Ericsson India Q4 revenue up 20 per cent

NEW DELHI: Swedish telecom gear maker Ericsson’s India revenue for the fiscal fourth quarter jumped 20 per cent year-on-year at SEK 2.4 billion or $289 million (nearly Rs1800 crore), due to higher operator spending driven by continued growth in mobile data traffic, the company said Tuesday.

Revenue for the whole year 2014 increased 25 per cent to $927 million. Ericsson said that the full-year sales growth was driven by mobile broadband infrastructure investments. Increased smartphone penetration drove growth in mobile data usage.

The company’s network business contributed SEK 1.2 billion towards the overall India revenue, while global services segment contributed SEK 1 billion during the quarter. Revenue from the support solutions segment stood at SEK 0.2 billion.

The global Services sales showed strong development mainly as a result of the first pan-India managed services contract, the company said.

Ericsson’s overall fourth quarter sales were flat at SEK 68 billion, up 1 per cent year-on-year. The sales growth year-on-year was mainly driven by the Middle East, Europe and Asia, offset by sales decline in North America.

During the quarter, the company signed 17 new managed services contracts, including a pan-India contract with Reliance Communications.