10,000th 3G site deployed by 3 UK
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: 10,000th 3G site has been activated by British mobile network operator Hutchison 3 UK this week with the connection of the 10,000th site in Shooters Hill, South-East London. The huge number is the result of the improved coverage provided to the existing customers besides the introduction of the service to new communities.
With the addition of the 10,000th site, the 3G population coverage in UK reached nearly 93% and there are hopes that the number of connection will reach 13000 this year.
The network roll out is accompanied by a new consumer-friendly policy designed to better advise people of their coverage opportunities and resolve issues if customers find they do not have coverage at home.
Through the Mobile Broadband Network Limited joint venture, 3 UK is in the process of consolidating its 3G network infrastructure with T-Mobile.
O2 apologize for snag in London network
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: The head of O2 has apologized for the problems the customers faced due to mobile operator’s London network being overwhelmed with bandwidth-hungry smartphones.The customers were disappointed with O2′s network performance in London since summer. However the company started experiencing major network difficulties during the second half of 2009 when
customers with Apple’s iPhone ramped up their use of applications that repeatedly pull data off the internet at short intervals.Without missing the opportunity Vodafone, the second largest operator is claiming that its network will cope far better with the growing number of smartphones.
According to the company the rising demand of data services on smartphones have caused difficulties in the O2 network. Many O2 customers could not make or receive calls and download material to their handsets because of the clogged network by smartphones
However the head of the company has assured that any short term blip in O2′s network Reputation will be addressed by three solutions. Firstly O2 has been working with Nokia Siemens Networks, its infrastructure supplier, on software modifications that will ensure it can better manage the combination of voice and data traffic on its network.
Secondly, the installation of 200 additional mobile base stations in London will increase the traffic load the network can bear.And thirdly O2 is liaising with handset manufacturers, including Apple and Research in Motion, maker of the BlackBerry, to learn about applications which might result into heavy demand on the network.
Telecom operators press for Brussel’s scrutiny
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: In order to to scrutinise the proposed merger of their UK mobile phone businesses, France Telecom and Deutsche Telekom are pressing for regulators in Brussels rather than London. The telecoms groups are
hopeful that European Commission’s inquiry would be shorter than one by UK competition authorities.
On the other hand, consumers feel that the proposed merger of France Telecom’s Orange UK and Deutsche Telekom’s T-Mobile UK, Britain’s third and fourth-largest mobile operators respectively will have a negative impact on the competition.
The two groups hope that Brussels will hold on to the case and the final say is of Brussels even if the UK authorities could ask the Commission to send the case to London. France Telecom and Deutsche Telekom are preparing the documents about the merger are under preparation and the companies may submit it to the Commission before Christmas, although it may not happen until January.
The length of the regulatory scrutiny will partly depend on whether France Telecom and Deutsche Telekom are willing to make concessions. Last month the two groups said they saw no need for major concessions, such as giving up valuable radio spectrum.
Time for British company Spinvox to go
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: When Spinvox, British voicemail-to-text Company was launched in 2003, it won acclaim for its innovative use of speech recognition technology and its future looked bright. Nothing was known at that time that the company once known as the rising star in the British technology companies will lose both its name and recognition within a few years.
US based Nuance Communications, a speech-recognition company is about to take over Spinvox, for US$150 million. The reason behind the turmoil in the company is accredited to the failure of some of the promising contracts with major operators.
Last year, the company was allegedly accused of using human intervention†rather than automatic translation of the voicemails. However, Christine Domecq, the founder of the company declined the allegations saying that human intervention is used only when the technology can’t get a fix on the spoken word.
Even after the controversy, Spinvox succeeded in signing deals with big telcos and mobile service providers like Telefonica in South America and Telstra of Australia. However, Spinvox munched its way through more than $150 million of backer’s cash and was close to collapse. Invesco’s, smaller Spinvox backer, market statement indicating that Spinvox was up for sale made the things worse.
Though Spinvox’s account for 2008 is still to be filed at Companies House in London, there is rumour that in the year the company lost some $80 million on sales of $15 million.
