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Wireless Federation » archive for 'telecom'

Telecom commences 3G operations for international roaming customers (New Zealand)

  • November 28th, 2008
  • 8:24 am

Telecom, New Zealand, much awaited 3G network commences operations for international roaming customers only. The 3G network has active coverage for inbound roaming customers in the Auckland CBD, Auckland airport and city-to-airport commuter route. Activation of similar coverage in Wellington and Christchurch will start by early 2009.The new W-CDMA network, which originally had to run by Christmas, has delayed to July 2009.
According to Telecom the 3G network will cover 97% of New Zealand and cost $547 million. CEO Telecom Retail Alan Gourdie said the roaming arrangements launched this week are with Telstra Corporation Australia and the Digicel Group who cover a range of Pacific Islands. Telecom is in talks for further international roaming agreements in order to offer subscribers 170 overseas destinations for voice and texting and over 110 destinations for internet data by June’09.
   

Telecom NZ invests $357 million in 3G roll out (New Zealand)

  • October 15th, 2008
  • 5:23 am

Telecom, New Zealand, plans an investment of $357 million in it’s 3G mobile services across the nation, which is yet to be rolled out. Telecom soughts to roll out it’s 3G services by June 2009, covering 97% of New Zealand.
The firm expects an increased total group capital expenditure of NZ$2.4 billion within next two years.

   

Vodafone New Zealand posts 18% rise in profits (New Zealand)

  • October 3rd, 2008
  • 11:11 am

Vodafone New Zealand posts a 18% hike in it’s profits as they rose up to a record $191 million in the year to March. Revenues rose by 10% to $1.5 billion.
Vodafone also agrees to pay a dividend of $742 million to it’s UK based parent company. With Government’s step to bring competition to the market has also increased Vodafone’s pre-tax profit margins to 15%.
According to the Communication Minister, David Cunliffe, he is encouraging the mobile operator to reach an agreement with NZ Communication, the upcoming third mobile operator, which will allow NZ Communications to rent space on Vodafone towers.
The Commerce Commission is evaluating whether to regulate the fees Vodafone and Telecom charge one another to terminate mobile calls on their networks, which could bring down the price of calls and texts across networks.
The government is also consedering a ban on “two-tier” pricing, under which allows the two operators to charge subscribers more for calling and texting people who are not on their networks, and lower prices for “on-net” calls.

   

Telecom to pay NZD40mln bill for TSO (New Zealand)

  • September 17th, 2008
  • 1:10 pm

Telecom New Zealand gets NZD40 million (USD26.5 million) bill to cover the cost of the telecommunications service obligation (TSO) for the year to end-June 2006. The country’s Commerce Commission proclaimed that the cost of the TSO for 2005/06 will be NZD58.2 million, with Telecom liable to pay around 69% of this. Besides Telecom, Vodafone and TelstraClear are the main contributors to help subsidise the cost of providing telecoms services in unprofitable rural areas. Recently, the Commission set the final TSO bill for the 2004/05 year at NZD52 million.

M2 and Black and White, gear up to compete with Telecom, Vodafone and TelstraClear (New Zealand)

  • September 8th, 2008
  • 7:19 am

The mobile users will now have a choice of five mobile operators as two new entrants are all set to make a mark. The Australian-listed telco M2 and locally owned start-up Black and White are geared up to join Telecom, Vodafone and TelstraClear in the $2.2 billion market.

M2 and Black and White will be supplying the connections through a MVNO agreement that M2 had struck with Vodafone last year. M2 will be providing back-end administration and billing for both services, but will compete separately.

TelstraClear has sold businesses connections to Telecom’s CDMA network since November, and last week extended its offering to subscribers.

According to M2 chief executive Vaughan Bowen says, the service should launch this month and with it’s target market being the small businesses with fewer than 50 employees.

M2 will not act as a “price slasher”, but will be offering a “more personalised engagement” than Vodafone or Telecom. An unique and unusual feature of M2 is that subscribers can receive a “phone and fly” rebate of up to 15 cents in the dollar on their telco bills, that they can spend on travel products offered through a sister company.

Additionally, there can be tax benefits to this arrangement in Australia if the rebates are classed as a gift from a supplier, but the appeal is mainly “emotive”, says Mr Bowen.

Black and White founder and ex-Telecom staffer Johnathan Eele is also expecting to begin with the promotion of his service within weeks. The British migrant promises to bring a fresh attitude and more “transparency” to the industry.

The 10-person company will be selling phones online and may differentiate by offering post-paid connections with no minimum contract term.

Black and White will bring some new phones to the New Zealand market, including the “light and functional” Nokia 6220c handset.

“I am getting a lot of feedback that people are looking to change, but moving from Vodafone to Telecom and vica-versa just hasn’t seemed to have delivered a lot.”he says, even though there are many options in the country.

Both M2 and Black and White will use the “028″ prefix, but subscribers will be able to port their Vodafone or Telecom phone numbers to either telco.

   

Montenegro has 1.22 million mobile phone users, double the population of the country (Montenegro)

  • August 14th, 2008
  • 9:54 am

According to the reports of Montenegro’s telecommunications agency, the country’s registered mobile phone users are nearly double the population. While Montenegro has some 620,000 citizens, the number of mobile phone users reached 1.22 million, by the end of June.

Montenegro has three mobile phone operators: the leader being Deutsche Telecom’s T-Mobile, followed by Norwegian Telenor’s Promonte and Serbian state-run Telecom.

   

NZ Communication to launch its Network soon (New Zealand)

  • August 6th, 2008
  • 8:33 am

NZ communication, formerly known as Econet has hold-up its highly awaited launch of its network until late next year. Only 50 cell towers has build yet, but requires 400 for its launch.  Eight years has been spent by NZ communication in an attempt to build a national mobile network and become the country’s third mobile provider. For appealing customers,they have signed a roaming deal with Vodafone that enables future customers to get coverage in areas its mobile network doesn’t cover.  They have failed to the deal where it could place cellular equipment on Vodafone and Telecom towers  known as mobile co-location.

According to Commerce Commission, Progress with mobile co-location is slow, and issued a draft standard-terms determination on the non-price terms for the service. Regulation wasn’t anticipated to be finalised until mid-to-late November. Precisely, this is counted as the reason why NZ Communications has delayed the network launch.

Telecom may quit Australia - Analyst (Australia)

  • July 28th, 2008
  • 8:30 am

According to an Australian telecommunication analyst, Telecom’s ailing Australia business has given up trying and will either reduce its presence there or leave the market altogether. Telecom had failed to provide sufficient investment or leadership to loss-making AAPT since it took a 100 per cent stake in the company in 2000. The acquisition cost Telecom $2.2 billion. After writedowns, it is carried on Telecom’s books at about $270 million.

Australian companies like iiNet and Internode had started a rapid land-grab of naked DSL customers, leaving AAPT as a bystander. Problems in merging AAPT and Powertel and minimal marketing and advertising had left the company with a diminished public profile.

The officials believe, the most likely option was for Telecom to cut its losses, start selling most of its Australian assets, and focus on serving trans-Tasman business customers.

Telecom considered selling AAPT in 2005. It said it received one offer and two joint-venture proposals, but decided to hold on to the company.

   

Telecom NZ makes first W-CDMA call (New Zealand)

  • June 11th, 2008
  • 2:11 pm

Telecom New Zealand says it has made the first live call over its W-CDMA 3G mobile network and that the new system is on track to be launched by the end of this year. Telecom says the W-CDMA network will complement its existing CDMA-based 2G and 3G system and has confirmed that it is committed to supporting its current network until at least 2012. ‘Customers will benefit from the strengths of both mobile network technologies and will be able to choose the devices and services that best suit their needs, without having to worry about what underlying technology platform it’s delivered by,’ said Telecom CEO Paul Reynolds.

   

 

 

New Zealand’s top carrier says earnings fall again

  • May 5th, 2008
  • 2:34 pm

New Zealand Telecom reported March quarter net profit fell 28% to NZ$140 million (€70 million), compared with NZ$195 million a year ago, an Associated Press report said.

Telecom said these continuing operations figures exclude its directories business Yellow Pages, which Telecom sold in March 2007 for NZ$2.24 billion (€1.1 billion).

The three-month result follows a 25% net profit fall in the prior three month period, ended December 31, the Associated Press report said.

For the nine months to March 31, net profit fell to $535 million (€269 million) from a readjusted $693 million a year earlier, the report added.

The company said its costs had grown in the three months ended March 31 and traditional call incomes had declined.

Labor costs jumped 23% to NZ$216 million (€109 million) and depreciation and amortization costs increased 17% to NZ$190 million (€95 million).

At the same time New Zealand calling revenue slid 10% to NZ$664 million (€334 million) as competition increased, interconnection revenue fell 10% and mobile revenue dropped 6%.

Telecom is in the midst of a government-imposed restructuring that has forced the company to split into three operating companies and open its network to competitors, the report further said.