STOCKHOLM -- Slovak Telekom has launched a 4G LTE network in five cities in Slovakia, more locations will follow soon. This LTE network is already the largest in Slovakia, giving Slovak Telekom a competitive edge in 4G.

Ericsson (NASDAQ: ERIC) is the sole vendor for the LTE radio network, which is based on the multi-standard RBS 6000 base station. The network operates at 1800MHz and offers a maximum theoretical speed of 73Mbps download and 23Mbps upload. Circuit-switched fallback (CSFB) ensures that voice calls and text messages are delivered to LTE devices through the use of a 2G/3G circuit-switched network.

This LTE rollout contract marks the continuation of long-standing cooperation between Slovak Telekom and Ericsson, and includes systems integration, network optimization, multi-vendor verification and related services.

Ericsson is the operator's sole supplier of 2G and 3G radio, as well as circuit core hardware and software, including IMS (IP Multimedia Subsystem). With the Ericsson IMS Slovak Telekom will evolve its current voice business to support VoLTE in the future. This will enable HD voice, video calling over LTE and other new flexible communication services. Ericsson is also providing managed services for Slovak Telekom's fixed network operations.

Ericsson AB (Nasdaq: ERIC)