ZTE heads to Timbuktu

Chinese equipment manufacturer ZTE has snagged a contract from Societe des Telecommunications du Mali (Sotelma) to roll out a wireless in the local loop (WiLL) network that will extend to one of the most remote places on earth – Timbuktu. Under the terms of the deal, the value of which has not been revealed, ZTE will install CDMA2000 1X WiLL technology in a number of Malian cities including Mopti, Segou, Sikasso as well as Timbuktu. The new infrastructure will be an expansion of a 6,000-line network that ZTE installed in the capital, Bamako, last year.