Nokia has signed a one-year frame agreement — valued at up to EUR 1 billion or $1.17 billion – with China Mobile to support the telecom operator’s transition to a future-oriented network infrastructure.

Ericsson, Huawei and ZTE are the other telecom equipment makers looking for similar contracts from China Mobile, the largest telecom operator in the world.

Nokia will provide technology solutions to enable a next-generation network for the age of the cloud and machine communications to China Mobile.

The Finland-based Nokia said it will provide additional elements of its mobile radio access and core portfolio in addition to fixed access, IP routing and optical transport, customer experience management, as well as its services expertise delivering the quality, speed and reliability for its wireless customers.

Nokia and China Mobile will conduct research and testing of the artificial intelligence (AI) and machine-learning capabilities of next-generation networks for the delivery of intelligent network optimization and radio resource management.

Li Huidi, vice president of China Mobile, and Hans-Jurgen Bill, executive vice president and chief human resources officer, signed the agreement.