Alcatel-Lucent (Euronext and NYSE: ALU) and SK Telecom, the leading provider of information and mobile services in Korea, have further strengthened their cooperation with the signature of a new contract to deploy a mobile backhaul network and assist SK Telecom’s Packet Transport System (PTS) business in its network evolution.

Today, end-users expect to run video, voice and Internet via their mobile, with applications such as video streaming, interactive gaming and high-speed Internet access. SK Telecom is facing a huge demand for new data-oriented services from all segments of the market. The deployment of Alcatel-Lucent’s hybrid mobile backhaul solution will enable SK Telecom to benefit from empowered flexibility and scalability and address its subscribers’ growing needs for advanced IP-based mobile applications on top of existing services. And the solution will also provide the high speed connectivity, network availability and backhaul capacity required by SK Telecom to enhance its customers’ experience.

Alcatel-Lucent will deploy its 1850 Transport Service Switch (TSS) implementing innovative features like T-MPLS with alignment with MPLS-TP*, to optimize traffic transport and aggregation from the base stations to the core networks. As multiple traffic types – from TDM to Ethernet to packet - are handled onto the same platform, SK Telecom is taking a significant step in network simplification for minimized operational expenditures. The 1850 TSS is part of Alcatel-Lucent’s Mobile Evolution Transport Architecture (META), the industry’s most comprehensive solution for evolving mobile backhaul networks to all-IP.

“This project with SK Telecom further endorses our customer focus and capability to closely work with them in supporting their IP network transformation,” said Sean Dolan, President, Asia-Pacific, Alcatel-Lucent. “Our pioneering packet optical transport technology offers service providers a seamless transformation path over their transport networks for maximizing end-users experience.”

source:c114en