Orange Romania offers transport service payment via SMS (Romania)
Orange Romania customers can now pay RATB subscription valid for one day and SMS to 7456, and the price is $2.3 per SMS. Payment may be made from any mobile phone. To purchase subscriptions for one day all-lines of transportation, customers send an SMS with the text “A” in 7456 and will immediately receive a code confirming the transaction.
Code received will be kept on the phone all day long, until the expiry of the subscription. SMS payment system for public transport travel surface was implemented for the first time in Alba Iulia since December 2010.
Since January, Orange Romania, in partnership with Metrorex launched payment system and access to rail transport by using the number 1700. Also, Orange customers can pay via SMS, landscaped parking area at the Romanian Athenaeum in Bucharest and Bistrita city, Oradea, Resita, Satu Mare, Timisoara Tirgu Mures.
Telefonica signs network sharing agreement with China Unicom (Spain, China)
Spanish telecom operator Telefonica has reportedly entered into a strategic partnership with China Unicom, wherein both operators will use each other’s networks to expand their coverage. According to reports, the deal will provide Telefonica access to China Unicom’s network in the regions of Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, Australia, France and Sweden.
In return, China Unicom can reportedly increase its presence through Telefonica’s network in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Guatemala, Panama, Peru, Venezuela, Mexico, USA, Puerto Rico, Germany, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria Denmark, Slovenia, Slovakia, Spain, Estonia, Finland, France, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Morocco, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Netherlands, Czech Republic, Romania, Sweden and Switzerland.
Reports suggest that Telefonica believes this agreement will help both operators expand their capabilities to provide telecom services to various customers in different geographic areas.
Ericsson to open operation center in China
Sweden based provider of telecommunications equipment Ericsson, will soon be opening a new global network operations center (GNOC) in China. The new center adds to the three existing global network operations centers located in Romania, India and Mexico. Ericsson’s Global Service Center (GSC) in India currently employs more than 5,000 service professionals and houses the world’s largest GNOC.
Magnus Mandersson, Head of Business Unit Global Services, Ericsson, reportedly says that through this center they hope to secure their customers’ ultimate goal of improved consumer experience and efficient operation. Ericsson’s Chinese service center will provide a wide range of services such as customer support, network design and optimization, systems integration, network rollout and special event support, among others. The center is initially expected to employ 300 staff and grow to 500 within 3-6 months.
EU member states served notice to expedite implementation of new telecom regulations
25th May 2011 was the deadline set by the European Parliament and the EU’s Council of Ministers for the member states of the European Commission for full implementation of the new EU telecoms rules as part of their national law. Twenty of the EU member states have been sent information requests as to why they have not yet reverted with regard to the stipulated implementation of the telecoms rules.
Under the EU infringement procedures, the information requests are equivalent to letters of formal notice.
Under the ambit of the new EU telecoms rules, phones, mobile services and internet are taken into account with regard to rights of the consumers and businesses. The highlights of these rights comprise of customers being empowered to switch telecoms operators in just one day without changing their phone number, more transparency regarding the services customers are offered, in addition to securing their personal data online.
So far only seven Member States namely Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Ireland, Malta, Sweden and the UK have confirmed the Commission of full implementation of the rules; a majority of the EU member states having notified the Commission of implementation to certain extents while the legislative processes are continuing.
Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, The Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia and Spain constitute the twenty other Member States that are yet to respond to the letters of formal notice within two months, failing which or even not being convincing, the Commission stands to issue the concerned Member States, a formal request to implement the legislation. The second request will be the form of a ‘reasoned opinion’ under EU infringement procedures. Eventually, the matter will be referred to the Court of Justice of the European Union.
Vodafone looks to improve customer experience while roaming with latest roaming offers (Malta)
Vodafone announces new call and internet usage rates while roaming. The new offerings lets consumers pay at local rates outside of the local zone.
At the cost of $1.39, customers will now be able to take advantage of a 10 minute call while roaming as well as use 30 MB of data per day for $4.17. Vodafone is looking to bring to customers an enhanced experience at competitive rates.
Vodafone’s latest offerings are applicable in Vodafone networks across Czech Republic, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Portugal, Romania, Spain, and United Kingdom, in addition to roaming in Austria on Mobilkom, Belgium on Belgacom, France on SFR and Switzerland on Swisscom.
According to Daniel Grech, Business Marketing Manager at Vodafone Malta, Vodafone’s initiatives with regard to roaming are part of the bigger effort to provide customers the most competitive roaming rates as well as roaming service.
Romanian government supports Romtelecom, Cosmote merger
Romania’s Ministry of Communications and Informational Society (MCSI) minister Valerian Vreme has reportedly stated that the country does not oppose OTE’s recently made proposal to merge telecom operators Romtelecom and Cosmote Romania.
According to MCSI, it wants to list the shares owned by the government in the future company on the stock market one year from now.
As per Vreme, the Government will decide about the proposals made by OTE. He did not mention any information concerning Romania’s stake size in the company created through the merger of the aforementioned operators. OTE has a stake of 54.01% in Romtelecom, while the rest of 45.99% belongs to the Romanian Government.
Orange Romania begins MNP promotion
Orange Romania has started a promotion whereby customers who port their number to Orange and sign a two-year subscription for iPhone users get 50% more national minutes per month over the course of the first year of their contract.
Unused bonus minutes are not transferred to the next month. Customers can select from two types of subscriptions for iPhone, namely ‘Pantera pentru iPhone 29′ and ‘Pantera pentru iPhone 49.’ This promotion runs through 31 August.
Lebara introduces summer promotion in Spain
Lebara Movil, which is a MVNO in Spain, has introduced a summer promotion. Lebara will lower international mobile call tariffs by an average of 41% until 31 July.
Lebara customers can make calls to 233 country destinations. Lebara will maintain its 1 cent per minute offer for calls to Argentina, Brasil, China, Colombia, India, Nigeria, Pakistan, Peru, Romania and Venezuela.
National calls to fixed and mobile numbers will be charged 9 cents per minute. SMS are charged US$0.15 to national numbers and US$0.23 to international numbers.
Orange Romania launches rewards programme for prepaid subs
Orange Romania has introduced a rewards programme dubbed ‘Orange Phone Credit,’ whereby prepaid subscribers receive credit bonuses that can be used for obtaining discounts on purchased phones in exchange for topping-up by at least US$6.
The bonus ranges between US$0.6 for a top-up by US$6 and US$5 for a recharge of over US$15, depending on the recharged top-up value.
The first top-up of at least US$6 conducted in June brings customers registered for Orange Phone Credit a bonus of US$5.
Collected bonus credit can be used after six recharges carried out during a period of one year. Registering for Orange Phone Credit is possible at no cost by sending an SMS with the text ‘Telefon’ to 321.
