AT&T taps Ericsson for $14 billion wireless network revamp, ousting Nokia

Ericsson AB won a $14 billion contract to modernise AT&T wireless network, agreeing to build an open network that can be supplied by a number of vendors and beating out its longtime rival Nokia Oyj. 
 

The contract, which will let AT&T choose vendors that supply its antennas and infrastructure going forward instead of locking the US carrier into a single relationship, marks a “strategic industry shift,” Ericsson said in a statement on Monday. The funds will be paid out over five years and focus on upgrading AT&T’s infrastructure for 5G technology. 
 

It was a major blow to Finnish rival Nokia, whose shares tumbled 10 per cent on Tuesday in Helsinki trading. The company said the news will delay its plans to reach double-digit operating margins by as much as two years. Ericsson currently supplies two-thirds of AT&T’s network and Nokia accounts for the other third.