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Link: du Selects Nortel to Deliver Next Generation Network, Multimedia Services in UAE

Telecom service provider du plans to deliver ‘anytime, anywhere’ IP Centrex and multimedia services across a wider geographical area powered by a carrier solution from Nortel
The expanded network will enable du to respond to massive demand for service from businesses and residential users linked to the current exponential growth in Dubai and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Convergence of media and telecommunications is an important trend in the region, changing the way people communicate, their entertainment preferences and their day-to-day lives. Services from du tap into this trend, offering converged landline, broadband and TV services to customers living in Dubai and providing the benefits of one single monthly bill and one customer care point-of-contact for all services.

du’s Next Generation Network (NGN) expansion has at its heart the Nortel Communication Server 2000 IP multimedia softswitch and Nortel Media Gateway 15000. This solution allows du to grow its geographical footprint, enabling it to offer media and telecommunications services to residences and businesses across the United Arab Emirates. It also enables du to attract future customers by delivering new communications services such as Unified Communications and IP Powered Business services based on SIP (Session Initiation Protocol) technology including presence, collaboration and fixed mobile convergence.

du’s newly expanded network will be completely secure and have full redundancy to ensure that services run smoothly and free from interruption. The du agreement also includes fully managed services from Nortel’s Global Services portfolio, including building and operating the system and knowledge transfer. “du’s initial success with our suite of converged media and telecommunications services has swiftly created the need for a network upgrade to satisfy current and future demands for capacity, quality, speed and new services,” said Osman Sultan, chief executive officer, du. “Furthermore, the strategic location of UAE, situated as it is between Europe and the emerging markets in Asia, has reinvented Dubai as a world communications gateway and a conduit to markets in the Middle East. This location and the burgeoning financial success of the UAE has created major growth in international carrier voice traffic.”

“The Middle East region and du are of primary importance for Nortel,” said Ramin Attari, vice president, Nortel Middle East. “With this new success Nortel is increasing leadership in the NGN 2.0 domain for carrier voice and multimedia applications serving business and consumers.” With more than 60 wins in the first half of 2008, Nortel now has more than 300 Carrier VoIP customers globally. In August, Gartner, Inc. a leading information technology research and advisory company, issued its 2008 “Magic Quadrant” for Softswitch Architecture. Gartner positioned Nortel in the Leader’s quadrant of its Magic Quadrant (MQ) for Softswitch Architecture, 2008. Nortel was ranked by Dell’Oro as the leader in Carrier VoIP globally every year for the past six years (2002 through 2007). As of 2Q08 Nortel has shipped over 95 million Carrier IP Voice and Multimedia ports to wireline, wireless and cable carriers globally.