5 May 2003 Istanbul, Turkey Lightwave--Nortel Networks Netas, a subsidiary of Nortel Networks, has signed an estimated U.S. $2.3 million contract with the Association of Telecom Operators of Bangladesh (ATOB) to connect the networks of the four Bangladeshi wireless operators to Bangladesh Telegraph and Telephone Board's (BTTB) fixed public switched telephone network.
ATOB plans to deploy Nortel Networks DMS-100 switching system and OPTera Metro 4000 multiservice platform, a fiber-optic transmission system, to enhance the existing inter-connection between BTTB's 650,000 fixed lines and wireless operators. In addition, the project includes increasing the bandwidth between the four ATOB wireless operators and improving the quality of service offered to all wireless subscibers. The deployment is expected to be completed within six months.
"We have been active in Bangladesh since 1998, and we deployed a national optical transmission network in 2000," said Barhan �zce, International Sales, Nortel Networks Netas. "In 2002 we broke into the Bangladeshi fixed line voice market with 116,000 lines for BTTP's digital voice network, and our track record has helped us to enter the wireless market in Bangladesh as well."