Todd Ashton, Vice President and Head of Customer Unit South and East Africa for Ericsson. Photo: Wendy Dondolo/IOL
When you hear the name, Ericsson, you generally think of cell phones, however, the company is about more than that.
While at the Africa Tech Festival 2024 taking place in Cape Town, IOL had a sit-down interview with one of the Vice Presidents of Ericsson.
Vice President and Head of Customer Unit South and East Africa, Todd Ashton explained just how his company was becoming a leader in advancing technology across the globe.
Speaking to IOL, Ashton explained Ericsson was one of the pioneers when mobile started and it started its relationship with mobile network operator MTN in 1993.
They were pivotal in ensuring mobile was spread out across Africa.
“For many years we worked exclusively with MTN, however, we now work with Comsol and Vodacom too,” he said.
Ericsson has also found itself within the mining industry using their specialised technology. With Comsol, Ericsson is set to expand its enterprise business within South Africa’s mining industry. This collaboration is set to help the nation’s mining industry improve worker safety, increase operational efficiency, and realize its sustainability goals.
Ericsson is a Swedish multinational networking and telecommunications company head quartered in Stockholm.
When asked if the company would ever return to the SA market with cell phones, Ashton said no, however, he stated there are many things, found on smartphones today that Ericsson has a patent on such as swiping for applications, or connecting to your bluetooth.
A patent is an exclusive right granted for an invention.
And while they may be known for their iconic cell phones, Ashton explains the company has always been about engineering.
“The services offered are important to South Africa and Africa,” he said.
The company has a service called mobile money and this is set to pave the way financially, especially for women.
“For mobile money to work we need mobile coverage. That is why we’re all about inclusivity broadband. We took lessons from Covid, broadband is a basic human right” Ashton said.
Broadbands of 4G and 5G are important to connect to suburban and rural areas.
Ashton said this was the main motivation to bring this service to Africa.
He further explained Ericsson has gone from using six radios to two bands, three sectors, and one radio on its towers. Thus, reducing power consumption and trying to be environmentally friendly.
Ashton said their important innovation which combines traditional micro waves and e-bands is pivotal in changing the tech landscape as this can be used when fibre is not reliable but users can still remain connected.
Earlier this week, Ericsson and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) announced the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), for the collaborative exploration of 6G technology, its use cases, and future network evolution.
The MoU will serve as an early engagement for defining the next generation of future mobile network evolution and will include a series of technical discussions and engagements aimed at jointly exploring key 6G technology concepts.
The Africa Tech Festival runs until Thursday, November 14.
robin.francke@iol.co.za
IOL