www.WirelessFederation.com/news: BSNL, the state owned telco, according to a local media report has shown interest in acquiring a 10%-15% stake in Kenyan mobile operator Essar Telecommunications Kenya (ETK), which provides services under the ‘Yu’ brand. A BSNL official reportedly confirmed that talks are on between the two companies, ‘Valuations are being discussed. We are doing the due diligence.’
On 07.29.09, In Mobile, By Editor
On 05.13.09, In Mobile, By Editor
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: Nar Mobile, the Azerbaijani mobile operator has introduced a new campaign dubbed as ‘Bring your friend’. The subscribers of Nar Mobile network who recommend their friends and closed ones to connect to Nar Mobile. The new subscribers connecting to the Nar Mobile network should send SMS with the text containing a Nar number of the subscriber who recommended to them.
As soon as the SMS is delivered, both the new and the recommender will get 60 free on-net minutes per month until year-end. The campaign will be valid for the new subscriber who recharges his/her balance once in a month through scratch card in any nominal and will run until 30 June.
On 04.09.09, In Mobile, By Editor
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: Zain Kenya and Essar Telecom Kenya, which operates under the brand name Yu, have inked a network sharing deal. According to the agreement, the two telcos will share about 300 base transmission stations for the next 15 years. The deal will boost Yu’s expansion plans of 2009. At present it operates on 101 base stations in Nairobi, and 18 in the coast.
On 04.09.09, In Mobile, By Editor
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: Mobile Industry of Kenya will soon see stabilised interconnection rates at KES 9, after the implementation of a fresh round of interconnection agreements. The rates are expected to fall by around 15%, the Communications Commission of Kenya (CCK) said it was mulling a proposal that would see new entrants to the market, such as Yu and Orange Kenya, allowed lower rates to enable them to gain a foothold in the highly competitive sector. CCK Assistant Director Susan Mochahe, reportedly said that the regulator was considering a proposal to have interconnection based on entry levels or market share. Mochache further said the move was inspired by the regulator taking a more proactive stance against dominant players who, new entrants say, are eroding their profit margins and locking subscribers to one network.
On 04.07.09, In Mobile, By Editor
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: Zain Kenya and Essar Telecom Kenya (ETK, previously known as Econet Wireless Kenya) have reportedly agreed to share network infrastructure. As per the deal, the two firms will share around 300 base stations for the next 15 years. ETK, which is operational under the banner ‘yu’ has over 100 base stations in Nairobi and is planning to expand its network nationwide by the end of 2009. The deal is going to benefit Zain by reducing base station operational costs, as well as strengthening its network coverage in the nation’s capital.
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On 04.02.09, In Mobile, By Editor
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: Yu, the Kenyan incumbent, has launched free SMS services for its subscribers. Yu CEO Srinivasa Iyengar has also announced that the name of the firm will be changed from Econet Wireless Kenya (EWK) to Essar Telecom Kenya (ETK). He further denied the telco’s intention of selling of its stake to MTN.
On 03.27.09, In Mobile, By Editor
www.WirelessFederation.com/news:Tigo, mobile operator based in Ghana and Research In Motion have introduced the new BlackBerry Bold smartphone to serve Tigo’s corporate subscribers in Ghana. The Blackberry Bold supports high-speed mobile broadband and features with integrated GPS and Wi-Fi as well as a set of multimedia and business capabilities. For organizations that manage their own email servers, the phone is integrated with Microsoft Exchange, Novell and other programmes and uses encryption and IT policy controls to enable secure, push access to e-mail and other corporate data.
On 03.16.09, In Mobile, By Editor
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: Yu, Kenyan mobile service operator has introduced a free airtime offer. When Yu subscribers will buy Yu-branded handsets, the Nokia 1208 and Nokia 2680, they will be given free Sim Cards and KES 900 worth of airtime spread over a three-month period. Yu launched its mobile service a year earlier; calls are charged at KES7.50 per minute (billed per second) across all networks.
On 03.14.09, In Mobile, By Editor
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: MTN Syria posted a subscriber base of 3.539 million at the end of 2008, experiencing a growth of 14% annually. The net additions slipped from 266,000 in H1′08 to 164,000 in H2′08. ARPU for the year dropped to USD 19 from USD 20 a year earlier. MTN saw a positive outcome interms of market share which grew to 46% at the end of 2008 whereas market penetration stood at 38%.
MTN intends to announce new tariff plans to attract more subscribers and forecasts net addition of 400,000 subscribers in 2009.