Nokia Siemens Networks (NSN) has scored a major mobile network outsourcing deal in Latin America, announcing it is to manage NII Holdings’ networks across its five markets in the region. The agreement covers NII’s Nextel-branded mobile networks in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Mexico and Peru. According to Wireless Intelligence data, NII had around 7.4 million mobile connections in total across the five subsidiaries. NSN said the deal was its largest, multi-vendor, multi-country managed services agreement in Latin America, and one of the first of its kind in the region. Financial terms were not disclosed. Around 1,000 employees of NII and its operating companies are to transfer to NSN. “This agreement allows us to sharpen our focus on the evolution of our network, including geographic expansion and the addition of 3G capabilities, while enhancing our operational efficiency,” said Alan Strauss, NII’s vice-president and chief technology officer.

Under the terms of the agreement, NSN said it will assume responsibility for day-to-day services, provisioning and maintenance for the NII-owned networks, including network planning and optimisation, consulting and OSS/BSS integration, as well as multi-vendor maintenance services. However, NII and its operating companies will retain full ownership of its network assets and will continue to make all decisions relating to network strategy, technology, vendor selections and investment decisions. NSN claims to be a global leader in network management outsourcing with more than 230 managed services contracts in place. It adds that it has successfully transitioned 13,000 employees from operators across various managed services contracts globally.