Ericsson to
divest its
field services
business in
Sweden
Microsoft to deliver
intelligent cloud from
Norway data centres
E
ricsson has signed an agreement with the
Swedish company Transtema Group AB
to divest Ericsson Local Services AB (LSS), a
subsidiary of Ericsson supplying field service
operations and maintenance of fixed and
mobile networks, in Sweden.
Ericsson Local Services AB is a market leader
in field services in Sweden. LSS builds and
maintains network infrastructure and delivers
services in all areas of Sweden’s field service
operations market. Under the agreement,
all operations and assets of LSS will be
transferred to Transtema ownership. LSS will
continue as a legal entity in Transtema Group.
As a result of the transaction, Ericsson
becomes a minority shareholder and will
be represented on the Board of Directors of
Transtema Group. This divestment is in line
with Ericsson’s business strategy, a key part
of which is Managed Services and operating
networks on behalf of our customers. The
divestment of LSS is part of executing on
that strategy as Ericsson will no longer sell
new standalone field services projects.
Per Narvinger, Head of Customer Unit
Northern and Central Europe, Market Area
Europe and Latin America, Ericsson, said:
“Ericsson Local Services is a market leader
in field service operations in Sweden with
a skilled workforce of approximately 700
employees across the country. It delivers very
good support to our customers and we believe
Transtema has an excellent opportunity
to continue to develop the field service
operations while also executing on existing
customer commitments. Together we will
ensure a quick and smooth transition and a
good relationship.”
M
icrosoft has announced plans to
further expand its significant and
growing investment in cloud computing
in Europe by delivering the intelligent
Microsoft Cloud from two new data centre
regions in Norway: one in the greater
Stavanger region and the other in Oslo.
The Microsoft Cloud, comprising
Microsoft Azure, Office 365 and
Dynamics 365, will offer enterprise-
grade reliability and performance with
data residency from new data centre
locations. Initial availability of Azure is
planned for late 2019 with Office 365
and Dynamics 365 to follow. Microsoft
has deep expertise protecting data,
championing privacy and empowering
customers around the globe to
meet extensive security and privacy
requirements with Microsoft’s Trusted
Cloud principles and the broadest
set of compliance certifications and
attestations in the industry.
“Over a billion customers around the
world trust the intelligent Microsoft Cloud
to provide a platform to help transform
their businesses,” said Jason Zander,
Executive Vice President, Microsoft Azure,
Microsoft. “By delivering the Microsoft
Cloud from new data centre regions in
www.intelligentcio.com
Norway, organisations will be empowered
through cloud-scale innovation while
meeting their data residency, security and
compliance needs.”
Equinor, an international energy
company, has chosen the Microsoft
Cloud in Norway to enable its digital
transformation and drive cloud-enabled
innovation. The strategic partnership
is supporting Equinor’s digital journey
through a seven-year consumption and
development agreement valued in the
hundreds of millions of dollars (USD).
Leveraging the cloud is a prerequisite
for the energy industry’s transformation
towards a digital future and secure,
reliable and cost-efficient operations
are a requirement for Equinor’s
adaptation of the cloud.
“By bringing these new data centres
online in Norway, we are very pleased to
be able to pave the way for growth and
transformation of many other businesses
and organisations in Norway, whether
they be large enterprises, government
bodies, or any of the 200,000 small
and medium-size businesses that
create Norway’s thriving economy,”
said Kimberly Lein-Mathisen, General
Manager, Microsoft Norway.
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