Europe : Romanian fixed and greenfield mobile operator, RCS & RDS, has selected Nokia as its WCDMA 3G core and radio network supplier. With Nokia's support the operator will be able to quickly enter the Romanian 3G mobile market and offer a wide range of services under the brand name Digi.Tel. RCDS & RDS has recently launched its 3G service.

"Fast time to market and cost-efficiency are of key importance to RCS & RDS in launching 3G services in Romania," says Alexandru Oprea, President of RCS & RDS. "Nokia's high-quality network and services provide us the support that we need in acquiring customers and offering them the best 3G mobile services in Romania."

"Acquiring new customers and generating customer loyalty depends largely on how reliably services are delivered. The technical service delivery machinery, the network, must be properly designed and assured. We are confident that RCS & RDS will be able to make a strong entry to the Romanian 3G mobile market thanks to Nokia's solutions such as the Nokia Flexi WCDMA Base Station and the Nokia MSC Server mobile softswitch," says Filip Rommelaere, General Manager for the Balkans, Networks, Nokia.

Nokia's WCDMA 3G radio and core network supply to RCS & RDS includes the Nokia Flexi WCDMA Base Station, the Nokia MSC Server mobile softswitch and the Nokia Flexi Intelligent Service Node (ISN). The network will be supported by the Nokia NetAct(TM) network and service management system. Nokia will also provide RCS & RDS with network planning, implementation, project management, maintenance, 3rd party support, hardware repair, and training services. Deliveries have started.

In WCDMA 3G, Nokia has 67 customers to date. Almost half of the commercially launched WCDMA 3G networks have Nokia equipment. Nokia Flexi WCDMA Base Station is a space-saving modular innovation that enables operators to make more efficient use of their base station sites, leading to significant site cost savings through reduced site construction work, quick base station installation and decreased power consumption. All these make the Nokia Flexi WCDMA Base Station an environmentally friendly solution.

Nokia is creating seamless personalized user experiences in fixed and mobile networks thanks to the Nokia Unified Core Network solution. With close to 130 customers for its mobile softswitching and over 50 live networks, Nokia is clearly the most experienced mobile softswitching supplier worldwide.