Europe Intelligence Wire articles from June 2007

Europe Intelligence Wire archives from June 2007

Switzerland - Swiss unions are not happy witth Accarda sale.
June 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) The Swiss union for communication and transfair are not happy with the decision of Swisscom to sell its customer card division Accarda to the Maus Group. Included in the acquisition is the ending of the...

Switzerland - Quickline to launch digital TV services on 1 July.
June 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Swiss association of regional cable network operator Quickline is to launch digital TV and radio services on 1 July, enabling its members to offer triple play services (broadband, telelphony and digital TV)....

Germany - Majority of DeTe employees votes in favour - union.
June 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) The majority of members of German union ver.di have voted in favour for approval of the agreement between the union and Deutsche Telekom regarding the labour conditions for 50,000 customer service employees on...

Italy - One third of Italians acquire mobile content - study.
June 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) One third of Italian mobile telephony users acquire content and services for their mobile phones, according to a survey conducted by research institute Nextplora during Q1 2007. Music represents the content for...

Spain - Hispasat heads new HDTV project in Spain.
June 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Spanish satellite operator Hispasat is taking part in a new HDTV project called Palco HD, with the goal of supporting the expansion of HDTV in Spain. The project aims to resolve the practical interoperability...

Italy - EC approves Italian digital TV equipment aid.
June 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) The EC has ruled that subsidies for digital TV reception equipment granted by the Italian government in 2007 comply with EC Treaty state aid rules. The EC concluded that tax deductions worth up to EUR 40...

France - Satimo acquires Antennessa.
June 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) French mobile equipment emissions monitoring equipment manufacturer Antennessa has been acquired for an undisclosed amount, in cash, by Satimo, a larger French company operating in the same field. Antennessa...

Macedonia - Mobilkom appoints managers for Macedonian operations.
June 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Mobilkom Austria, the third mobile telephony operator in the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, appointed the company's executive management team tasked to carry out the preparations for the launch of...

Italy - Tiscali reviews articles of association, assigns options.
June 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) ISP Tiscali's board of directors has reviewed the articles of association of the company in light of recent law changes in Italy. The changes pertain to law 262/2005, Legislative Decree 303/2006 and Consob...

France - Deutsche Telekom closes EUR 465 million Club Internet sale.
June 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Deutsche Telekom has announced that the French anti-trust authorities concluded their review and approved the sale of internet business T-Online France to Neuf Cegetel. The sale of the ISP, which operates under...

Belgium - Belgacom accelerates HD plans.
June 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Belgacom is accelerating its plans to introduce HDTV services, writes De Tijd. The Belgian operator wants to be ready by the 2008 Olympics in Beijing for HD broadcasts. According to Belgacom TV head...

Germany - Motor Presse Stuttgart to offer daily mobile flatrate.
June 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) German publisher of car and motor magazine Motor Presse Stuttgart will introduce a mobile tariff that offers a daily flatrate for between EUR 1 and EUR 3 a day. The service is called auto-mobile and the...

Europe - Doro launches simplified handset for the elderly.
June 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Swedish manufacturer Doro has launched the HandlePlus 324gsm mobile phone, aimed at elderly people suffering from dexterity or demential problems. The 60 gram handset is equipped with only seven buttons and...

Finland - TeliaSonera Finland to offer lower mobile call rates.
June 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) The call rates for making and receiving mobile calls within the EU will fall, and TeliaSonera Finland will automatically offer the regulated rates to its customers as from 30 August. The regulation of the...

Austria - Mid European Partners will not change ONE's management team.
June 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Private equity investor Mid European Partners (MEP) sees no reason to change the management team of Austrian mobile operator ONE, which it acquired together with France Telecom for EUR 1.4 billion on 21 June,...

Europe - Air France, KLM start mobile check-in.
June 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Air France and KLM have started offering mobile check-in for select European flights. By the end of the year, the carriers expect to offer the service across their network, with additional features. Users need a...

Spain - Telefonica new multimedia public phones created by Siemens.
June 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Spanish operator Telefonica's new multimedia phone booths were manufactured by Siemens, reports El Mundo. The paper said the first new booths are up and running in some of Madrid's busiest streets such as Gran...

Netherlands - T-Mobile Netherlands cuts roaming rates.
June 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) T-Mobile Netherlands is cutting its roaming rates in the EU from 12 August. For calls from an EU country to the Netherlands, users will pay EUR 0.58 per minute, including VAT, while receiving a call abroad will...

Spain - Movistar 'overcharging' on My People plan - FACUA.
June 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Spain's largest mobile operator Movistar has overcharged some customers up to nine times more for its most advertised tariff, reports El Pais, citing consumer association FACUA. With the "My people" deal...

Switzerland - Broadband Networks to upgrade STAG's fibre optic network.
June 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Swiss local cable network operator STAG and Swiss broadband network builder Broadband Networks to upgrade STAG's fibre optic infrastructure for the last mile. After a pilot in the apartment block Rote Trotte,...

Czech Republic - EC, Czech govt end telecoms regulation dispute - report.
June 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) The European Commission (EC) and the Czech government have ended a dispute over the telecommunications regulatory powers of the UOHS Czech Anti-Trust Office reports the Czech News Agency CTK. The Czech...

France - Paris suburb joins Fon network.
June 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Massy Wireless, the Wi-Fi association of the Paris suburb of Massy, has acquired 100 Fon Wi-Fi routers that it will loan free of charge and install for residents later this summer. The association's founder...

Croatia - Telcro to become first Croatian MVNO.
June 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Croatian mobile operators T-Mobile, Vipnet and Tele2 are set to get competition, following the announcement of the launch of the country's first MVNO. According to daily Poslovni, the Telcro group has...

Germany - More than 60% of German managers expects succes in BRICS.
June 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) A clear majority (62%) of managers of large German companies expects to do successful business in Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (so-called BRICS countries), according to an international study...

France - Orange introduces quality charter for fibre to Paris flats.
June 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Orange France and Ile de France realtors' association FNAIM have established a quality charter for fibre deployment to blocks of flats in the Paris area. The charter includes respect for common areas,...

Germany - German WiMAX operators to offer mobile WiMAX before year-end.
June 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) The German WiMAX licence holders will receive approval to offer mobile WiMAX services during the course of this year, according to Rudolf Boll, a spokesman for the German telecommunications regulator BNA...

Spain - Spanish telephony operators in firing line over 902 numbers.
June 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Spanish telecoms operators are being taken to the High Court for charging customers higher phone rates for complaint lines. The Association of Internet Users has been pursuing the case against 902 numbers -...

France - Neuf Cegetel, Groupama form marketing alliance.
June 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) French insurer Groupama and Neuf Cegetel have formed an alliance to offer each other's customers their respective services under a three-year partnership agreement. Groupama will offer Neuf Cegetel customers...

Slovenia - EIB lends EUR 40 million to Telekom Slovenije.
June 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) The European Investment Bank is lending EUR 40 million to Slovenian majority state-owned telecoms operator Telekom Slovenije for infrastructure development. This is the first installment of a EUR 100 million...

France - Neuf Cegetel selects AOL for its consumer portals.
June 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) French alternative operator Neuf Cegetel has selected AOL as content and service publisher on its two consumer portals, www.neufportail.fr and www.cegetelportail.fr. AOL will also be in charge of selling...

Europe - Europe to have 30 mln broadband mobile users in 2011 - study.
June 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) The European mobile broadband market is forecast to reach 5 million connections by end-2007, according to a new report from Berg Insight. The market is being led by Austria and Sweden, with hundreds and...

Turkey - Avea opens new call cente in Erzincan.
June 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Turkish mobile operator Avea has opened a call centre in Erzincan, reports the Turkish Daily News citing company CEO Cuneyt Turktan. The CEO said Avea chose this city to avoid the traffic problems of Istanbul,...

Finland - Sonera repairs delivery system fault.
June 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Finnish operator Sonera's delivery system became faulty due to a human error. The system prematurely started automatic change and termination tasks on broadband and phone subscriptions of Sonera's fixed network...

Bulgaria - AIG seeks funding for BTC purchase.
June 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) AIG will borrow EUR 1.64 billion to fund its acquisition of the incumbent Bulgarian telco BTC, reports the Broadband TV News. AIG has agreed to buy 65 percent of BTC from the Icelandic entrepreneur Thor...

Europe - Nokia offers mobile photo printing services in Europe.
June 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Nokia has launched an integrated mobile printing service in Europe. The new Nokia service enables people to order high-quality prints from their mobiles over mobile or WLAN networks and have them delivered home....

Spain - Telefonica launches MOTO Z8 mobile phone in Spain.
June 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Telefonica has unveiled the MOTO Z8 mobile phone in Spain. The phone is the second launched by Movistar in 2007 as part of its strategy to offer the best mobiles to its customers. The MOTO Z8 will offered to...

Hungary - Magyar Telekom decides on further integration of group.
June 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Hungary's Magyar Telekom has held an extraordinary general meeting (EGM) to decide on further integration of the group. This involves the merger of the access business line business spun off from T-Online...

Portugal - Sonaecom acquires Tele2 Portugal for EUR 16 million.
June 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Sonaecom has acquired the operations of Tele2 in Portugal. COO Luis Reis said that the "acquisition of Oni and of Tele2 shows that Sonaecom is clearly a major competitor of Portugal Telecom in Portugal". The...

Germany - Deutsche Telekom names Brand Strategy director.
June 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Deutsche Telekom has appointed Audi manager Hans-Christian Schwingen to head the new Brand Strategy and Marketing Communication unit. From October 2007, Schwingen will be responsible for the development of...

Austria - Austrian mobile broadband services lack speed, quality.
June 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) The speed and quality of mobile internet services in practice is well below advertising claims made by mobile operators in Austria, according to the results of 690 individual tests of products from all...

Germany - Just 0.4% of Germans want to buy iPhone - survey.
June 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Just 0.4 percent of Germans say they will definitely buy the new Apple iPhone, even at a price of EUR 500-EUR 600 and with a 2-year contract, according to a survey by Marketing Partner. A further 2.9 percent of...

Germany - Fifty percent of Germans aware of iPhone - survey.
June 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) The new Apple iPhone device will be purchased in Germany mainly by school children, attracted by the integrated iPod music player, according to a survey for Accenture. Integration of a music player is an...

Germany - Smobil cuts starter pack cost by EUR 5 - report.
June 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) German discount mobile service smobil, operated by drugstore chain Schlecker, is cutting the cost of its starter pack by EUR 5 to EUR 9.99 from 01 July to 31 August, reports teltarif.de. The pack includes a SIM...

Netherlands - KPN introduces biometric USB stick.
June 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) KPN is introducing a fingerprint-protected USB memory stick. The Dutch teleocm operator is working with distributor Battrex on the introduction of the biometric product, the ThumbMax USB stick. Aimed at people...

Netherlands - Youth council advises Dutch govt on internet policy.
June 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) DigiRaad, an initiative for safe internet for young people aged 12-18, has met with the Dutch government's telecoms secretary Frank Heemskerk to discuss policy recommendations. Digiraad has advised that...

Spain - Jazztel says 20% of new ADSL customers at 3 Mbps.
June 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Spanish operator Jazztel says its new 3 Mbps internet offer is already a success less than a month after launch. The alternative operator said the new service accounted for almost 20 percent of new ADSL...

Italy - Eutelia completes acquisition of Eunics.
June 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Italian operator Eutelia has completed the acquisition from Finanziaria Italiana of 65 percent of ICT services group Eunics. As a result of the operation, Eutelia now owns all of the Eunics shares and in the...

Germany - Talkline offers free T-Mobile e-mail package.
June 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) German mobile services provider Talkline is allowing customers to test the T-Mobile e-mail option free of charge for three months. The T-Mobile e-mail option costs a flat-rate EUR 3.95 a month and runs on over...

Germany - T-Mobile Germany launches BusinessOptimal tariff.
June 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) T-Mobile Germany has launched the new BusinessOptimal tariff for business customers, announced in March. The new tariff is targeted at customer with seasonal requirements who tend to make different number of...

Germany - Mobile e-mail market to grow in importance - study.
June 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) The consumer e-mail and mobile phone markets are expected to merge to create a mobile e-mail market in the near future, according to a new study by German consultancy Eurospace. The study questioned 100...

Switzerland - Swisscom sells customer card business to Maus.
June 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Swisscom will set its wholly-owned subsidiary Accarda to Maus Freres Holding on 02 July. Accarda provides customer card services and customer loyalty systems in Switzerland. Its subsidiaries Billag and Medipa,...

Germany - Vodafone Germany, Computacenter unveil alliance.
June 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Vodafone Germany and IT services provider Computacenter have announced a nationwide sales and service partnership in Germany. This is the first in a series of agreements planned by end-2007 with the aim of...

Romania - Romanian regulator allocates new numbering resources.
June 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Romania's National Regulatory Authority for Communications and Information Technology (ANRCTI) has allocated new numbering resources to Orange Romania, RCS & RDS and F&L Cablu Sistem for the provision of phone...

Europe - Tennant deploys Dexterra mobile field service.
June 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Tennant Company has deployed a version of mobile business software company Dexterra's Mobile Field Service across its entire European organisation. The ServiceLINK product provides the company's field...

Spain - Yoigo keeps pace of 1,000 sign-ups a day.
June 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Spain's fourth mobile operator Yoigo says it is continuing to sign up 1,000 customers a day apart from on weekends, reports website Noticiasdot.com. In an informal meeting with journalists, managing director...

Europe - Axel Springer acquires auFeminin.com.
June 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) German publishing group Axel Springer has agreed to acquire 41.4 percent of Paris-headquartered European women's internet portal auFeminin.com from its three founders for EUR 32 per share in cash. The...

France - Bewan launches 200 Mbps powerline communications adapter.
June 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) French manufacturer Bewan has launched its second-generation powerline communications adapter, the Powerline E200. The device delivers up to 200 Mbps transmission speeds, or enough for simultaneous HD TV,...

Spain - Spanish internet users petition demands right to internet.
June 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Social and professional organisations are demanding the Spanish government protects the right to internet access in law. In a petition published on the webpage of the Association of Internet users,...

France - Orange plans commercial NFC service in Bordeaux.
June 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Orange France plans to launch a commercial mobile phone-based near field communication (NFC) service in Bordeaux by the end of March 2008, writes vnunet.fr. The company's director of mobile operations,...

Czech Republic - Telefonica O2 CR offers bonus packages to mobile users.
June 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Telefonica O2 Czech Republic (Telefonica O2 CR) has announced special bonus packages for new and existing mobile customers. They can choose from four types of packages: mobile internet access, O2TV mobile TV,...

Europe - Vodafone in talks for iPhone deal - report.
June 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Vodafone is in "heated" talks with Apple on a distribution deal for the iPhone in Europe, sources at the mobile operator told Dutch magazine Bright. The deal hinges on a number of conditions from Apple,...

Netherlands - ABN Amro joins bidding for Orange Netherlands - report.
June 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) ABN Amro's investments arm has joined the bidding for Orange Netherlands, according to postings on the site Telecomvergelijker.nl. The Dutch bank was one of the original investors in mobile operator Dutchtone,...

Belgium - Belgacom says football investment hasn't paid off.
June 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Belgacom's investment in broadcast rights for Belgian football has not been a sure success. The Belgian incumbent pays EUR 36 million each year for the rights, but the corresponding boost to its TV offering has...

Spain - Telefonica-Sogecable pact may need competition clearance.
June 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Telefonica and Sogecable's deal to market ADSL and pay-TV together may need the approval of the competition authorities, suggests Expansion. Spain's dominant telephony operator, which has around 1 million...

Europe - Equinix to buy IXEurope for GBP 241 million.
June 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Equinix subsidiary Equinix UK will buy IXEurope for GBP 1.25 per share, valuing the company at approximately GBP 240.9 million. The acquisition offer represents a premium of about 82.1 percent over the average...

Czech Republic - T-Mobile CR sets up t-music zones at hip-hop festivals.
June 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) T-Mobile Czech Republic (T-Mobile CR) is supporting a host of hip-hop music festivals across the country over summer 2007. It will operate special t-music zones at the festivals offering new and...

France - CSA to license more digital TV stations by year-end.
June 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) French media regulator CSA will launch a call for tenders by the end of the year for seventeen local digital TV stations, announced the body's chairman, Michel Boyon. Les Echos writes that the move will affect...

Germany - O2 Germany to offer MTV Music Pack for EUR 5 a month.
June 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) O2 Germany will expand its mobile music portfolio with the MTV Music Pack, available from 2 July. The MTV Music Pack will cost EUR 5 per month and includes downloading the full songs that are in the MTV Top 10...

Spain - Orange calls for Telefonica delay on 3 Mbps upgrade.
June 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Orange wants the Spanish telecoms regulator to delay Telefonica from upgrading ADSL customers to 3 Mbps claiming the move amounts to unfair competition, reports Expansion. Telefonica has announced it will...

Germany - Deutsche Telekom has to open last mile cable channels.
June 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) The German telecommunications regulator BNA has published the final regulation for local loop unbundling. Deutsche Telekom has to offer alternative telecom operators access to the last mile without...

France - Bouygues offers the Nokia 6110 Navigator phone.
June 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Bouygues Telecom is the exclusive distributor in France of the Nokia 6110 Navigator phone. The handset is being offered to all Bouygues customers, who will benefit from free and unlimited use of GPS service....

France - E-tera deploys Ekinops optical transport platform.
June 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Telecom service provider E-tera has deployed the Ekinops optical transport platform to expand its national IP-based network. The network has been in commercial service for several months now. In order to...

Spain - Spain accused of poor competition on universal service.
June 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Spain is being accused by the European Commission of breaching European telephony law on universal service, reports Cinco Dias. The Commission says many operators are wrongly being excluded from bidding for the...

France - TF1 chooses On2 3GPP software for social networking site.
June 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) US video compression software company On2 Technologies has won a contract from French broadcaster TF1 for its Flix Engine 3GPP products to provide mobile video support to TF1's WAT.tv social networking site....

France - Orange France, Gameloft to run mobile gaming tournament.
June 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Orange France has teamed up with Gameloft for to run the Orange Trophy mobile gaming tournament, now open to players from around the world. It is the second Orange Trophy contest, part of the Electronic Sports...

Switzerland - TIC, Actum partner to offer Hosted ERP services.
June 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Swiss business ISP TIC and Actum launch a fully integrated business software solution (software as a service) with Hosted ERP. The TIC and Actum Hosted ERP service enables location-independent access to...

Germany - Deutsche Telekom has to pay EUR 100 mln to telegate.
June 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) The Higher Regional Court in Duesseldorf ruled once again in favour of German directories service provider telegate in its battle against Deutsche Telekom. In the third and final partial proceeding over the...

Switzerland - Swisscom plans to launch bonds of up to CHF 900 mln - report.
June 27, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Swisscom plans to launch two bonds worth a total of CHF 900 million in two tranches worth CHF 550 million and CHF 350 million, according to Thomson Financial News. The CHF 550 million bond, which is due to...

Germany - Tele2 Germany's flatrate conditions are illegal - court.
June 27, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) The state court in Duesseldorf has declared two paragraphs from the contract conditions included in all Tele2 Germany telecom contracts illegal. The German federal consumer organisation vzbv had filed a...

Spain - Aragon Television launches HDTV broadcasts.
June 27, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Spain's Aragonesa de Radio y Television (Aragon Television) is conducting pilot High Definition Television (HDTV) broadcasts on the occasion of the Semana Internacional de Cine, Musica y Television de Alta...

Spain - Hispasat will not be acquired by Eutelsat - report.
June 27, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Satellite operator Eutelsat has given up its preferential right to acquire Hispasat signed in 2001, reports Spanish daily Cinco Dias. This development now opens the door for Abertis, who wants to buy a 46.6...

Netherlands - OPTA calls for more communication on customer transfers.
June 27, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Dutch regulator OPTA has published reactions to a recent study it commissioned on problems for consumers changing ISP. The watchdog found that many independent ISPS were not aware enough of the agreements made...

Netherlands - Talpa, RTL agree Dutch asset swap.
June 27, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Dutch broadcaster Talpa Media has agreed to an asset swap with RTL Group. Talpa's Radio 538 station and a number of TV assets, such as sports rights and successful Dutch shows and drama series, will transfer to...

France - Free signs FTTH deal with Montpellier city government.
June 27, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) The city of Montpellier, France, has signed an agreement with ISP Free to deploy an FTTH network delivering at least 50 Mbps symmetrical connectivity to end users. The company eventually aims to link over...