Vodafone Idea (Vi) has announced an expansion of its long-standing partnership with Ericsson to modernize its network infrastructure and transform its postpaid billing systems. The move is aimed at strengthening Vi’s nationwide network footprint while transitioning its legacy IT systems to cloud-native platforms.
Since 2024, Ericsson has supported Vi in deploying new 4G and 5G sites, adding network layers, and rolling out High-Performance Small Cell (HPSC) towers across 10 telecom circles.
Under the extended agreement, the focus will shift to:
- Expanding coverage through deployment and integration of new sites
- Augmenting network capacity to address rising data consumption
- Enhancing indoor coverage and accelerating 4G and 5G rollouts
The collaboration is positioned to help Vi prepare its infrastructure for future 5G Standalone (SA) architecture.
After migrating millions of prepaid subscribers to Ericsson’s charging platform in 2023, Vi has now selected Ericsson to deploy a cloud-native Convergent Charging System for its postpaid customers.
With this deployment, Ericsson becomes a pan-India supplier of online charging solutions across both prepaid and postpaid segments. The new system will replace legacy offline billing and rating functions, enabling real-time charging for voice, VoLTE, SMS, and data services across consumer and enterprise users.
Vi expects the upgrade to reduce operational expenditure (OPEX), accelerate service launches, and enhance billing flexibility.
The agreement also includes the rollout of Ericsson Telco IT AI applications, designed to improve operational efficiency and system reliability. These tools include anomaly detection for charging applications, order fallout detection and prediction, telco cloud capacity forecasting, and intelligent usage analysis.
Ericsson’s convergent charging platform complies with the TM Forum’s Open Digital Architecture and supports open APIs. This allows catalogue-driven product configuration, enabling Vi to introduce personalized offerings faster and respond more dynamically to evolving digital market demands.
Jagbir Singh, Chief Technology Officer, Vodafone Idea, said, “We’re looking forward to further strengthening our longstanding partnership with Ericsson. The simplification and benefits of cloud-native Ericsson Charging will help us future-proof our architecture, enabling us to meet the demands of today’s digital environment and tomorrow’s 5G needs as Indians embrace this new era of connectivity. Vi customers will gain access to real-time account information and advanced offers, helping us deliver world-class customer experiences leveraging AI to achieve operational efficiencies and drive growth.”
Andres Vicente, CEO, Southeast Asia, Oceania, and India, Ericsson, said, “Our deep understanding of Vi’s business is reflected in the great service to customers we work so closely together to deliver. We are delighted to expand our collaboration by deploying Ericsson Charging to modernize Vi’s postpaid rating and charging functionalities from offline to real time rating and charging model. The scalable, AI driven solution will help Vi modernize operations and expedite the deployment of next-generation services.”
