Europe Intelligence Wire articles from May 2007

Europe Intelligence Wire archives from May 2007

Romania - Vodafone Romania launches 3G broadband service.
May 30, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Vodafone Romania has launched its new HSDPA 3G broadband service, offering mobile data connections speeds of up to 2.8 Mbps. The new 3G broadband service is available in 23 cities across Romania, covering 30...

Netherlands - Vodafone NL unveils DSL/VoIP services on Tiscali network.
May 30, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) As part of its mobile plus strategy, Vodafone Netherlands has unveiled broadband and VoIP services for consumers, called 'Vodafone Vast Bellen en Internetten'. Vodafone believes that consumers want to get...

Spain - ADSL access is difficult and expensive in Spain - ombudsman.
May 30, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Internet in Spain is rolling out too slowly and is too expensive, according to the ombudsman, reported in El Mundo. Enrique Mugica said complaints about a lack of ADSL internet access figured heavily in his...

Netherlands - Dutchman launches Wi-Fi router for unsecured networks.
May 30, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Dutchman Mark Hoekstra is launching a Wi-Fi router which makes use of unsecured networks. The Slurpr will choose six strong open networks and combines the signals into one signal to the user. The Slurpr router...

Netherlands - Dutch ICT experiment Kenniswijk did not meet targets.
May 30, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Dutch ICT experiment Kenniswijk has not met the planned targets, according to a report by the ministry of economic affairs. The Kenniswijk experiment was an initiative by the ministry of economic affairs to...

Germany - NeckarCom selects Motorola for WiMAX network.
May 30, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) German regional telecommunications provider NeckarCom has selected Motorola Germany to plan, deploy and integrate a 3.5GHz WiMAX network in the Ulm region in Baden-Wurttemberg. The first stage of the network...

Europe - EuNetworks wins dark fibre deal from Deutsche Boersche.
May 30, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) European data network operator euNetworks concluded an agreement with Deutsche Boerse for the deployment of private fiber networks in Europe. Deutsche Boerse Systems expands its communications network, which...

Spain - Vodafone Spain to probably launch DSL before March 2008.
May 30, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Vodafone Spain will probably launch DSL services within the current financial year, reports El Economista. Francisco Roman, head of Vodafone Spain, said the firm is continuing to weigh up its options in terms...

Slovenia - Telekom Slovenije starts giving back money to investors.
May 30, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Telekom Slovenije has started giving back some of the money to investors, in line with the Act on the Return of Investments in the Public Telecommunications Network. According to Slovenian news agency STA,...

France - French business MVNO market hesitates.
May 30, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) The French business MVNO market is hesitating, despite the growing success of the consumer equivalent, writes 01net. Only four business MVNOs have registered with telecommunication regulator Arcep, namely...

Europe - European operators could raise EUR 75 bln this year - study.
May 30, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) European telecommunication operators could raise EUR 75 billion this year without putting their financial health in jeopardy, according to BNP Paribas credit analysts. La Tribune writes that these would only be...

France - French VOD market to grow tenfold in five years - study.
May 30, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) The French VOD market is forecast to reach EUR 500 million per year by 2012, according to market research company Olivier Wyman. The market was worth only EUR 17 million last year, and is expected to hit EUR 56...

Europe - Skype shuts offices in continental Europe.
May 30, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Skype's managing director in France, Jerome Archambeaud, has left and the French subsidiary has shut its doors, following similar moves in Germany, Spain, Italy, Scandinavia and Poland. Les Echos reports that...

Greece - OTE fixed-line revenues fall 3.5 percent in Q1.
May 30, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Greek operator OTE generated total fixed-line revenues of EUR 660.9 million in Q1 2007, down 3.5 percent from EUR 684.7 million in Q1 2006. The year-earlier figure includes EUR 25.9 million in equipment sales...

Romania - Romtelecom Q1 net profit up 5.3% to EUR 19.8 mln.
May 30, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Romanian incumbent Romtelecom generated revenue of EUR 222.1 million for Q1 2007, down 0.4 percent from EUR 222.9 million in Q1 2006, according to results published by 54.01 percent shareholder OTE. Operating...

Czech Republic - EC approves municipal Wi-Fi network in Prague.
May 30, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) The European Commission (EC) has approved plans by the city of Prague to develop a municipal wireless network, concluding that the project does not constitute state aid. After initial competition concerns were...

Germany - Union puts pressure on Deutsche Telekom and government.
May 30, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) The union ver.di reports that more than 13,000 Deutsche Telekom employees participated in the strike on 29 May. The strike leader Ado Wilhelm denied media reports that the union and Deutsche Telekom are coming...

Czech Republic - Mobilkom CR orders Axesstel fixed/mobile phones.
May 30, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) US-based Axesstel has received a purchase order from Czech mobile operator Mobilkom for its PX310L fixed mobile desktop phone. In May 2007, Mobilkom launched a 450 MHz CDMA2000 1xEV-DO Rev A network across the...

Eastern Europe - OTE Group sees revenues grow 8.8%, net profit up 28.4%.
May 30, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Greece-based telecommunications operator OTE Group reports a 8.8 percent revenue growth during the first quarter to EUR 1.5 billion. In addition to solid organic growth, primarily generated by monthly rentals,...

Europe - j2 Global enhances voice services offering.
May 30, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Messaging and communications services provider j2 Global Communications has expanded its voice service into eight additional European markets. j2 will bring Onebox Receptionist and eVoice Receptionist to all...

Finland - Sonera upgrades 3G network to HSPA.
May 30, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Finnish operator Sonera upgrades the data transmission services in its 3G network with HSPA technology. The network has been opened in the province of Uusimaa, and the upgrade will be carried out in the 3G...

Spain - Banco Sabadell, Telefonica to develop instant bank services.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Banco Sabadell has reached a five-year agreement with Telefonica to develop 'instant banking' services. Banco Sabadel will invest EUR 57.5 million in the project. The two companies aim to offer banking services...

Germany - T-Mobile offers best HSDPA network in Germany - magazine.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) T-Mobile Germany provides the best HSDPA network in Germany, according to the results of a test conducted by 'connect' magazine. The magazine's test found that T-Mobile came top of the table with an average...

Hungary - T-Mobile Hungary launches vidUP video sharing service.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) T-Mobile Hungary has launched the vidUP video sharing and community building service in co-operation with mobile content developer M Factory. From 27 May, T-Mobile Hungary customers can use the site to watch,...

Lithuania - TEO offers online backup service.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Lithuanian telecommunications company TEO has launched the provision of an online backup service. By using this service, both business and private customers will be able to create backup copies of critical data...

Poland - Free-hotspot unveils free Wi-Fi access for Polish libraries.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Global free Wi-Fi operator Free-hotspot.com has launched an initiative to make free wireless internet access available in libraries throughout Poland. As part of this campaign, free-hotspot.com will donate its...

Sweden - Telia to set up triple play business in Sweden.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Telia aims to establish triple play business in municipal networks in Sweden, and also offer services through the coaxial networks of competitors. The company will compete on a number of market fronts,...

Belarus - Velcom signs new roaming agreements.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Belarusian mobile operator Velcom has signed new roaming agreements with Excelcomindo Pratama in Indonesia and du Emirates Integrated Telecommunications in the United Arab Emirates. Previously, Velcom...

Finland - Sonera offers fibre-optic broadband for EUR 22.90 a month.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) TeliaSonera has launched a new pricing model for private users of its ultra-fast fibre-optic broadband connections in Finland. If an entire housing community decides to buy fibre, users will pay EUR 29.90 a...

Italy - Telecom Italia wins SNAI tender.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Telecom Italia has won a tender to design and implement a broadband telecommunications infrastructure network for 5,092 SNAI gaming points. SNAI runs Italy's betting network. The Telecom Italia-designed...

Czech Republic - Telefonica O2 CR offers free access to Blesk.cz portal.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Telefonica O2 Czech Republic (Telefonica O2 CR) is adding more free services to its O2 Active mobile portal from June. Customers will have free access to the Blesk.cz mobile portal during June. From 01 July,...

Malta - Vodafone Malta reports lower ARPU, 186,000 customers.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Vodafone Malta saw its customer base decrease by 2,000 to end the financial year 2007 with 186,000 customers on 31 March, of which 89.9 percent is a prepaid customer. The total voice minutes in the fourth...

Poland - UKE outlines radio spectrum management policy.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Polish regulator UKE has published its regulatory statement on radio spectrum management. This outlines national policy for electromagnetic spectrum management which will apply over the next 2-5 years. The...

Finland - Sonera to transfer some units to Eltel Networks, Isoworks.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Sonera has agreed to transfer its installation and security service unit in Turku and Loimaa, Finland, to Eltel Networks and its small PBX services to Isoworks. Consequently, about 100 employees will transfer to...

Turkey - Cukurova to sue Alfa over debt repayment.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Turkey's Cukurova Group has filed a lawsuit against Alfa Telecom Turkey because Russia's Alfa Telecom will not accept repayment of all Cukurova debt owed to Alfa before they mature, reports TurkishPress.com...

Spain - Vodafone Espana sees full-FY revenue rise to EUR 6.64 bln.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Vodafone Espana had EUR 6.64 billion turnover in its FY to 31 March, up 13.3 percent from EUR 5.86 billion in the year-earlier period. Services revenue was EUR 5.99 billion, up 13.1 percent. Voice services...

Spain - ONO sees Q1 revenue rise to EUR 402 mln.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Spanish cable network operator ONO had EUR 402 million revenue in Q1 2007, down 4.2 percent from EUR 420 million in the year-earlier period. EBITDA was EUR 148 million, up 12.8 percent from EUR 131 million....

Netherlands - Dutch activities of Tiscali to be transferred to Green ISP.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) The sale of all Dutch Tiscali-activities, approved by the Dutch competition authority (NMa), will be followed by the transfer of these activities to a new private limited company. That is the content of a...

Italy - Vodafone Italia revenues drop 1.5%, 4.9 mln UMTS users.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Vodafone Italia saw its customer base grow by 13.8 percent or more than 3.3 million net additions year-on-year to 27.37.million at the end of its financial year 2007 on 31 March. Vodafone's Italian service...

Hungary - HTCC files amended financial results for 2006.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Alternative operator Hungarian Telephone and Cable (HTCC) has filed an amended and restated Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ending 31 December 2006, to amend and restate financial statements and other...

Ireland - Eircom Q1 revenue up 5% to EUR 490 million.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Ireland's eircom has announced results for the fourth quarter and 12 months to 31 March, with Q4 revenue of EUR 490 million, up 5 percent from a year earlier. Fixed-line revenue reached EUR 409 million in Q4,...

Germany - German download revenues grow to EUR 131 mln in 2006.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) German legal downloads increased to 31 million and the revenues grew to EUR 131 million in 2006 surpassing the revenue expectation of EUR 120 million, according to German federation for ICT and new media...

Poland - Multimedia Polska Q1 revenue up 8.3 percent.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Polish cable network operator Multimedia Polska has reported group revenue of PLZ 99.9 million for Q1 2007, up 8.3 percent from PLZ 92.3 million a year earlier. The main source of revenue growth was the...

Hungary - Magyar Telekom restructures T-Systems Hungary.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Hungary's Magyar Telekom, a Deutsche Telekom group company, has announces plans to simplify the organisational structure of its T-Systems unit. The move will cut the number of subsidiaries, while maintaining...

France - France tightens noose on P2P music.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) French government legal body Conseil d'Etat has tightened the noose on Peer to Peer music. It overturned the national commission on IT and liberties' (CNIL) decision to block access to files allowing music...

Germany - Deutsche Telekom CEO refutes threat allegations.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Deutsche Telekom CEO Rene Obermann has defended his company actions during the past weeks in an interview with the Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagzeitung. Obermann says that despite the public opinion and...

France - French mobile traffic rising faster than subscribers.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Mobile call traffic is rising faster than mobile customers. Call minutes rose by 15.2 percent and SMS/MMS traffic by 19.2 percent last year, while subscribers rose by 7.4 percent. Call traffic rose thanks to...

France - France adds 1.7 mln fixed telephony customers in 2006.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) The number of fixed-telephony customers rose by 1.7 million in 2006, thanks to the growth of broadband phone services, according to telecommunications regulator Arcep. The number of ADSL and cable telephony...

France - French telecoms market grows 0.7% to EUR 41 bln in 2006.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) French electronic communications revenue growth slowed to 0.7 percent last year to reach EUR 41 billion, according to French telecommunications regulator Arcep. The body has published its provisional industry...

France - Club Internet puts customer service quality barometer online.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Club Internet has put online a web page showing its customer service quality indicators for the last three months. The number of calls responded to within three minutes rose to 92 percent in April, from 82...

Netherlands - Huawei delivers prepay solution to KPN's Telfort.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) China's Huawei Technologies has recently signed a contract with KPN subsidiary Telfort. Telfort will procure the prepay solution of Huawei Convergent Billing Solution (CBS). Huawei CBS will help operators build...

France - Neuf Cegetel acquires Wi-Fi operator Ozone - report.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) French alternative operator Neuf Cegetel has acquired Wi-Fi internet service provider Ozone for what is thought to be around EUR 10 million, Les Echos has learned. Ozone, which sells subscriptions for EUR 18...

Germany - Vodafone Germany revenues drop, UMTS user grow to 3.7 mln.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Vodafone Germany saw its revenues for the financial year 2007 decrease by 4.9 percent to EUR 8.027 billion compared with EUR 8.437 billion in financial year 2006, due to a decrease in mobile termination tariffs...

Finland - Sonera to use Digita's wireles broadband network.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) TeliaSonera Finland and Finnish mobile, radio and TV network operator Digita have signed an agreement on the provision of broadband services in Digita's @450 broadband network. The agreement starts with a...

Romania - Vodafone Romania ends March with 7.95 mln subscribers.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Vodafone Romania generated revenue of GBP 722 million in the FY to 31 March, versus GBP 533 million a year earlier. EBITDA was up to GBP 340 million, from GBP 254 million, with adjusted operating profit up to...

Europe - Allmobility plans new brand for Germany, Dutch launch.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) German mobile service provider Allmobility wants to introduce a new mobile brand by the end of the third quarter of this year at the latest, according to Allmobility's director Jeroen Brouwers in an interview...

Turkey - Vodafone Turkey ends March with 13.90 mln subscribers.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Vodafone Turkey, formerly Telsim, added 1.15 million net new customers in the fourth quarter to 31 March for a total of 13.90 million, up from 12.75 million subscribers at end-December 2006. Pre-paid users...

Greece - Vodafone Greece adds 96,000 users in Q4.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Vodafone Greece registered 96,000 net subscriber additions in the fourth quarter to 31 March for a total of 5.05 million, up from 4.96 million at end-December 2006. The operator generated revenue of GBP 1.20...

Spain - Antena 3 to offer TV series on internet.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Spanish private TV channel Antena 3 has announced it will start offering services on the internet free of charge and integrally its new TV series. This is the first time a Spanish broadcaster has decided to...

Switzerland - ALSO reports higher revenues, net profit.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Switzerland-based ICT logistics provider ALSO increased its net sales by 120 percent year-on-year to CHF 1.198 billion in the first quarter of this year. The part of the group comparable with last year,...

Europe - MakeFriendsOnline mulls mobile service options - co-founder.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Friendship and dating website MakeFriendsOnline has hired website testing specialist Optimost to examine the suitability of its site for mobile services, reports NewMediaAge. Optimost is examining the...

Italy - Fastweb wants to launch mobile services, interested in WiMAX.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Italian broadband operator Fastweb CEO Stefano Parisi reiterated that the operator intends to launch a mobile phone service this year under a MVNO agreement, according to Italian daily Il Corriere della Sera,...

Austria - Tele2UTA to expand unbundled DSL network in Higher Austria.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Austrian fixed network operator Tele2UTA is investing to expand its unbundled DSL network in Higher Austria. The unbundled network will include 34 more switches up to 59 switches after the upgrade. The operator...

Spain - Iberdrola postpones launch of PLC service in Spain.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Spanish electricity group Iberdrola has postponed the commercial re-launch of its powerline communications (PLC) service to most of its customers in Spain, reports Expansion. The company first launched PLC...

Austria - Mobilkom austria to offer lower mobile data roaming rates.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Austrian mobile operator mobilkom austria has launched mobile data roaming tariff for its postpaid customers using A1. The roaming services will be automatically activated for all A1 Europedata, A1 Breitband...

Switzerland - Swiss mobile roaming fees to decrease to EU level.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Swisscom CEO Carsten Schloter expects that Swiss mobile operators will have to decrease their mobile roaming rates to EU-regulated EUR 0.49 per minute fee, because almost 80 percent of all Swiss roaming calls...

Germany - Callmobile offers starter package for EUR 1 until 31 May.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) German mobile service provider Talkline's discount service Callmobile offers its starter package for EUR 1 until 31 May. The package includes a prepaid SIM card with EUR 10 call credit and usually costs EUR 16....

Germany - Penny Mobil offers 2nd starter package for free.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) German mobile discount service Penny Mobil has launched a promotion for new customers. When customers order a Penny Mobil starter package, they can receive a second package for free. Penny Mobil's starter...

Germany - Kandy Mobile plans mobile service for children.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Munich-based company Kandy Mobile plans to launch a mobile service for children between 6 and 12 years old before the beginning of the new school year in September, reports German ICT news site Chip Online. The...

Portugal - Vodafone Portugal increases market share to 40 percent.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Vodafone Portugal has increased its market share in terms of telecommunications revenues to 40 percent in the first quarter of the year. During the first three months, the operator added 133,000 new clients,...

Portugal - AR Telecom to compete for DTT and WiMax licenses.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Portuguese telecom operator AR Telecom will compete for DTT and WiMAX licenses as soon as they are available, in order to expand coverage throughout the country, according to company president, Miguel Martins....

Spain - Spanish telecoms operators create Redtel association.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) The top telecommunications operators in Spain - Ono, Orange, Telefonica and Vodafone, have announced the setting-up of Redtel, the Spanish association of telecommunications operators. The new association will...

Germany - German SMEs to spend USD 37.7 bln on IT - study.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) across Germany are on track to spend USD 37.7 billion to boost their IT infrastructure and solutions this year, up some 5 percent over 2006 according to research by...

Portugal - PT supplies data centre services for Axa Seguros Portugal.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Portugal Telecom (PT) has been selected as the technological partner by insurance company AXA Seguros Portugal for the migration of its data centre, integrating it into a PT Data Centre. This operation...

Croatia - Croatia's Optima Telekom offers service for business users.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Croatian telecommunications operator Optima Telekom has introduced a VPN DSL communication solution for all business users that have their own virtual and corporate IP VPN network. The service enables...

Portugal - PT, Ydreams launch SapoHome in Portugal.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) PT Comunicacoes and Ydreams have launched an internet access product called SapoHome, which makes available a range of content from the Sapo portal via a tactile screen. This product is mainly aimed at the...

Netherlands - Most Dutch schools satisfied with ISP - study.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Most Dutch schools are satisfied with the services of their ISP, according to research by ICT op School (ICT in Schools) among 240 schools. On average school IPS score a 7.8 out of 10 and only 5 percent is not...

Spain - Digital+ launches decoder with hard disk, DTT and HDTV.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Spanish DTH operator Digital+ has launched a new digital decoder with integrated hard disk. The new device, named iPlus, has a 160 GB hard disk, permitting the recording of more than 80 hours of programming -...

Latvia - BITE Latvija opens outlet in Dobele.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Mobile operator BITE Latvija has opened an outlet in Dobele, which is the 50th BITE outlet in Latvia. The outlet is situated in the trading centre TOP at Muldavas street 3a. BITE Latvija has launched a special...

Netherlands - Vodafone Netherlands' YoY customer base shows small decrease.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) In the financial year from 1 April 2006 to 31 March 2007 Vodafone Netherlands reports an overall revenue of EUR 1,674 million. The underlying revenue increased by EUR 35 million, but due to changes in...

Hungary - Magyar Telekom's board proposes further integration steps.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Hungarian telecommunications service provider Magyar Telekom board of directors' has proposed further integration within the Magyar Telekom Group. The proposal is to integrate Emitel and T-Online Hungary's...

Latvia - BITE Group's revenues increase 17 percent in Q1.
May 29, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Baltic mobile operator BITE Group's revenues in the first quarter of 2007, reached EUR 46.8 million, up 17.2 percent compared to the same period in 2006. BITE Group's EBITDA reached EUR 8.3 million, an increase...

Netherlands - France Telecom starts talks with Orange NL workers.
May 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) France Telecom has started discussions with Orange Netherlands' work councils, as required under Dutch law. This was precipitated by expressions of interest and offers for all or part of the share capital of...

Croatia - Croatel launches DVB-T multiplex in Zagreb.
May 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Croatian telecom services provider Croatel has initiated test broadcasts of its own digital terrestrial TV platform (DVB-T) in H.264 MPEG-4 AVC technology which carries 5 SDTV (Standard Definition) channels and...