PLDT to introduces further foreign MVNOs (Philippines)
PLDT (Philippine Long Distance Telephone) is planning to introduce more MVNOs in other countries shortly.
The company’s subsidiary, PLDT Global is intending to hit the overseas Filipino worker market with MVNOs countries such as Macau, Taiwan, Guam, Malaysia, the US, and Saudi Arabia.
According to Alex Caeg, PLDT Global CEO and President, they are going to launch MVNO service in other countries very soon, especially in countries where the population of Filipinos are high.
The MVNOs will be operating under the “Smart 158″ brand. The company is also planning to increase the MVNO subscriber base in Hong Kong and Singapore by providing new products and services such as mobile remittance, broadband television, and reselling PLDT and Smart services.
M1, StarHub to offer iPad 2 from 20 May (Singapore)
Singapore’s two popular operators, M1 and StarHub will introduce the iPad 2 with Wi-Fi + 3G on 20 May.
M1 will offer the iPad with a two-year contract and will also offer prepaid data for the iPad 2. M1′s Data Unlimited plan is priced at $43.87 per month and offers the iPad 2 16 GB model for $399, the 32 GB version for $499, and the 64 GB version for $599. The plan provides unlimited data at a speed of up to 7.2 Mbps. A prepaid data SIM will be provided at $20 with 1 GB of data valid for 30 days.
StarHub is offering the device on a prepaid tariff plan for $848 for the 16 GB model, for $978 for the 32 GB model and for $1,108 for the 64 GB version. The prepaid offer comes with 2.5 GB of data valid for 60 days.
StarHub also offers the device with MaxMobile Ultimate plan, which costs $40.02 per month. The plan offers unlimited data at a maximum speed of 7.2 Mbps, and offers the 16 GB iPad 2 for $399, the 32 GB version for 499, and the 64 GB model for $599.
M1 selects Huawei for LTE launch (Singapore)
Huawei has announced that it has be chosen by Mobile One (M1) to deploy all the operator’s ALL IP GSM, 3G, HSPA (High-speed Packet Access) and LTE systems over the next five years.
According to Karen Kooi, CEO of the operator, they are building an advanced world class mobile network which will truly enhance the wireless internet experience for their customers, and cater to the increasing demands of future mobile devices and applications.
M1 has signed a five year contract, valued at $224 million, to include installation of macro base stations, distributed base stations and Evolved Packet Core, for M1′s network. Huawei will implement an end-to-end all-IP network to meet M1′s future requirements.
M1′s LTE network, which is set to be launched in the first quarter of 2012, will allow multimedia applications, such as video conferencing, high-definition content transmission, high speed video downloads and social network updates.
Thaicom sees Q2 loss to narrow (Thailand)
Thaicom PCL’s Chief Investment Officer Tanadit Charoenchan has stated that the company expects its loss to narrow in the second quarter from the US$5.5 million recorded in the January-March period.
According to Charoenchan, they still won’t be able to see a profit in the second quarter, but the size of loss will be substantially lower, possibly only half of the first quarter loss.
The company posted a loss in the first quarter because of low usage of its iPSTAR broadband satellite and the weak performance of its mobile phone unit in Cambodia, where competition is fierce.
He stated that however, earnings improvement is expected in the following quarters on the back of greater utilization of its iPSTAR broadband satellite. The company should swing to a profit in the third quarter and remain in the black in the final quarter.
He reiterated that the company will likely achieve its 30% revenue growth and return to profit this year after posting a loss of US$26.05 million last year. Thaicom expects to almost double iPSTAR’s utilization rate to 30% by end-2011 from 15.9% at end-March.
The company is 41.1% owned by Shin Corp. PCL, controlled by units of Singapore’s state-owned investment company Temasek Holdings Pte.
He added that earlier this month, the company secured a A$100 million five-year deal with NBN Co. to provide broadband services via iPSTAR to rural and remote areas in Australia. Including the NBN deal, iPSTAR’s utilization rate will rise to 19.28%.
The company is expected to start realizing revenue from the NBN project from the third quarter onwards.
Thaicom expects to conclude a satellite deal with a major Malaysian telecom operator soon.
Thaicom is currently negotiating with satellite manufacturers for the potential launch of a new conventional satellite, to be used mainly for broadcasting, at an estimated cost of around $150 million to $200 million. The company needs approval from the Thai government before it can conclude any deal.
M-banking surges as emerging markets embrace mobile finance – Research
A recent research has revealed that Global use of ‘mobile finance’ surged in the past year as the spread of new technology and mobile banking infrastructure drove a huge increase in take-up rates around the world.
In countries as diverse as China, Brazil and Kenya, the number of new users of mobile banking soared over 100 percent in 12 months as banks leapfrogged traditional service models and moved directly to mobile.
The increases were not restricted to emerging markets alone though. Take-up rates also surged in the UK, the US, Singapore, South Korea and Sweden, where banks offered customers new services via their mobile handset. In China, mobile banking is used by 25 percent of consumers, up 150 percent from 2010.
In the UK, the proportion of people using mobile banking increased from 9.7 percent in 2010 to 20.4 percent in 2011, while in the US the rates rose from 11.4 percent to 21.9 percent. In Sweden it was greater still: 8.1 percent to 20 percent.
And while adoption rates increased, desire for mobile banking in areas where it is not widespread is strong, peaking in sub-Saharan Africa, where almost two-thirds (63 percent) of mobile owners expressed an interest in mobile banking. Developed countries such as the US, Singapore and Hong Kong have made minimal progression in mobile wallet adoption over the past year.
The US moved from 6 percent in 2010 to 8 percent in 2011, Singapore increased from 10 percent to 13 percent and Hong Kong from 16 percent to 17 percent. In contrast, mobile wallet usage in Chile was below 1 percent in 2010, but has risen to 7 percent in 2011, just one percentage point below the US and higher than Australia (6 percent), France (5 percent) and the Netherlands (5 percent).
In China, mobile wallet usage grew by 133 percent to 21 percent of consumers, in Brazil by 122 percent to 20 percent and in Kenya by 150 percent to 25 percent. The financial services that capture the highest interest in China are paying bills (25 percent), getting money out of the bank (15 percent), and receiving wages (15 percent).
China’s usage of mobile wallet is already a considerable 52 percent above the global average and less than a quarter (23 percent) of Chinese consumers says they are not interested in mobile wallet.
208 operators in 80 countries currently investing in LTE- Report
A recent report by Global Mobile Suppliers Association (GSA) has revealed that around 208 operators are now investing in LTE, which is 98 operators more than in June 2010.
According to the report, the number of countries and territories where LTE systems are deployed or planned has increased by 32 in the same period.
The report confirms 154 firm LTE network deployments are in progress or planned in 60 countries, including 20 networks which have commercially launched. A further 54 operators in 20 more countries are engaged in LTE technology pilot trials or tests.
Taken together, it means that 208 operators in 80 countries are now investing in LTE. The report covers both LTE FDD and LTE TDD systems. The 60 countries and territories having firm LTE network commitments are Andorra, Armenia, Australia, Austria, Bahrain, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Croatia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong S.A.R., Hungary, India, Ireland, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Jersey, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Latvia, Libya, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Monaco, Namibia, Nepal, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nigeria, Norway, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore , South Africa, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Tunisia, UAE, UK, Uruguay, USA, and Uzbekistan.
LTE networks are launched in 14 countries, namely Austria, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Lithuania, Norway, Philippines, Poland, Sweden, USA, and Uzbekistan. GSA forecasts that at least 81 LTE networks will be in commercial service by end-2012.
SingTel to offer iPad 2 (Singapore)
Singapore Telecommunications (SingTel) wil be launching Apple’s iPad 2 with Wi-Fi + 3G from 14 May.
SingTel will offer iPad 2 Wi-Fi + 3G models with select tariff plans on a two-year contract, as well as a range of data plans for iPad 2 without a contract.
Under the Multi-Sim plan, customers can buy the 16 GB version for US$661.33, the 32 GB version for US$766.43, and the 64 GB version for US$871.53.
On a US$32.33 per month plan, the 16 GB model is priced at US$322.58, the 32 GB model at US$403.42, and the 64 GB version at US$484.27. This plan includes 50 GB of data.
SingTel ended Q1 with 403 mn mobile subs (Singapore)
SingTel group has ended its first quarter with 403 million mobile customers in 25 countries which rose by 37% year-on-year.
Bharti’s total mobile customer base reached 212 million from its operations across Asia and Africa with an increase of 66 percent, while its India mobile customer base expanded 27 percent to 162 million.
Telkomsel in Indonesia added 5.4 million mobile customers in the quarter bringing the total to 99.4 million and AIS in Thailand ended the quarter with 32 million mobile customers, increased by 8 percent year-on-year.
Philippines’ Globe had 27.3 million mobile customers, an increase of 14 percent and Warid in Pakistan had a mobile customer base of 17.8 million, up 9 percent from from a year ago.
In Bangladesh, Citycell’s (PBTL) total mobile customer base declined by 6 percent to 1.8 million due to a change in the regulatory definition of active customer base.
Optus in Australia saw its customer base exceed 9 million as the operator added 103,000 new customers in the quarter. The number of 3G customers increased to 5.09 million, a 41 percent increase from a year ago.
SingTel’s operation in Singapore achieved its highest quarterly postpaid net addition in ten years as the company gained 51,000 new postpaid customers. Total net adds for the quarter stood at 78,000 bringing SingTel’s total customer base to 3.31 million.
SingTel customer base passes 400 million mark (Singapore)
Singapore Telecommunications (SingTel) has announced that the Group – and
its subsidiaries – has achieved a new milestone by surpassing the 400 million mobile customer mark.
The Group served 403 million mobile customers in 25 countries as at 31 March 2011, an increase of 37 per cent or 110 million from a year ago. If you take into account the proportionate shareholdings in some subsidiaries
though, the real figure is just over 141 million customers.
India’s Bharti Airtel saw its total mobile customer base reached 212 million
from its operations across Asia and Africa as at 31 March 2011. This represents an increase of 66 per cent or 84.3 million from a year ago.
Bharti’s India mobile customer base expanded 27 per cent or 34.6 million from a year ago to 162 million.
In Africa, Bharti’s mobile customer base grew 5 per cent or 2.1 million
from a quarter ago. Bharti continues to focus on growing its customer base with ongoing network rollout and enhanced brand presence. With new competitive price offerings introduced in December 2010, Telkomsel added 5.4 million mobile customers in the current quarter. Its mobile customer base grew to 99.4 million, an increase of 21 per cent or 17.4 million from a year ago.
AIS’ mobile customer base grew 8 per cent or 2.4 million from a year ago to 32.0 million. Globe had 27.3 million mobile customers, an increase of 14
per cent or 3.4 million from a year ago.
Warid had a mobile customer base of 17.8 million, an increase of 9 per cent or 1.5 million from a year ago. PBTL’s total mobile customer base was 1.8 million, 6 per cent or 121,000 lower than a year ago resulting from a change in regulatory definition of active customer base.
Optus’ mobile customer base exceeds 9 million Optus added 103,000 new mobile customers in the quarter, through a combination of innovative offerings, continued focus on enhancing customer experience and ongoing network investment. Net additions for the full year were 570,000, representing a 7 per cent growth, bringing Optus’ total mobile customer base to over 9 million as at 31 March 2011.
The number of 3G customers increased to 5.09 million, a 41 per cent increase
from a year ago. This included a base of 1.28 million wireless broadband
customers.
SingTel achieves highest quarterly postpaid net additions in 10 years SingTel added 78,000 mobile customers in the quarter, bringing full year net
additions to 191,000 and the total mobile customer base to 3.31 million as at 31 March 2011.
SingTel continued to lead the mobile market with a market share of 44.8%. A record number of 51,000 postpaid customers were added in the quarter, the highest quarterly net additions in 10 years. The increase was driven by strong demand for smartphones and increased take-up of data SIMs, following the successful launch of integrated mobile broadband bundles in the quarter. SingTel gained 27,000 prepaid customers in the quarter.
The growth was led by positive customer response to new prepaid initiatives such as the 3G SIM card, data VAS and Blackberry VAS. Total prepaid mobile customers reached 1.53 million, a 2 per cent increase from a year ago.
