalone mobile service station where all internal calls are locally processed, which significantly reduces the overall operating costs.

“In addition to providing low-cost GSM technology and communications services for these towns, this business model offers a path to economic and development for them and the promise of applications that can raising living standards,” said Mario Baumgarten, corporate affairs director for Nokia Siemens Networks Latin America.

In India where the Village Connection solution has being tested and improved since 2006, it has been widely accepted by the population and has proven to be commercially viable in several low-income environments. “This project is succeeding in many regions where subscribers spend less than US$ 3 per month with telecommunications. We believe that this economic viability can be replicated in similar Brazilian contexts,” added Baumgarten.

This project is in line with the connectivity study that Leonard Waverman, professor at the London Business School, conducted and was commissioned by Nokia Siemens Networks. “We expect that 5 billion people will be connected by 2015. And within the purposes and execution of Corporate Social Responsibility , Nokia Siemens Networks and our partners in this project develop such projects in order to extend the benefits of progress to underprivileged populations, and collaborate with the Millennium Goals and others“, stated Baumgarten.

The Village Connection Solution

Ground and air transmission equipment is installed at the GSM network that is nearest to the region, as well as at the village that will receive the Village Connection solution to connect people with the rest of the country and the world. Nokia Siemens Networks will supply the entire kit to install, operate, manage and maintain the solution. For Oi, this can mean a more efficient solution in terms of connection and backbone costs.

Follow this expedition online at: www.expedicao.nokiasiemensnetworks.com