Peru to launch M Banking in mid-2010
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: Peru will reportedly launch mobile banking systems from mid-2010, reports Felipe Tam, Chief of Peru’s Superintendency of Banking, Insurance and Private Pension Funds (SBS).
The project dubbed as M Banking, is being developed with the financial support of Inter American Bank for Development (BID). The BID has hired a consultant and we are waiting for the final inform,†said Tam.
RIM launches BlackBerry Curve 8520 in Latin America and the Caribbean
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: Research In Motion (RIM) today announced plans to launch the new BlackBerry® Curveâ„¢ 8520 smartphone in various countries across Latin America and the Caribbean, including Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Jamaica, Mexico, Panama, Peru and Venezuela. The BlackBerry Curve 8520 a new addition to the BlackBerry Curve series – is an incredibly approachable smartphone with plenty of easy-to-use communications and multimedia features to keep you connected and entertained on the go. It is expected to be available starting in early September, with specific dates varying from country to country.
For people who like to be connected, the slim new BlackBerry Curve 8520 provides easy mobile access to email, messaging (IM, SMS, MMS) and popular social networking sites (including Facebook® and MySpace) and features a highly tactile full-QWERTY keyboard for comfortable, accurate typing. It also features rich multimedia capabilities and easy access to music, games and other mobile entertainment apps.
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Nextel receives nationwide licence (Peru)
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: Peru’s Ministry of Transport and Communications (MTC) has reportedly extended Nextel Peru’s concession to allow the iDEN network operator to operate nationally. The nationwide concession is believed to be valid for 20 years, media reports. The MTC resolution stipulates that Nextel must sign the concession within 60 days of the publication of the resolution, or forfeit the licence.
Etisalat intends to invest in Sri Lanka
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: Etisalat, the UAE based mobile operator, is reportedly planning to make an investment in Sri Lankan telecoms market after a decade long ethnic war ends in the country. According a senior official at the middle eastern telco while his visit to the island will be meeting with various shareholders and the TRC.
“I’ve told the representative from Etisalat that Sri Lanka is open for investments into new or existing operations,” TRC director general, Priyantha Kariyapperuma said.
“With the war over in May, there is ample scope for investments into telecom services and infrastructure facilities, especially in the north and east,” he said.
Entel PCS selects Interactive Networks to offer Windows Live Instant Messaging Service (Chile)
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: Interactive Networks, Inc., (INI), a software provider of advanced instant messaging and value added solutions, announced that it recently launched the Windows Live Java service with Entel PCS, one of Chile’s largest mobile phone operators. Entel PCS is leveraging INI’s highly customizable messaging platform to fit the needs of its more than 6 million subscribers, who are among the first ones in Latin America to have the Windows Live Instant Messaging service adapted to their mobile phones.
Users can download for free Entel PCS’ Java-based application, which provides a superior, always-on connection to their friends and contacts. Entel PCS subscribers have 3 ways in which they can download the service: the first is to send a text message by typing Live†to 4444; the second is to access the service thru Entel PCS WAP Portal, or they can visit Entel PCS’ website. (more…)
Hits Telecom & Americatel place bid for Peru mobile licence
Hits Telecom, the Kuwaiti mobile operator and Americatel, the local telecom service provider have offered bids for the tender of Peru’s mobile licence in the 1900 MHz frequency band. The licence enables the provision of mobile telephony services across the country. The new licence will give entry to the fourth mobile operator in the local market, currently served by Claro, Movistar and Nextel.
According to the Agency for Promotion of Private Investment (ProInversion), the concession will cover a 20-year period. The licence winners will be announced on 15 July.
Citel develops plan to eliminate roaming fees in South America
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: The Inter-American Telecommunication Commission (Citel) has proposed a plan to eliminate international roaming fees in the region, creating a single tariff for mobile voice calls. “We started developing this project and we plan to establish several multilateral agreements between operators and supervisors,” said Guillermo Thornberry, President of Peruvian telecoms regulator Osiptel. According to Thornberry, a similar proposal was developed in Ecuador, enabling the unification of tariffs in an area covering the south-western city of Machala up to Chiclayo, in northwest Ecuador.
Movistar introduces ILD voice call promotion (Ecuador)
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: Movistar has introduced an international long-distance voice call promotion. The prepay and postpaid subscribers will be charged ECS 0.11 (VAT included) per minute for calls between 19:00 hours and 6:59 hours. The offer lasts 19th June. The discounted tariff applies to international calls to numbers in the Movistar network in Spain, Colombia, US, Peru, Venezuela, Argentina, Chile, Brasil, Mexico, UK, Germany, Guatemala, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Panama and Uruguay.
Peru mobile penetration stands at 75.8%
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: Peru will reach over 22.9 million mobile subscribers mark in June, with a mobile penetration of 79.3 lines per 100 inhabitants. Peru beat the forecast, which said a mobile penetration of 80% in 2011. Presently, the mobile penetration stands at 75.8%, up from 24.6% in 2006. Over the last three years, the number of mobile users has jumped by 223.6% to 21.84 million at end-March. The statistics shows that Peru has 747,235 internet subscribers and it is anticipated that figure will increase to 772,000 by June 2009.
