Paramus, New Jersey, October 8, 2013 - Ceragon Networks Ltd. (NASDAQ: CRNT), the #1 wireless backhaul specialist, today announced that it has received further orders of $7 million from https://www.vodacom.co.tz/, the country’s largest mobile operator, to upgrade and support backbone links across the country. To date, the majority of Vodacom Tanzania’s countrywide network is based on Ceragon technology, serving over 10 million subscribers. This upgrade is designed to support continued customer growth and heightened demand for advanced data services. Vodacom Tanzania is a subsidiary of the Vodacom Group Ltd, part of the Vodafone Group UK.
“As data usage increases, the network’s capacity needs to grow in line with our customer’s new data consumption behavior. Our network’s reliability is contingent on the delivery of a robust backhaul and network backbone infrastructure,” said Rene Meza, Managing Director at Vodacom. “As our main and best supplier for Microwave long haul technology, Ceragon has enabled us since 2009 to reach our customers easily whether in urban or remote rural areas. We chose Ceragon for this new project because we knew that they would be able to accomplish the upgrade quickly and effectively and deliver technology that would support us into the future.”
Tanzania’s mobile market penetration currently stands at approximately 51%. The launch of 3G mobile broadband services has meant that mobile networks are becoming the country’s leading internet service providers on the back of their extensive national infrastructure and existing subscriber bases in the voice market.
“The African marketplace is uniquely suited to embrace a wireless backhaul approach,” said Ira Palti, Ceragon’s President and CEO. “Building connectivity in remote areas, with a population accustomed to connecting to the Internet primarily through mobile devices, is ideal for Ceragon’s many long haul offerings. We’ve worked closely with Vodacom as they built their network and we’re looking forward to working with them as they expand their services in the coming years.”
About Vodacom
Vodacom is a mobile communications company providing voice, messaging, data and converged solutions to around 50 million active customers in Africa. Vodacom’s head office is in Johannesburg, South Africa and operations include networks in Tanzania, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Mozambique and Lesotho. Vodacom Tanzania is a subsidiary company of Vodacom Group (Pty) Limited, South Africa which is also a subsidiary of Vodafone Group UK. More information is available at: http://www.vodacom.co.tz/.
