Ericsson scored big in its home country with a 10 year contract from Swedish broadcaster, TV4 Group towards operating the broadcaster’s nationwide playout services.

TV4 hopes to focus on its core business with this outsourcing contract.

"Through this contract between TV4 Group and Ericsson, we are securing our playout services and technical development for many years to come," says Jan Scherman, CEO of the TV4 Group. "The partnership also means that we will jointly develop the TV solutions of the future with Ericsson, a leading telecom and multimedia vendor. This will be beneficial for both companies."

Ericsson's Mikael Bäckström, Head of Market Unit Nordic and Baltics, says, "This agreement establishes Ericsson as a partner for media companies. This is a strategic step for us as we see telecom, media and internet converge. Beside the advantages of outsourcing for TV4, we see this as a way to learn from TV4's leading industry competence."

As part of the deal, Ericsson will also establish a joint technology and business development forum. Under this, the two firms will evaluate new business opportunities as TV4 Group develops its offering from standard linear TV to on-demand TV, giving viewers a more personalized viewing experience.

Till now Ericsson was managing playout services for Canal+ which was later on acquired by TV4.

The deal will result in 40 employees from TV4 Group shifting to Ericsson.