Ericsson opens 20,000 square meter Global ICT Center in Sweden to drive innovation

• Purpose-built Global ICT Center creates foundation for development of the next generation of cloud infrastructure and services demanded by industry
• The center supports engineering on virtual platforms with global test labs and IT hubs connected via a single virtual environment - supporting Ericsson to host 5G development under one roof
• Site powered by Ericsson's cloud solutions, enabling over 20,000 R&D engineers globally to accelerate innovation cycles, reduce cost and better support Ericsson's customers
• Ericsson estimates a 40 percent reduction in energy usage compared to 2012 test lab energy baseline

Ericsson (NASDAQ: ERIC) has officially inaugurated its Global Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Center in Rosersberg, Sweden. The purpose-built, highly scalable and sustainable facility reflects Ericsson's ongoing commitment to R&D investment both in Sweden and globally. The center also represents an important step in the company's ongoing ICT transformation journey.

The Rosersberg site, which covers 20,000 square meters, is the first purpose-built Ericsson Global ICT Center to be inaugurated in Sweden. It follows the opening of the Global ICT Center in Linköping, Sweden in September 2014, which was built adjacent to an existing Ericsson facility. In addition to the two facilities in Sweden, Ericsson will open a Global ICT Center in Montreal, Canada in the second quarter of 2016.

The Global ICT Centers allow Ericsson to emulate an operator's mobile network and to test new solutions as if they were running on a live network. In the near future, Ericsson's customers will be able to connect remotely for interoperability testing, trials, early access and innovation on new offerings from any location. These services will be provided through ten Business-Near Centers, to be announced in 2016, which are connected to the Global ICT Centers.

The Global ICT Centers are set to be powered by Ericsson's cloud solutions and will host a substantial part of the company's product portfolio. As a result of this extensive rationalization and virtualization effort, Ericsson will be able to shorten innovation cycles and increase global collaboration while also reducing R&D costs. Currently, the company's test environments are spread across more than 50 locations worldwide.

Ericsson's Global ICT Centers are an important step toward achieving the company's sustainability goals. The cutting-edge design of the centers, combined with modular and scalable construction, secures efficient use of energy and space. Ericsson estimates, when all three Global ICT Centers are in operation, it will result in a 40% reduction in energy usage compared to 2012 test lab energy baseline.