Europe Intelligence Wire articles from June 2007

Europe Intelligence Wire archives from June 2007

Czech Republic - Vodafone CR adds two new handsets to portfolio.
June 1, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Vodafone Czech Republic (Vodafone CR) has added two new handsets to its portfolio: the Vodafone live!-enabled Sagem my411V and Motorola SLVR L9, both available from June. The Sagem my411V has a VGA camera, MP3...

Romania - Romanian regulator launches 6th telecentre tender.
June 1, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Romania's National Regulatory Authority for Communications and Information Technology (ANRCTI) has launched the 6th public tender for deployment of telecentres in 131 new rural localities in 29 counties across...

Germany - German regulator sends LLU proposal to EC.
June 1, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) German telecom regulator BNA has submitted its proposal for local loop acces regulation to the European Commission and the national regulatory authorities of the other EU Member States. The draft market...

Austria - T-Mobile goes on roaming offensive in Austria.
June 1, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) T-Mobile Austria has launched an aggressive roaming offensive, slashing rates for calls abroad. For EUR 10, customers can get 30 minutes of calls in 30 countries until 9 September, an offer the mobile provider...

Europe - TMG stops blocking ProSiebenSat1 acquisition of SBS.
June 1, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Dutch media concern Telegraaf Media Groep (TMG) and Lavena Holding 4, an entity controlled by funds advised by KKR and Permira, have reached agreements in which TMG is being granted an option to acquire a...

Spain - Vodafone, Alcatel-Lucent offer America's Cup mobile service.
June 1, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Vodafone and Alcatel-Lucent have reached a cooperation agreement to deliver the America's Cup Live Sailing service developed by Alcatel-Lucent in Vodafone's mobile portal. With the deal, Vodafone's mobile...

Denmark - TDC Hosting acquires UNI2 Denmark from Tele2.
June 1, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) TDC Hosting acquired IT services provider UNI2 Denmark from Tele2, strengthening its position as Denmark's largest hosting company. With this acquisition, TDC Hosting will control more than one fourth of the...

Slovenia - Telekom Slovenije signs co-operation deal with Microsoft.
June 1, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Telekom Slovenije has signed a long-term strategic co-operation agreement with Microsoft. The agreements covers the transfer of know-how and information services, value-added services, productivity and...

Greece - Broadband penetration in Greece lowest in EU - Reding.
June 1, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Broadband penetration in Greece was 4.4 active lines per 100 citizens as of January 2007, compared to a European average of 16.9 percent, according to figures given in a speech by EU telecommunications...

Ukraine - MTS Ukraine's revenues, profits show slight growth.
June 1, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) MTS Ukraine posted revenues of USD 351 million for the first quarter, up 11 percent from USD 317 in Q1 2006. The growth was slightly lower due to increasing competition and seasonal impact. MTS Ukraine...

Germany - Union reports 15,000 Deutsche Telekom employees on strike.
June 1, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) The union ver.di reports that 15,000 Deutsche Telekom employees were on strike on 30 May and it saw a total of 50,000 union members participating in the strike and protests supporting the strike. Deutsche Telekom...

Germany - O2 Germany wins 2 lawsuits on VAS number tariff increase.
June 1, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) O2 Germany customers have no extra-ordinary cancellation rights if the operator increases its tariff during the contract time, according to the Administration Court in Munich, according to teltarif.de citing...

Netherlands - Directory service 1850 and KPN in malfunction tiff.
June 1, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Dutch directory service 1850 is threatening legal action against KPN over technical faults it experienced in May. During a few days in May, 1850 was unavailable for many KPN customers as the network had technical...

Spain - Ericsson Spain grows 20%, 1,000 new jobs in 3 yrs.
June 1, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Ericsson Spain's managing director Ingemar Naeve said the firm increased sales 20 percent more in Spain in 2006 to EUR 912 million, reports Cinco Dias. Speaking to reports Naeve said Ericsson grew above the...

Netherlands - Pretium, KPN again in legal spat.
June 1, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Dutch operator Pretium Telecom has initiated legal action against KPN accusing the latter of misleading customers and slander. The companies have been involved in several other cases about slamming and libel....

Netherlands - User education essential in adoption of mobile services.
June 1, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Mirella Kleijnen has researched which factors consumers take into account when considering new mobile services and published the results in a PhD dissertation. Although 'risks' such as financial risk or the...

Spain - Telefonica's EUR 4 bln investment depends on regulation.
June 1, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Spain's dominant telecoms operator Telefonica has said it will invest EUR 4 billion on new fibre optic networks if regulation is in its favour, reports Expansion. In a conference for the telecoms sector,...

Netherlands - KPN picks Alcatel-Lucent to install IP Centrex system.
June 1, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) As part of its all-IP strategy, Dutch telecom operator KPN has selected Alcatel-Lucent as lead network integrator to design, deliver, install, integrate and maintain an end-to-end multi-vendor IP Centrex system....

Ireland - Domain registrar launches ENUM services in Ireland.
June 1, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) IENUM, 70 percent subsidiary of the IE Domain Registry (IEDR), has announced the launch of user ENUM services for phone number holders in Ireland. ENUM allows VoIP services to locate a person online, even when...

Italy - Telecom Italia prices EUR 400 mln floating-rate bond issue.
June 1, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Telecom Italia successfully priced a floating-rate bond issue for a total value of EUR 400 million and with maturity in June 2016. With this operation, Telecom Italia has taken advantage of favourable market...

France - 3Com wins French defence procurement agency order.
June 1, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) France's defence procurement agency, DGA, has bought switches, routers and other equipment from 3Com under the government's infrastructure modernisation plan, writes reseaux-telecoms.net. The three-year contract,...

France - Coriolis adds SFR network to business MVNO service.
June 1, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) French operator Coriolis Telecom has launched its business MVNO service over SFR's network. The convergent offer with fixed telephony includes subscriptions, services and equipment allowing professionals to...

France - Allocine to be bought for ten times its turnover - report.
June 1, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) French film website Allocine has agreed to be acquired for EUR 120 million, or ten times its 2006 turnover, by US investment fund Tiger Global, Le Figaro reports. Allocine expects to double its profit on a EUR 17...

Netherlands - Ericsson manages core and transport network for Vodafone NL.
June 1, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Ericsson has signed a five-year contract with Vodafone Netherlands for a managed services cooperation. As of 1 June, Ericsson takes over all engineering, implementation and operational activities in Vodafone...

France - La Poste chooses Orange Business Talk.
June 1, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Orange Business Services has deployed its Business Talk service for the French post office's technical assistance staff. La Poste technicians and experts of the mail technical department now benefit from...

France - Neuf Cegetel extends PC VOD to all customers.
June 1, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Neuf Cegetel is extending its video-on-demand service, already available on Neuf TV HD, to offer all Neuf broadband subscribers VOD access from the computer. Neuf broadband subscribers in unbundled and...

France - France wins 805,000 broadband subs in Q1 to 13.5 mln.
June 1, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) There were 13.5 million broadband subscribers in France at the end of March, up 28.9 percent versus a year earlier, according to telecommunication regulator Arcep. In the first quarter, 805,000 households and...

Germany - T-Mobile Germany offers free weekend call option for prepaid.
June 1, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) T-Mobile Germany offers its prepaid customers a free weekend calling tariff option called Xtra Weekend option. Xtra Weekend offers free calls to the German fixed network and the T-Mobile network during weekends....

France - France Telecom workers stay home to protest job cuts.
June 1, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) France Telecom/Orange unions claim that 40 percent of the company's 108,000 employees stayed home on 31 May in a one-day strike in a number of cities to protest against the group's job cut plan. Les Echos writes...

Europe - Reding elaborates on European telecom regulator.
June 1, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) European telecommunications commissioner Viviane Reding is set to introduce a new packet of directives related to competition problems, intending to give national regulators the power to dominant operators'...

Austria - HostProfis ISP Telekom reduces VoIP tariffs from June.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Austrian ISP HostProfis ISP Telekom is reducing its VoIP tariffs from June, affecting mainly its domestic tariffs for calls to fixed and mobile networks. Peak-time calls to fixed networks will fall from EUR 0.025...

Finland - 3i acquires 25% of Finnish mobile operator Finnet.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) 3i, private equity and venture capital company, has acquired 25 percent of the shares of Finnet (to be renamed DNA), Finnish mobile operator, for EUR 140 million. 3i's stake will become 13 percent after the...

Germany - T-Systems Media prepares for Muensterland DVB-T launch.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) T-Systems Media & Broadcast will turn off analogue broadcast antennas in Muenster-Stadt and Muenster-Baumberge on 05 June in order to prepare for the launch of DVB-T broadcasting services in Muensterland on 12...

Western Europe - W European FMC services worth USD 2.65 bln in 2011 - study.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) West European consumers are still unclear about the value proposition of fixed mobile convergence (FMC) services, according to a new study by IDC. The study examines the experiences of operators in Western Europe...

Bulgaria - M-Tel Bulgaria launches football fan competition.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Bulgarian mobile operator Mobiltel (M-Tel) has launched a unique game for its football fan customers featuring the 25 top goals scored by Bulgarian champions Levski. The game comes after the Levski team won their...

Czech Republic - GTS Novera extends Noveral DSL broadband promotion.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Czech nationwide operator GTS Novera has extended its Novera DSL broadband internet promotion. New customers can secure a 4 Mbps data rate for a fee of CZK 395 a month, the same fee charged for the 2 Mbps...

Croatia - Iskon offers ADSL plus 3 months of free calls.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) After increasing ADSL access speeds, Croatian telecom operator Iskon has launched a promotional campaign which gives all new Iskon.DUO users three months free phone calls. All users who sign up for the Iskon.DUO...

Czech Republic - Telefonica O2 CR reorganises O2TV channels.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Telefonica O2 Czech Republic (Telefonica O2 CR) will reorganise its O2TV channels into genre-based categories in June. These will be arranged according to popularity. It will also introduce eight new channels...

Europe - Siemens unveils Gigaset SL370, SL375 cordless phones.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Siemens Home and Office Communication Devices has launched the Gigaset SL370 and Gigaset SL375 cordless phones. Gigaset SL370/375 feature five-way navigation control and include hands-free operation, vibration...

Spain - Jazztel launches 3 Mbps ADSL, voice package.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Jazztel has launched a new ADSL service offering 3 Mbps speeds with free calls to national fixed-line phones and a unified bill. Those Jazztel users signed up to the 1 Mbps service, also offering free national...

Spain - Google to acquire Spain-based Panoramio.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Google will purchase Panoramio, Spain-based website that links millions of photos with the exact geographical location where they were taken. Panoramio is a community photos website that enables digital...

Bulgaria - Intracom Bulgaria signs three frame deals with BTC Mobile.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Intracom Telecom, through its subsidiary Intracom Bulgaria, provider of information and communications technology services in Bulgaria, has signed three frame contracts with Bulgarian Telecommunication Mobile...

Croatia - Optima Telekom reduces DSL prices by 50 percent.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Croatian telecom operator Optima Telekom has again reduced the prices for its broadband internet access service. This follows roll-out of unbundled local loop services in 40 cities, a trebling of its market...

Portugal - PT continues to loose fixed network market share.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Portugal Telecom (PT) closed the first quarter of the year with a 73.5 percent market share of clients with direct access to the fixed network, representing a 3 percentage point drop compared to the previous...

Greece - HOL plans re-brand, triple-play services.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Greek ISP Hellas On Line is planning a re-branding campaign from June and the launch of dual- and triple-play packages later this year. The comments were made in a presentation of first-quarter results by parent...

Finland - Sonera launches Easy Box for SMEs.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) TeliaSonera has launched the Sonera Easy Box, an integrated communications service for small and medium-sized enterprises. The Sonera Easy Box includes equipment and communications services such as PBX and mobile...

Germany - Mobile service for children, Toggomobile, is available.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) German mobile service for children including integrated location service for parents, Toggomobile has been launched. The service costs EUR 9.95 per month and the Toggomobile Welcom Kit including SIM card costs...

Germany - Freenet will fight against hedge fund break-up plans - CEO.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) German telecom services provider freenet will fight against a possible break-up of the company, according to CEO Eckhard Spoerr in an interview with German newspaper die Welt. Spoerr reacted to the plans of the...

Malta - Vodafone Malta launches Business Email service.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Vodafone Malta is rebranding its Wireless Push Email service as Vodafone Business Email, to better meet its business customers' needs. Apart from flexibility, with the new service, Vodafone customers can now...

Netherlands - Telfort offers EDGE customers opt-out.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Dutch mobile operator Telfort has bowed to pressure from the consumers union and offered its EDGE customers the possibility of ending their contract at no cost. The company is in the process of transferring...

France - Airis France unveils two smartphones, talks to Avenir.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Airis France, formerly the systems integrator of PC Partners and now a subsidiary of Spanish group Airis, presented two new smartphones at the Medpi 2007 show. Reseaux-telecoms.net reports that one of the devices...

Austria - ONE expands H.U.I. portfolio with WLAN router, voice option.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Austrian mobile operator ONE has expanded its mobile internet tariff H.U.I with a telephony option and WLAN router. The service was launched at the end of February and has attracted almost 30,000 customers....

Bulgaria - Vivatel announces two new promotions for customers.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Bulgarian mobile operator vivatel has launched two new promotions. The first promotion will see customers subscribing to the SIMpatia plan given a Ninja Turtle toy. The SIMpatia plan provides two SIM cards for...

Scandinavia - Birdstep wins mobile broadband deal from Nordic operator.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Birdstep has been selected by a major Nordic operator to deliver one common mobile broadband platform across all Nordic countries. By adding the remaining 250 Finnish mobile broadband zones to Birdstep's...

Poland - TP issues bonds worth PLZ 62.50 million.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Telekomunikacja Polska (TP) issued bonds with an aggregate par value of PLZ 62.50 million on 01 June. Mobile subsidiary PTK Centertel acquired PLZ 27 million of bonds with a redemption date of 15 June, PLZ 20...

Europe - Europeans go online 16.5 days a month - study.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) There were 122 million Europeans aged 15 years and over online on an average day in April, according to a comprehensive review of European internet activity by comScore. This compares to 114 million internet...

France - Arecep lifts France Telecom residential market restrictions.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) French communications regulator Arcep has issued a statement explaining its lifting of France Telecom's obligation on residential markets. The body said it was easing constraints on the incumbent to benefit...

Germany - Left-wing politicians put pressure on Deutsche Telekom.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) The leader of the German leftwing political party Linkspartei, Oskare Lafontaine has said that the CEO of Deutsche Telekom, Rene Obermann, should be dismmissed, in an interview with the Frankfurter Allgemeine...

Netherlands - Vodafone NL bows to pressure on data marketing.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Vodafone Netherlands has bowed to pressure from the Dutch consumers union and adjusted advertising for its mobile internet services. Descriptions such as "unlimited" and "as much as you want" for the data service...

France - Two groups threaten legal action over Kiditel GPS phone.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) French mobile safety associations Agir and Priartem have asked Orange France partner Car Telematics to withdraw its Kiditel mobile phone, aimed at the under-tens, from the market. The device, designed to sit at...

Germany - Union starts negotiations with Motorola on job cuts.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) German union IG Metall has started negotiations with Motorola Germany regarding the 900 job cuts and outsourcing of packaging and distribution activities from its plant in Flensburg, reports de.internet.com. The...

Germany - Arena, Premiere extend marketing stop of arena via satellite.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) German cable network operator Unitymedia and its broadcast subsidiary arena have agreed with German pay TV operator Premiere to extend the suspension of the marketing of arena via the Premiere satellite platform...

Europe - TCL expects profits after restructuring.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Following restructuring at its European operations, Chinese mobile handset maker TCL expects to turn to profit, Xinhua reports citing president Li Dongsheng. In 2006, TCL posted losses of about EUR 220 million in...

France - Paris district launches free Wi-Fi service.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) An 18-month free Wi-FI trial know as the Quartier Numerique (Digital Neighbourhood) has started operating in the 2nd arrondissement of Paris, under the auspices of the district council and IT association Silicon...

Germany - Blau.de offers travel voucher with starter package.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) German mobile discount service provider blau.de offers new customers a travel voucher with a value of more than EUR 100 in June. The promotion is for customers, who purchase a blau.de starterpackage including...

France - CSA authorises eight digital radio trials.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) French media regulator CSA approved eight digital radio trials at its 30 May plenary session, following a public consultation launched in October. The test services, which use various frequency bands, are...

Germany - MicroHoldings US acquires GDS.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) MicroHoldings US has completed the acquisition of Global Destination Services (GDS) in a transaction involving cash and stock. GDS is a carrier services company based in Frankfurt. In return for receiving 100...

Italy - Carrefour launches UnoMobile in Italy.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Retailer Carrefour will launch a new virtual mobile operator in Italy, UnoMobile, on 7 June, using the Vodafone network. The cost for sending SMS messages will be EUR 0.12, while the cost of a national telephone...

Denmark - TDC to lower mobile roaming rates in EU.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) By the end of August, Danish telephony operator TDC will lower the prices of calls made within the EU for all mobile customers. This decision was made as a result of a regulation which is expected to be approved...

France - French mobile TV services await EC decision.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Despite the readiness of mobile TV phones and broadcasting technologies, the advent of mobile TV service is still being held up in France, writes 01net in an interview with Bruno Retailleau, a member of the...

Croatia - Croatian ISPs team up against abuse by users.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Croatia's largest ISPs have signed an agreement to establish a joint working group to resolve security breaches and the illegal use of internet by their users. The Memorandum was signed by 13 ISPs - Amis...

Portugal - Alcatel-Lucent Portugal eyes double digit growth in 2007.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Alcatel-Lucent Portugal is seeking double digit growth in 2007, compared to last year, according to CEO Antonio Beato Teixeira. Speaking to Portuguese news agency 'Lusa', he pointed out that the company's...

Portugal - Anacom has failed to create competition - Apritel.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Portugal's national telecom regulator Anacom has a management model which is excessively dependent on the government and has not succeeded in creating competition in the communications market. This is the main...

Italy - Vodafone Italy tests HSUPA technology on UMTS network.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Vodafone Italy has launched its mobile internet network in the country, successfully completing the first data connection using HSUPA technology. The technology is an upgraded version of HSDPA and enables data...

Italy - RAI launches interactive WebTV portal.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Italian public broadcaster RAI has launched a new interactive WebTV (www.rai.tv) service which permits users to watch a selection of RAI programmes at any time and at any place. According to Rainet president,...

Europe - Talkline wants iPhone made available to all providers.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) German mobile services provider Talkline has written an open letter to Apple CEO Steve Jobs urging him to make the iPhone Apple handset available to all mobile network operators and service providers in Europe....

Germany - Samsung launches SGH-C260, SGH-M300, SGH-F500 handsets.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Samsung Electronics has launched two new entry-level mobile phones in Germany, the SGH-C260 and the SGH-M300. The SGH-C260 is suitable for those who use their phones exclusively for calls and who can do without...

France - New culture minister to focus on HDTV, VOD dispute.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) France's new minister of culture, Christine Albanel, has announced her intention to accelerate the deployment of HDTV, Les Echos reports. Albanel said that 'everything would be done to accompany the public media...

France - SFR unions call strike over call centre transfers.
June 4, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) French mobile operator SFR's unions have called on employees to strike on 5 June to protest the company's plan to outsource a quarter of its call centre staff, writes Les Echos. SFR announced in the last week of...

Germany - Deutsche Telekom workers on strike despite threats - Verdi.
June 5, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) German trade union Verdi claims that Deutsche Telekom workers are still striking despite threats from the company's management, reports de.internet.com. Verdi claims that around 2,00 workers are still on strike...

Germany - Deutsche Telekom seeks compromise with union - CEO.
June 5, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Deutsche Telekom is looking for the Verdi trade union to give ground in talks relating to labour conditions for around 50,000 workers that the company plans to transfer to new services subsidiaries, reports ddp...

Malta - Go mobile offers discounts on three live concerts in Malta.
June 5, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Go mobile is offering a MTL 7 discount for the Robert Plant, Smokie and John Mayall live concerts in Malta in July. Three-day passes to all the concerts in the event are available to all subscribers from all Go...

France - Third Pocket Films Festival set to launch in Paris.
June 5, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) The third edition of the Pocket Films Festival, organised by the Forum des Images, will take place on 8-10 June, in collaboration with Paris venue Centre Pompidou and mobile operator SFR, its founding sponsor....

Turkey - Digiturk plans IPO - report.
June 5, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Turkey's largest pay-TV platform Digiturk is planning to list its shares in Turkey and London, reports The Times. The company has appointed banks, understood to include Lehman Brothers and Credit Suisse, to...