ZTE Corporation,a leading global provider of telecommunications equipment and network solutions,announced on February 24,2010 that Optimus will be deploying its software define radio(SDR)multi-mode solution,enabling the operator to upgrade its GSM/UMTS network in Portugal and providing a smooth evolution path to LTE.ZTE’s SDR network will include SDR RAN,network management system,and operation systems and software(NMS/OSS),enabling Optimus to optimize current 2G/3G services and smoothly upgrade to LTE.The network roll-out will cover 4 regions in central Portugal.

Optimus is the only integrated telecommunications’Portuguese operator owned by Sonaecom—a joint venture owned by the Portuguese SONAE Group(80%)and France Telecom(20%)—it is Portugal’s second and third largest provider of fixed-line and mobile services respectively.Selecting ZTE as partner for the central regions was a very important decision in line with Sonaecom’s strategy,which is to modernize and replace current infrastructure to be ready for the coming LTE future.

This is the first contract win for ZTE’s SDR technology in Western Europe and follows a series of key contract wins in the region.ZTE currently has wireless network agreements with seven of the top 10 European operators.This includes GSM/UMTS networks for TeliaSonera,Telenor,and KPN as well as LTE trials with Telefonica.ZTE is conducting LTE trials with more than 10 operators,

including Singapore Telecom,China Mobile and CSL.