Apple iPhone’s VOIP to use 3G connections
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: Apple iPhone users can now use internet calling services over cellular networks. Earlier, VoIP calling has been available on the iPhone, but only over WiFi connections, which don’t have the range of 3G cellular networks. Apple has also vowed to get VoIP applications into its App Store.
Apple’s earlier decision to block a Google had triggered an enquiry into the competition in the wireless industry by the Federal Communications Commission.
It was revealed by AT&T that Apple wasn’t allowed to enable any Internet calling applications that use AT&T’s 3G network without AT&T’s permission.
Lebanon’s network privatizations postponed until end of year
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: The sale of two mobile phone networks in Lebanon which has already been delayed many a times is again delayed till the end of this year. US$7 billion was expected to be raised through this sale for the heavily indebted government, although valuations have fallen since the economic downturn.
10- Year Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) agreement led to the set up of Lebanon’s two operators in June 2001. However, the government controversially cancelled the BOT licenses held by LibanCell and Cellis which were not due to expire until 2004 and invited bidders to manage the networks on its behalf, and the concession was eventually awarded to Zain and Alfa.
Political turmoil in the country had led to the failure of network sales.
HSPA+ platforms tested by Huawei & Qualcomm
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: One of the industry’s first interoperability tests on dual carrier HSPA+ (High Speed Packet Access Plus) technology has been successfully completed by Huawei along with Qualcomm. The test reached a peak downlink data rate of 42Mb/s.
Mobile Data Modem MDM8220 chipsets of Qualcomm and HSPA+ platform of Huawei were used in this interoperability test. Two or more carriers could be used by Huawei’s HSPA+ solution to transmit data which results in the downlink data rate of 42Mb/s and which the company says also enhances spectral efficiency and provides capacity gains of up to 20%.
According to Wan Biao, President of Wireless, Huawei, achieving higher speeds is a constant pursuit for customers and their subscribers. As a customer-centric company, Huawei is dedicated to developing innovative technology and cost-effective solutions and services.
Record 68.8m phones sold by Samsung in Q4
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: 75% jump in the annual profit of Samsung Electronics has been recorded leading to a five-year high of 9.7 trillion won ($8.3 billion) on record sales of 89.8 trillion won.
Even the mobile phone shipment rose 31% to reach 68.8 million with a sevenfold rise in telecom income to about 990 billion won.
The potent performance of Samsung follows the results of competitors such as Apple, Nokia and LG Electronics as their shipments in the handset industry rose an estimated 10 percent, the first increase since the third quarter of 2008.
Class action suit lost by Vivendi
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: French telecommunications and entertainment group Vivendi has been found guilty by a New York court guilty on all 57 counts of misleading shareholders on its financial health between October 2000 and August 2002.
A statement has already been issued by Vivendi citing its disagreement with the decision and its plan to appeal on the grounds of court’s decision to allow French shareholders to join the US class action, its rulings on jurisdiction, and the plaintiff’s method of proving and calculating damages.
A maximum damages at EUR 6.6 billion, down from EUR 8 billion has been estimated by attorneys for the plaintiffs.
According to Vivendi, damages will be calculated at a later stage, on a per-share and per-day basis, and that it is impossible to know at this time the total number of shares traded by class members, the dates of the sales and the number of class members who will submit a valid claim.
16% rise in Etisalat’s net profit
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: With a rise of 16%, AED 8.83 billion net profit up from AED 8.51 billion in 2008 has been generated by UAE-based operator Etisalat in the year 2009. The profit also includes AED 892 million profits on the sale of shares in its Saudi unit Mobily.
5% increase in the net revenue rising to AED 30.8 billion and earnings per share to AED 1.23 from AED 1.18 in 2008 has also been recorded. The number of mobile users in the UAE exceeded 7.74 million lines in 2009, an increase of 6 percent against end-2008.
Telekom Malaysia’s HSBB network costs MYR 55 per port
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: In order to access the ‘High Speed Broadband’ (HSBB) network of Telekom Malaysia (TM), access seekers will have to pay MYR 52 to MYR 55 per port, depending on volume and contract duration and they will be given preferences on first-come-first-served basis. The project is a public-private-partnership between the Malaysian government and TM and includes an investment of MYR 11.3 billion.
Access seekers planning to offer at least dual-play services to consumers have been offered these ports in order to prevent resellers offering only broadband at a higher price without adding value to the network. The consumer retail service will be launch in March, in Bangsar, Shah Alam, Subang Jaya and Taman Tun Dr Ismail.
100,000 iPhones sold by Thai operator TrueMove
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: Over 100,000 iPhones has been sold by Thai mobile operator TrueMove and to celebrate this milestone, the company is launching a Valentine’s promotion. Discounts and special phone numbers will be offered as a part of the promotions if a customer buys two devices at the same time.
In the offer, the 8 GB model priced at THB 19,900 costs THB 18,800, the 16 GB model priced at THB 24,500 costs THB 22,900, and the 32 GB model originally priced at THB 28,900 is offered for THB 26,400.
Further sales of 120,000 iPhone 3G mobile phones have been targeted by the company.
Commnet Wireless & ZTE launch LTE trials
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: With an aim to build the network spanning parts of Arizona, New Mexico and Utah, equipment has been ordered from ZTE by US regional operator Commnet Wireless. ZTE’s core dual-mode CDMA/LTE platform to meet the service requirements of roaming subscribers will be leveraged by Commnet. ZTE’s LTE platform can also be customized for other bands such as GSM and UMTS.
Navajo Tribal Utility Authority and ZTE are in discussions for additional US Broadband Stimulus funding from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration.
Telecom NZ’s XT network to be reviewed
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: Telecom New Zealand will commission an independent review of the XT network due to its outage. Besides, the company has also started the work on improving capacity and design of the network.
Lower South Island is the most affected sites by the outage followed by disruptions in December. Customers significantly affected by the problems have been offered compensation by the company.
