Europe Intelligence Wire articles from September 2007

Europe Intelligence Wire archives from September 2007

Austria - 3 Austria expands mobile TV portfolio with 2 channels.
September 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) 3 Austria will launch two new mobile TV channels during the Medienmesse 2007. Partnering with US TV networks A&E Television Networks und NBC Universal Global Networks Deutschland, 3 Austria will offer The...

Germany - Deutsche Telekom to start auction for radio towers - report.
September 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Deutsche Telekom will launch an auction for the sale of its radio towers and mobile antenna's in the beginning of October, according to industry sources cited by German newspaper Handelsblatt. There are three...

Europe - Balda looks for buyer of European operations.
September 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Germany-based mobile phone parts manufacturer Balda will focus to an even greater degree on the growth regions in Asia and on the Touch segment. Balda Solutions Europe is also seeing a positive trend for 2007,...

Croatia - T-Com Croatia increases MAXadsl bit rates.
September 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) T-Com Croatia will automatically upgrade the bit rate of existing and new MAXadsl customers free of charge from 29 September. MAXadsl customers paying HRK 79 a month will have access to bit rates of 2 Mbps/256...

France - SFR unveils 'adjustable' tariff for business users.
September 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) French mobile operator SFR will introduce a new 'adjustable' tariff for business users on 03 October, targeted at professionals and companies with less than 10 employees. The tariff will be offered on a limited...

Norway - Trapeze, Dell enter into sales agreement.
September 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Wireless networking services provider Trapeze Networks has entered into a sales agreement with Dell Norway. In collaboration with Trapeze Networks' representative in Norway and channel partner, Move, Dell will...

Europe - Cardpoint, Alphyra boards agree merger terms.
September 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) The boards of cash point services provider Cardpoint and electronic payments group Alphyra have agreed the terms of a merger to create a leading consumer payments and cash distribution group in Europe. The...

Romania - UTI Systems wins Romanian number portability tender.
September 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Romania's National Regulatory Authority for Communications and Information Technology (ANRCTI) has started the implementation of phone number portability in the country. It has selected UTI Systems to implement...

Switzerland - Swisscom Broadcast wins Swiss mobile TV licence.
September 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Within the framework of a competition based on criteria, the Swiss office for communications Bakom is awarding the national licence for DVB-H to Swisscom Broadcast. The licensee is to provide the first mobile...

Switzerland - Swisscom IT Services wins IT outsourcing deal from Swiss.
September 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Swiss WorldCargo, the air cargo division of Swiss International Air Lines, has outsourced its new-generation cargo management system to Swisscom IT Services. Swisscom's IT division will be responsible for...

France - Moneo, Nokia pilot phone-based contactless payments.
September 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) University students in Besancon, France, will pilot a Nokia phone-based contactless payment system run by Moneo and the Franche-Comte division of Credit Agricole bank. Trial participants do not have to hold a...

France - Dangaard, GPDis, Vivanco top telecom wholesalers tables.
September 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Dangaard was judged to be France's top wholesaler of telecommunication products, according to an annual survey of retailer satisfaction by Journal des Telecoms. The company received a global satisfaction grade...

Spain - Spanish Football League referees to use Adeunis RF earpieces.
September 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Referees in Spain's Professional Football League will be able to talk to each other during matches through wireless earpieces, reports Cinco Dias. The league has bought 52 earpieces from French wireless radio...

Luxembourg - Cegecom wins regulatory ruling on EPT exchange.
September 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Luxembourg regulator ILR has ruled in Cegecom's favour in a complaint relating to incumbent EPT's planned closure of a copper network exchange in Kirchberg. Cegecom began the procedure in May, when it learned...

Spain - Aetic labels Redtel 'just a lobbyist'.
September 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Spain's largest telecoms association is unhappy about the country's four main operators forming what it considers to be little more than a lobby group, reports Cinco Dias. Telefonica, Vodafone, Orange and Ono...

Europe - Verizon Business launches Managed IP PBX in Europe.
September 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Verizon Business has announced the launch of Managed IP PBX services in 15 European markets. Verizon Managed IP PBX enables customers to outsource the design, implementation and management of their...

Spain - Internet use on mobile phones to rise 39% in Spain by 2010.
September 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) ARPU for data use on mobile phones will grow by 39 percent by 2010, according to a study on the Spanish market by consultancy Arthur D Little. The consultants predicted that average revenue per user for data...

France - France to create SME RFID centre.
September 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) The French government will create a technology centre to help SMEs adopt RFID technology, writes AFP. The state secretary for enterprises and foreign trade, Herve Novelli, made the announcement at the secure...

Netherlands - EPN starts virtual worlds platform.
September 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) The Dutch cooperative foundation EPN has started the Platform for Virtual Worlds, working with four universities. The aim is to encourage the spread of information and discussions on the development of virtual...

Spain - Ono boosts video club offer with hit latino soap.
September 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Spanish telecoms operator Ono is adding a hit soap opera to its video club. Pay TV customers will be able to watch any of the episodes of Pasion de Gavilanes (Passion of Hawks), a Colombian soap opera which was...

Poland - TP files fresh application for universal service subsidies.
September 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Telekomunikacja Polska (TP) has filed a fresh application with the Office of Electronic Communications (UKE) for subsidies related to the provision of universal services. It wants the regulator to reconsider...

Europe - Endemol creative director steps down.
September 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Peter Bazalgette will step down as TV producer Endemol's creative director from the start of 2008. Bazalgette will also step down from his position as chairman of Endemol UK, but will remain an adviser to the...

Austria - Mobilkom Austria to lower mobile data roaming fees.
September 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Mobilkom Austria's postpaid brand A1 will lower its mobile data roaming tariffs from 1 October. A1 Breitband Roaming Daily will cost EUR 15 per month instead of EUR 30 offering 30 MB mobile data after which...

Liechtenstein - Telecom FL offers DSL/telephony packages.
September 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Liechtenstein telecommunications operator Telecom FL has launched Connecta, a bundled telephony/DSL service portfolio. The basic Connecta subscription includes 3500/200 Kbps DSL connection plus 150 free minutes...

France - France Telecom hires Constanza, appoints Roussel.
September 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Tele2 founder Jean-Louis Constanza, who later moved to MVNO Ten, has joined France Telecom to found and manage Orange Vallee, a new entity chaired by group chairman and CEO Didier Lombard. Orange Vallee's aim...

Netherlands - KPN extends deal with Tekelec to expand signalling network.
September 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) KPN Global Carrier Services is extending its relationship with Tekelec. KPN is deploying additional Tekelec Eagle 5 Integrated Signalling Systems to expand its signalling network capacity and support Sigtran...

Switzerland - IWB to rename telecom activities to Baldata on 1 October.
September 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Swiss utilities provider IWB will start offering its IT and telecom service under the name Baldata, starting on 1 October. Since 2002 IWB has been active on the telecommunications market using the IWB Telecom...

Switzerland - Swiss mobile users are loyal, spend CHF 62 a month - survey.
September 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Swiss mobile users are loyal to their operator, with 75 percent never having changed operator and just one third that compared their subscription once a year, according to a survey by M.I.S. Trend for the Swiss...

France - Orange France, Apple still negotiating iPhone price.
September 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Apple and Orange France are engaged in difficult negotiations over the iPhone, according to a France Telecom executive. He confirmed to Les Echos an item in French business magazine Challenges that said that the...

Germany - Versatel Germany offers 4 Mbps for EUR 24.98 a month.
September 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Versatel Germany offers its 4 Mbps DSL package for EUR 24.98 per month during October. The package includes a DSL flatrate and is available via Versatel's webshop until 31 October of this year. Versatel also...

Macedonia - Cosmotelco, Nexcom risk losing WiMAX licencec.
September 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Macedonia's Agency for Electronic Communications (AEK) may take away the national WiMAX licences recently awarded to Greece's Cosmotelco and Nexcom Macedonia as they did not respect the deadlines set in the...

Germany - MoobiCent offers HSDPA 7.2 Mbps enabled hardware.
September 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) German mobile broadband service provider MoobiCent has started offering the newest version of the Vodafone PC-Express Card and USB Easy Box. Both mobile internet access devices are HSPA-enabled and can offer...

Germany - Debitel to offer Base Zero from 1 October.
September 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) German mobile service provider debitel will start offering the Base Zero tariff from 1 October. Base Zero offers a minute fee of calls within Germany, while sending SMS messages costs EUR 0.20 per SMS. Base...

Germany - More than 40% of children have seen mobile violent videos.
September 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) The majority of German children (93.1%) have heard of videos with violence or pornography for their mobile phones and 42.5 percent have seen such a video, while 5.4 percent said that they have or had such a...

Netherlands - Deutsche Telekom buys Orange Netherlands for EUR 1.3 bln.
September 28, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Deutsche Telekom has agreed to acquire Orange Netherlands from France Telecom for EUR 1.33 billion. The deal takes T-Mobile from third to second place in the mobile market in the Netherlands. The combined...

Germany - Female web use in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern grows - study.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) A total of 55 percent of women in the German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern are online, up from 41 percent in 2006, according to the results of the (N)Onliner Atlas 2007 from TNS Infratest and the D21...

Europe - Garmin launches pink navigation device.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Personal navigation device maker Garmin is introducing a limited edition pink version of its nuvi system. Aimed at women, the product will be available from late November in Europe. The device is the nuvi 250...

Germany - Ericsson outlines Backnang R&D plans.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Ericsson has informed employees at its site in Backnang, Germany, that it plans to develop the site into an independent research and development (R&D) centre. It has dropped plans to outsource the R&D centre...

Germany - E-Plus extends 'Zehnsation' tariff to include texts.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) German mobile network E-Plus will introduced a revamped 'Zehnsation' tariff on 01 October. Calls will still cost a flat-rate EUR 0.10 per minute, with customers also paying EUR 0.10 per text message to any...

Germany - O2 Germany to launch new tariffs for business users.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) O2 Germany will introduce new mobile phone tariffs for business customers on 01 October through its Business Systems division. These will include the new O2 Business-Flat-XL tariff for EUR 65 per month,...

Germany - Actix joins German 4G mobile broadband research project.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Mobile network performance specialist Actix has joined forces with two German mobile operators, German universities and network equipment vendors to research the future of mobile broadband. The Easy-C (Enablers...

Spain - Ibercom offers Spanish domain names an accent.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Spanish internet service provider Ibercom will allow businesses to register domain names containing Spanish characters. The operator which specialises in business customers said initially only customers who had...

Romania - Romanian regulator seeks single communications provider.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Romania's National Regulatory Authority for Communications and Information Technology (ANRCTI) has published a tender for deployment of a VPN and provision of electronic communications services via fixed and...

Romania - Romanian regulator announces telencentre tender winners.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Romania's National Regulatory Authority for Communications and Information Technology (ANCRTI) has announced the winners of a tender to install telecentres in 130 villages. The winners are Orange Romania,...

Greece - Greek govt questions Marfin on OTE intentions.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) The Greek government has met with Marfin Investment Group to discuss its intentions for telecoms operator OTE. Marfin recently acquired a 10.8 percent stake in OTE. The economy and finance ministry said in a...

Ireland - Xiam to manage ads on Vodafone Ireland portal.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Mobile content discovery and recommendation technology provider Xiam Technologies has signed an agreement with Vodafone Ireland. Xiam will manage the technical and commercial inventory of its mobile advertising...

Spain - Telefonica ups 2007 dividend by 25%.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Spain's dominant operator Telefonica will pay a EUR 0.35 dividend per share to shareholders on 14 November. In a statement to Spain's stock exchange regulator, Telefonica said its board had agreed the sum and...

Hungary - Telsey opens CEE regional centre in Budapest.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Italian communications equipment maker Telsey has opened a new regional trade centre in Budapest to strengthen its Central & Eastern Europe (CEE) operations, writes the Budapest Business Journal. The Budapest...

Portugal - PT considers DTT, satellite to expand TV offer.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Portugal Telecom (PT) is planning to launch its own pay-TV offer in three to six months time, according to PT president Henrique Granadeiro. Speaking to daily Diario de Noticias, he said that PT's offer will...

Czech Republic - Vodafone CR unveils increased roaming usage.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Vodafone Czech Republic (Vodafone CR) made 50 percent more calls while overseas this summer, with calls lasting up to one third longer, compared to summer 2006. Over 100,000 customers have activated the...

Denmark - IPwireless opens technology development centre in Denmark.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) IPWireless, a subsidiary of NextWave Wireless, has opened a development centre in Aalborg, Denmark. The centre will enable operator to provide TDtv, a mobile TV technology that uses existing 3G spectrum to...

Bulgaria - Globul celebtrates 6 years of operations, opens new HQ.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Bulgarian mobile operator Globul is celebrating six years of operation. It has invested over BGN 1.4 billion in the market and its network now covers over 99.8 percent of the population. It has established a...

Czech Republic - Telefonica O2 CR offers PC packages to SMBs.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Telefonica O2 Czech Republic (Telefonica O2 CR) has announced the new 'O2 Computer Solution' service for small and medium business (SMB) customers, available from 01 October. This is a complete package of...

Ukraine - Kyivstar unveils new Christmas tariff promotion.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Ukrainian mobile operator Kyivstar has launched a New Year promotion. Customers can subscribe to the new Christmas tariff plan between 17 November and 31 December. This costs UAH 5 per month and charges UAH...

Netherlands - T-Mobile opens 50th shop in Netherlands.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) T-Mobile is opening its 50th shop in the Netherlands, in Hoorn. The company has been building its retail network over the past three years and now receives on average 12,000 visitors in the shops each day....

Spain - Digital+ starts sales of iPlus receiver.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Spanish pay-TV platform Digital+ has started sales of its new satellite receiver iPlus. The new receiver, produced together with Thomson, includes recording and time-shift functions and a 160 GB hard disk to...

Italy - Pordenone to roll out city Wi-Fi network.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) The president of the Northern Italian Region of Friuli Venezia Giulia, Riccardo Illy, and the mayor of the city of Pordenone, Sergio Bolzonello, have signed a protocol for the realisation of an e-government and...

Netherlands - Dutch children using internet less - study.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Dutch children aged 6-11 are using internet less, according to a survey by marketing bureau Qrius. The percentage children using internet on a daily basis fell to 18 percent in 2007 from 28 percent in 2005....

France - Alice France signs music deal with VirginMega.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Alice France has formed a partnership with music superstore VirginMega and others, giving it access to 1 million tracks for the triple play operator's upcoming unlimited music service. Alice business and...

Netherlands - KPN rolls out ExperTeam service nationwide.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Dutch operator KPN is rolling out its ExperTeam service nationwide. The company ran a pilot in March in The Hague region for the service, which offers customers in-home support from ICT technicians, and has now...

Austria - Viennese mobile users are more trusting then other Austrians.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Viennese mobile users have more faith in unknown numbers then the rest of Austrians with 78 percent answering calls from unknown numbers compared with 73 percent of the Lower Austria users and 67 percent of the...

Netherlands - Rabo Mobiel partners with Park-line.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Dutch MVNO Rabo Mobiel has agreed a partnership with the mobile parking payments service provider Park-line. Park-line users call a special number when they park and leave a space to register the space they...

Germany - Tele Columbus offers triple play pack for EUR 34.99 a month.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) German cable network operator Tele Columbus has launched new services to support its new corporate design. For EUR 34.99 per month, Tele Columbus customers can order a triple play service offering 4 Mbps...

Eastern Europe - Seeker Wireless wins FMS contract in E Europe.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Zone detection technology provider Seeker Wireless and HP have announced that a major mobile operator in Eastern Europe has deployed their joint Fixed Mobile Substitution (FMS) platform to deliver virtual...

France - Orange Business Services helps AXA measure fleet risks.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Orange Business Services has joined forces with insurance group AXA France to help companies better manage road risk. For the first time in France, on-board information system data is used to assess the on-road...

Germany - O2 Communication Center users manage 13 mln contacts.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) O2 Germany's Communication Center was introduced one year ago and until now more than 13 million contacts are managed on the platform, while customers are sending around 3 million e-mails per month. The service...

Norway - Tele2, Network Norway build mobile network in Norway.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Alternative operator Tele2 Norway has signed an agreement with Network Norway to jointly build Norway's third mobile network. Tele2 Norway has purchased a 50 percent stake in AMI, owner of a GSM 900 licence....

Austria - VKI says mobile internet speeds less than advertised.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) The Austrian consumer protection group VKI is disputing the advertised speeds of broadband internet providers, writes the APA. The group tested 10 services at end-July, including five mobile internet services,...

Austria - Austrians use internet mainly for communications - survey.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Around 78 percent of Austrian internet users say they use the web for communications such as chatting and e-mail, writes APA citing an online survey by Austrian domain name registrar nic.at. The survey...

Netherlands - Groningen tests city wireless network.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) The Dutch city of Groningen will start on 3 October testing a city wireless network. Businesses and organisations will start testing various applications using laptops, PDAs, mobile phones and other equipment....

Austria - 3 Austria unveils fixed-rate mobile internet packages.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Mobile operator Hutchison 3G Austria (3 Austria) has announced a fixed-rate for mobile internet access. For EUR 7 per month, the 3Data Fix tariff offers customers 300 MB of data. This is enough to send 1,000...

Belgium - Proximus launches BlackBerry Curve, Pearl.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Belgian mobile operator Proximus has started offering new BlackBerry handsets from Research in Motion. These include the BlackBerry Curve 8310 with built-in GPS, media player, 2 megapixel camera and microSD...

Spain - Telefonica in firing line over commercial practice.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Spain's dominant telecoms operator Telefonica is under investigation for allegedly illegal commercial practice. Operator Ibercom complained to the regulator, the CMT, that Telefonica contacted one of its...

France - Club Internet users to view PC-stored content on TV.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) French triple-play operator Club Internet, now a Neuf Telecom subsidiary, will offer a service allowing customers to view PC-stored multimedia content on their TVs, writes French high tech magazine SVM. Other...

France - Tele2 Mobile France introduces two low-cost plans.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) French MVNO Tele2 Mobile has introduced a new range of plans for families who want the ability to limit members' consumption. The operator has introduced two 24-month plans, at EUR 16 and EUR 22.90 per month...

Finland - Salcomp rejects buy-out offer.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Finnish mobile charge maker Salcomp has rejected a buy-out offer from the Swedish investment company Nordstjernan, saying it undervalues the group. Nordstjernan recently raised its stake in Salcomp to over 50...

Switzerland - Connect 1144 merges with Swisscom's directory service 1811.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Swisscom's directory enquiries service 1811 and the operator service Connect 1144 can now be accessed on a single number: 1811. The current Connect 1144 number will be permanently disconnected on 30 September...

Croatia - Tele2 offers SMS for HRK 0.19.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Croatian mobile operator Tele2 is now offering users the possibility of sending SMS messages for HRK 0.19, which it claims is the cheapest price on the market. The new price for SMS messages is valid for users...

Spain - Telefonica extends voluntary redundancy deadline.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Telefonica has extended the deadline for its workers to take voluntary redundancy, reports Cinco Dias. Spain's dominant operator had initially set the deadline for the end of March but is now extending it, with...

Europe - Cosmote CEO resigns.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Evangelos Martigopoulos has resigned as CEO of Greek mobile operator Cosmote. In a statement, Cosmote's parent company OTE said the reason for the resignation was differences of opinion with OTE over Cosmote's...

France - Jet Multimedia, Neuf win national medical insurer contract.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) The French public health insurer CNAMTS has renewed its call centre management contract with IT and internet provider Jet Multimedia for five years. Once again, Jet chose Neuf Cegetel's infrastructure. The...

Europe - Colt unveils more details about next gen network.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) European business communications service provider Colt confirmed it is in final stages of vendor selection for its next generation network and expects to start supporting its first customers on the new platform...

France - Altice, Cinven place offer to buy remainder of Completel.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) Investment funds Altice and Cinven have placed their offer to buy all outstanding shares of French enterprise operator Completel at EUR 35.50 per share, announced French stock market regulator AMF. The funds'...

France - France to draft mobile phone consumer protection bill.
September 26, 2007... (From Telecompaper Europe) A roundtable discussion held by the French government, operators and consumer associations gave the government a chance to express its will to legislate on mobile phone contract lengths and the price of...