Nokia (NOK.US) and AT&T (T.US) have signed a multi-year extension agreement to upgrade their voice and automated network.
1min read Finland's network equipment maker Nokia (NOK.US) announced on Tuesday that it had signed a multi-year extension agreement with US telecom operator AT&T (T.US) to upgrade AT&T's voice carriage and 5G network automation capabilities in the US.
One year ago, Nokia lost out to Swedish rival Ericsson (ERIC.US) in a major contract with AT&T, which selected Ericsson to build a telecom network that will cover 70% of its wireless traffic in the US by the end of 2026.
After AT&T signed a $14bn five-year cooperation agreement with Ericsson, Nokia announced in September last year a smaller five-year deal with AT&T to build fiber networks in the US. On Tuesday, the two sides locked in a second deal, covering cloud-based voice core applications and the use of Nokia's network automation software.
"This is an important agreement for Nokia, solidifying the strong and long-standing relationship between Nokia and AT&T, and covering multi-year and multiple technologies to drive new 5G capabilities," said Raghav Sahgal, president of Nokia's Cloud and Network Services, in an email.
Nokia said the upgrade of AT&T's core network would support new voice services, such as those with artificial intelligence and machine learning capabilities.
Neither side disclosed the exact amount of the deal.
"We are pleased to continue our relationship with Nokia to further optimize our network operations and introduce new services to better meet the ever-changing needs of our customers," said Yigal Elbaz, senior vice-president of technology and network services at AT&T.
Last week, Nokia reported fourth-quarter adjusted operating profit and sales that beat expectations, driven by increased demand for telecom equipment from mobile operators in North America and India. Nokia is optimistic about 2025.
To capitalize on the booming AI opportunity, Nokia agreed last year to buy Infinera (INFN.US) for $2.3bn, in hopes of benefiting from the influx of investment in data centers such as the $50bn Stargate project backed by OpenAI, SoftBank (SFTBY.US) and Oracle (ORCL.US).
