Vodafone Idea expands Ericsson partnership to deploy cloud-native charging for postpaid

Extends collaboration to modernise billing systems and expand 5G, 4G capacity.

Vodafone Idea (Vi) has expanded its partnership with Ericsson to deploy cloud-native charging for its postpaid business and strengthen network capacity across India.

The operator will implement Ericsson’s cloud-native Charging platform to support and expand its postpaid subscriber base and provide them with better offers.

Ericsson becomes a pan-India supplier of online charging solutions for both prepaid and postpaid segments.

As part of the new agreement, Vi will deploy Ericsson Telco IT AI Apps, giving it more control and flexibility over its Charging platform and ensuring it can deliver reliable and efficient services to its subscribers.

The deployment builds on the 2023 migration of Vi prepaid subscribers to Ericsson Charging.

Vi will leverage AI applications including anomaly detection for charging applications, order fallout detection and prediction, capacity forecast for telco cloud stack and ntelligent usage analysis for charging to enhance service delivery, improve customer experience, and drive efficiency.

Vi’s chief technology officer, Jagbir Singh, said the simplification and benefits of cloud-native Ericsson Charging will help future-proof architecture, enabling the company to meet the demands of today’s digital environment and tomorrow’s 5G needs as Indians embrace this new era of connectivity.

Vi customers will gain access to real-time account information and advanced offers, helping Vi deliver world-class customer experiences leveraging AI to achieve operational efficiencies and drive growth, Singh added.

Allow Vi to launch new services

Vi will also replace legacy offline charging and rating systems with Ericsson’s Convergent Charging System.

This will help enable real-time charging for voice, VoLTE, SMS, and data services across consumer and enterprise segments.

The new system is designed to improve scalability, reduce operational costs, and allow Vi to launch news services faster, while preparing the network for 5G Standalone.

Ericsson’s CEO, Southeast Asia, Oceania and India, Andres Vicente, said the company is delighted with the expansion of collaboration by deploying Ericsson Charging to modernise Vi’s postpaid rating and charging functionalities from offline to real time rating and charging model.

The scalable, AI driven solution will help Vi modernise operations and expedite the deployment of next-generation services, Vicente added.

Since 2024, Ericsson has deployed new 5G and 4G sites for Vi, added layers to existing sites, and rolled out High-Performance Small Cell towers across 10 circles.

The next phase will include further site deployments, capacity augmentation, and coverage expansion to improve indoor coverage and enhance data capacity.

Ericsson’s convergent charging solution is compliant with TM Forum’s Open Digital Architecture and supports open APIs, enabling catalogue-driven product configuration and integrated charging and policy control.

The latest agreement further deepens the longstanding partnership between the two companies as Vi advances its network and IT modernisation roadmap.