Nokia Siemens Networks is to buy customer-management company Apertio for about €140m, with the cash deal set for completion before April.

UK-based Apertio provides databases and software for managing customers on phone networks, including components such as the Home Location Register (HLR) and Authentication servers, all linked together with a customer record database.

Nokia Siemens is one of the largest suppliers of network infrastructure for mobile operators, and the acquisition marks a step up the value chain for the firm.

Apertio's products could also be integrated onto an Internet Multimedia Service (IMS) infrastructure, allowing Nokia to offer a turn-key IMS solution.

IMS is starting to look a little like the IPv6 of telecommunications: everyone agrees that it's the future of mobile and fixed telephony, but it's taking rather longer to happen than expected.

This deal could put Nokia Siemens in a good position to take advantage of the forthcoming IMS migration, assuming that migration really is happening. ®

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