Chinese manufacturer ZTE said Tuesday that it has been contracted to expand the CDMA network of Sri Lanka’s former state owned carrier, Sri Lanka Telecom.

ZTE has been commissioned to deploy an all IP cdma2000 network based on what it claims is the world’s first commercial interoperability specification (IOS) 5.0-based system.

The deployment of this second phase means the network will be enlarged to cover approximately 300,000 subscribers all over the island who have limited access to telecoms.

ZTE announced that its global sales of CDMA handsets have passed the 10 million mark. With its CDMA handset sales being deployed in more than 30 countries worldwide, ZTE has successfully established itself as one of the top global vendors in CDMA terminals and equipment arena.

“This means that ZTE has become the first Chinese manufacturer to break into the group of leading global manufacturers in a specific handset segment,” said ZTE Handset Division general manager He Shiyou. “This result is driven by the high quality of ZTE handsets, our ability to customise handsets for individual operators, and by ZTE’s successful international expansion.”

The ZTE Handset Division has managed the phenomenal growth in sales of its CDMA handsets by implementing a full-flow quality management process. This system maintains a strict focus on quality at every stage of the product life cycle – from development and design through sourcing, manufacture, assembly, logistics, product sale and after-sales service.

“This extraordinary sales growth of a single product range is unprecedented among Chinese CDMA handset manufacturers, and is a landmark that shows that Chinese handset manufacturing has achieved new world-level standards of quality control,” said Mr He.

Since the launch of the ZTE C150 handset in September last year, for example, global sales have passed three million units in just six months.

ZTE’s Handset Division is now implementing its full-flow quality control strategy across its 3G and multi-mode handset production systems.

ZTE is gaining a global reputation for its dual mode, dual stand-by technology. The company recently won a contract for supply of the ZTE H500 CDMA/GSM dual mode, dual stand-by handset to China Unicom as part of the operator’s ‘World Wind’ handset purchase. ZTE also recently launched the world’s first TD-SCDMA/GSM dual mode, dual stand-by handset.

Sales of ZTE’s CDMA terminals have increased continuously since the company expanded into international handset markets. More ZTE CDMA handsets were sold abroad than in China in 2005, with two million sold in India alone, and ZTE’s Handset Division was named a ‘Communications Ace’ by TATA, one of the two major Indian CDMA operators, in 2005.

ZTE Corporation announced that it has signed the worldВґs first commercial contract for construction of a CDMA2000 EV-DO Rev.A network. The agreement with Skytel, MongoliaВґs largest CDMA mobile operator, marks ZTEВґs achievement at becoming the first telecom equipment provider to have the capability to successfully deploy CDMA2000 solutions with EV-DO Rev.A for commercial use globally. The Mongolian network is expected to be complete by the end of Q3 this year.

Deployment of the next generation CDMA2000 EV-DO Rev.A network follows ZTEВґs establishment of a Mongolian office in 2002 and comes as SkyTel seeks to upgrade its existing CDMA EV-DO Rev.0 network. Based on ZTEВґs mature All-IP CDMA2000 solution which enables wireless data transmission, better QoS (Quality of Service) and improved data service applications, the new network will provide a significantly enhanced high speed data service throughout Mongolia.

“ZTE is a strategically important partner for Skytel,” said Mr. Erdenebat, President of Skytel. “This ground-breaking CDMA2000 technology, allows us to cost-efficiently pioneer 3G high speed internet and wireless data services in Mongolia. By improving the customer experience and introducing new services and applications, we hope to grow the business with a combination of new users and existing top-tier subscribers.”

Once operational, the CDMA2000 EV-DO Rev.A network will serve subscribers in a number of MongoliaВґs major cities including Darkhan, Erdenet and the capital Ulan Bator. Capable of enabling uplink speeds of up to 1.8Mbps and downlink speeds of 3.1Mbps compared with EV-DO Rev.0Вґs respective 153.6kbps and 2.4Mbps, the new network will support a wide variety of data rich multi-media applications such as video calling.

“The network is enhanced by adding EV-DO Rev.A channel modules to the existing CDMA2000 1X network. There is no need to make any change to the RF modules or the antenna feeder system,” said Mr Yujia Zhao, Marketing Director of ZTEВґs Mongolia Office, “This will minimize construction and maintenance costs for the operator while providing a firm foundation on which to build a sustainable wireless broadband market in Mongolia.”

Following a series of contract wins with Mongolia Telecom, the countryВґs biggest fixed line operator; Skytel, the countryВґs largest CDMA mobile operator; and government departments including the Information Communication Technology Authority (ICTA), ZTE is now the largest provider of telecommunications equipment in Mongolia.

ZTEВґs CDMA technologies are currently deployed in nearly 60 countries worldwide by over 100 operators with a global capacity of more than 30 million lines.