Telefonica SA

German spectrum auction to have four bidders

On 03.08.10, In Mobile, By Editor

www.WirelessFederation.com/news: All four established network providers of Germany are allowed to participate in the upcoming spectrum auction but no newcomers will be bidding. The announcement has been made by German federal network regulator Bundesnetzagentur.

An auction would be organized by the regulator for several spectrums in four bands which are not used any more by broadcasters or the military, including the most important spectrum, 800 megahertz band best suited to for fourth-generation networks.

According to Bundesnetzagentur, one interested party had expressed initial interest but has since withdrawn from the process, while another didn’t fulfill the conditions to participate in the auction. Details have not been divulged by the regulator.

The spectrum auction will start on 12 April at 1100 GMT, and the list of the bidders includes Deutsche Telekom, Vodafone PLC, Royal KPN NV’s E-Plus and Telefonica SA’s O2.

Telefonica might charge search engines for network use (Spain)

On 02.09.10, In Mobile, By Editor

www.WirelessFederation.com/news: Internet search engines might have to pay to the Spanish telecommunications giant Telefonica SA for the use of its telecommunications network.

According to Telefonica Chairman Cesar Alierta, search engines use their networks without paying them anything and internet searches from Web sites such as Google Inc., Yahoo! Inc. take up a big chunk of the bandwidth on telecoms operators’ networks.

56% share of Spain’s broadband Internet market had been occupied by Telefonica in the third quarter of the last year with about 6 million subscribers.

Tagged with: Europe • Google • operator • Spain • Telefonica • Telefonica SA • Yahoo

Telefonica to raise stake in China Unicom

On 02.08.10, In Mobile, By Editor

www.WirelessFederation.com/news: Telefonica SA has revealed that it wants raise its current stake of 8.37% in China Unicom (Hong Kong) Ltd. According to Telefonica Chairman Cesar Alierta, the synergies with Telecom Italia SpA are working out very well, and that the company is satisfied with the current situation.

Earlier it was reported that Telefonica was planning to bid for Telecom Italia, in which it now only holds an indirect minority stake.

Tagged with: ASIA • China • Hong Kong • Telecom Italia • Telecom Italia SpA • Telefonica • Telefonica SA

Telefonica, Telecom Italia merger: Bankers work on solution

On 02.06.10, In Mobile, By Editor

www.WirelessFederation.com/news: Merger of Spain’s Telefonica SA and Telecom Italia has been planned by a group of unnamed bankers by creating a new holding company controlled by all the existing shareholders of the two telecommunication companies.

Currently, 23% stake in Telecom Italia is controlled by its core shareholders.

There would have been no need for a full takeover of the Italian peer if the above proposal would have been implemented by Telefonica. However, the solution for Telecom Italia has not yet been identified by the bankers.

Tagged with: Europe • Italy • Spain • Telecom Italia • Telefonica SA

Telecom Italia proposal yet not received: Italy PM

On 02.05.10, In Mobile, By Editor

www.WirelessFederation.com/news: Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has not yet received any proposal or plan regarding the proposed merger of Italy’s largest phone operator Telecom Italia SpA and Spain’s Telefonica SA. According to Silvio Berlusconi, his government believes in a free market economy.

The Italian government has denied any involvement in a merger plan with Telefonica; besides making it clear that it had no contacts or meetings on the issue and hasn’t stipulated any condition for a possible tie-up.

According to Italian Minister for Parliamentary Relations Elio Vito, the Italian government would support the creation of an “ad hoc company” to include Telecom Italia’s fixed-line network which is considered a strategic asset for the country with the participation of all the main operators

Tagged with: Europe • Italy • operator • RIM • Silvio Berlusconi • Spain • Telecom Italia • Telecom Italia SpA • Telefonica SA

O2’s UK iPhone customers doubled to 2m

On 02.04.10, In Mobile, By Editor

www.WirelessFederation.com/news: Due to its exclusive deal with Apple, the iPhone customers of Telefonica SA’s U.K. business O2 has doubled to 2 million customers over the past year.

The deal also increased sales, customers and average revenue per user, and catapulted the operator ahead of rival Vodafone Group PLC into first place.

The iPhone is O2’s best-selling device, and sales have shown no signs of dipping since the two year exclusive iPhone deal expired in September.

Tagged with: Apple • Average Revenue Per User • Europe • iPhone • LTE • O2 • operator • Telefonica SA • UK

Telecom Argentina antitrust case halted by Argentina court

On 02.03.10, In Mobile, By Editor

www.WirelessFederation.com/news: Antitrust Commission ruling that Spain’s Telefonica SA’s ownership stake in Telecom Italia SpA violated the country’s competition laws has been thrown out by an Argentine court which in turn ruled that the CNDC, doesn’t have the right to order Telecom Italia to sell its shares in Telecom Argentina.

According to the decision, a federal court for the defense of competition must be formed to rule on the issue and it also feels that it’s truly a legal scandal that the law, passed in September 1999, that is over ten years ago, has not been complied with because of a delay from the executive power.

Tagged with: CNDC • Europe • Spain • Telecom Argentina • Telecom Italia • Telecom Italia SpA • Telefonica SA

Telecom Italia’s nationalization not on cards- Argentina govt

On 02.02.10, In Mobile, By Editor

www.WirelessFederation.com/news: Argentina government has made it clear that there are no plans to nationalize Telecom Argentina SA but will do whatever is necessary to force agreement with an antitrust commission order to end a monopoly in the local telecommunication sector.

According to Cabinet Chief Anibal Fernandez, the goal was never to nationalize Telecom, but to make sure that Telefonica complies with the order to sell the stake that it has to sell, like in any part of the world when there’s a monopoly.

Telecom Italia SPA has been ordered by Argentina’s antitrust commission, the CNDC, to sell its stake in Telecom Argentina, saying the local telecommunications market became a monopoly after Spain’s Telefonica SA bought a minority stake in Telecom Italia. On the contrary, Telecom Italia fought hard against the order and obtained a lower court ruling suspending the August 25 deadline of CNDC to sell the stake.

Later, European telecommunications lobby group ETNO urged the European Commission to intervene in the dispute and currently, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is also investigating the forced sale.

Tagged with: Argentina • CNDC • Europe • European Commission • South America • Spain • Telecom Argentina • Telecom Italia • Telecom Italia SpA • Telefonica SA

Telecom Italia to face moral suasion from Italy govt

On 01.30.10, In Mobile, By Editor

www.WirelessFederation.com/news: Italy government has expressed that the only way to stop the merger of Telecom Italia and Telefonica SA is the moral suasion of the shareholders of the former.

Telecom Italia which is Italy’s largest telecom group is considered an asset by the country’s politicians who are disgusted to see it fall into the hands of a foreign operator. But at the same time, the Italian banks owning stakes in Telecom Italia are unsatisfied with their investment.

According to Telecommunications Deputy Minister Paolo Romani, in case of a merger with a multinational company, it would be important to maintain some kind of Italian governance for Telecom Italia, which would be able to decide on how to prioritize investments.

Tagged with: Europe • Italy • merger • operator • Telecom Italia • Telefonica SA

Consumer fixed-line voice services offered by O2 UK

On 01.16.10, In Mobile, By Editor

www.WirelessFederation.com/news: In a major change in the strategy of Europe’s largest telecommunications company by market capitalization, Telefonica SA’s O2 , fixed-line voice calls will be provided to the residential customers by the company in the U.K by from March.

With this move, Telefonica joins BT and Carphone Warehouse Group PLC’s TalkTalk Group. Two home phone packages will be offered by O2 to its residential broadband customers, costing GBP9.50 and GBP12.50 a month, respectively.

According to Sally Chowdry, O2’s U.K. marketing director, the move is a part of part of the company’s strategy to evolve beyond mobile to a leading connectivity brand. However, O2’s competitors like BT and Carphone Warehouse’s TalkTalk have played down its entry citing that the U.K. market is already one of the most competitive telephone markets in the world.

Tagged with: Carphone Warehouse • Europe • O2 • Telefonica • Telefonica SA • UK

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