Wireless Asia articles from July 2003

Wireless Asia archives from July 2003

Wireless revenge of the telecom giants.(Unwired)
July 1, 2003... Just when you thought the mobile industry had gone beyond mere price, we're seeing the return of the old-fashioned price war. In developing markets in particular, it's a sign of things to come. That's because the competitive threat doesn't...

Far EasTone and KG lead Taiwan shakeout.(News Analysis)(Far EasTone Telecommunications Ltd. and KG Telecom)(Taiwan Cellular leads in market share)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... In an overdue consolidation of the world's officially most-saturated mobile market, Taiwan's third and fourth largest operators have merged. Far EasTone will acquire KG Telecom for $876 million in cash and shares, reducing the number of...

First Pacific sees Smart as regional expansion springboard.(News Analysis)
July 1, 2003... Hong Kong-based holding firm First Pacific, the controlling stakeholder in Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co (PLDT), plans to buy into several telecommunications companies in Asia as part of its strategy to become a dominant regional telco...

802.11 a ready for action following 5-GHz allocations.(News Analysis)
July 1, 2003... The Wi-Fi industry got a welcome boost from the latest World Radiocommunication Conference in Geneva, which wrapped up in early July with an agreement to allocate more bandwidth in the 5 GHz spectrum bend for 54-Mbps 802.11a technology. ...

Premium SMS.(Insight: one month's wireless research)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Premium SMS can have a positive impact on average margin per user (AMPU), despite the vastly lower traffic volume compared with standard SMS, says Shosteck. But as the market moves toward more complex forms of non-voice services like MMS,...

Crossroads for Euro cellcos.(Insight: one month's wireless research)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... European subscriber growth will slump to 3% in 2008, a result of saturation and flat population growth, Forrester predicts. In the next 20 years, the shape of European cellular will change as a result of changing population patterns, with...

Dangers of wireless horizontals.(Insight: one month's wireless research)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Cellcos and handset vendors are deliberately bucking the trend to "horizontalization" and instead are trying to build vertical positions in the value-added mobile space, says Ovum. This is throwing them into direct competition with software...

Pricing still the bottleneck.(Insight: one month's wireless research)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Pricing remains the bottleneck to demand for 2.5G and 3G mobile media services, says Strategy Analytics. However, while European operators have been moving in the right direction by selling GPRS on a pay-per-use basis, these packages mostly...

The international Wi-Fi group Wireless Broadband Alliance begins roaming trials in 300 hotspots across Asia.(Movements)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... The international Wi-Fi group Wireless Broadband Alliance begins roaming trials in 300 hotspots across Asia. The group, whose members include China Netcom, StarHub and Telstra, plans to double its number of hotspots to 26,000 by the end of the...

As Telefonica Moviles begins selling its i-mode service in Spain.(Movements)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... As Telefonica Moviles begins selling its i-mode service in Spain, NTT DoCoMo clinches an agreement with Wind to bring its i-mode into Italy by the end of the year.

Analysts say July's financial results from Nokia, Motorola, Samsung Electronics, and Sony Ericsson show that recovery in the handset market may be further off than originally thought.(Movements)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Analysts say July's financial results from Nokia, Motorola, Samsung Electronics, and Sony Ericsson show that recovery in the handset market may De further off than originally thought as mobile phone makers seem caught in a squeeze between price...

pit y Ericsson reports rising market share and forecasts its first-ever profit in the second half of 2003 on the back of popular new models and cost cuts, two of which are to cease making CDMA handsets for the North American market, and shed 500 jobs.(Movements)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Sony Ericsson reports rising market share and forecasts its first-ever profit in me second half of 2003 on the back of popular new models and cost cuts, two of which are to cease making CDMA handsets for the North American market, and shed 500...

MTC-Vodafone plans to launch its W-CDMA network in Bahrain in early 2004, which would make it the first commercial 3G network in Middle East.(Movements)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... MTC-Vodafone plans to launch its W-CDMA network in Bahrain in early 2004, which would make it the first commercial 3G network in Middle East. The company contracts Siemens Mobile and NEC as the main infrastructure suppliers.

Ericsson wins a contract from Greek mobile operator Cosmote as the main supplier for its W-CDMA network.(Movements)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Ericsson wins a contract from Greek mobile operator Cosmote as the main supplier for its W-CDMA network. The first phase of the 3G rollout runs until the end of 2004, and Ericsson says it will work with Cosmote to develop attractive end-user...

Intel signs an agreement to implement its chips into 802.16a gear made by Israel's Alvarion.(Movements)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Intel signs an agreement to implement its chips into 802.16a gear made by Israel's Alvarion for next-generation wireless MANs, targeting rural and developing markets.

Sharp and Texas Instruments agree to jointly develop components and software for camera-phones.(Movements)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Sharp and Texas Instruments agree to jointly develop components and software for camera-phones, with plans to start selling software-loaded chips to handset makers at the end of this year.

Lucent Technologies lands a multiyear contract valued at up to $1. billion.(Movements)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Lucent Technologies lands a multiyear contract valued at up to $1 billion to upgrade US mobile operator Sprint PCS' network.

Hakan Uzan, chief executive of Turkish mobile carrier Telsim, urges Motorola to drop its fraud lawsuit against his family following a favorable ruling from the Geneva Court of Justice that Motorola failed to prove it was defrauded by the Uzan family, which owns Telsim.(Movements)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Hakan Uzan, chief executive of Turkish mobile carrier Telsim, urges Motorola to drop its fraud lawsuit against his family following a favorable ruling from the Geneva Court of Justice that Motorola failed to prove it was defrauded by the Uzan...

Qualcomm files a lawsuit against Texas Instruments.(Movements)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Qualcomm files a lawsuit against Texas Instruments over a breach of a contract related to a wireless standards agreement signed in December 2000.

Beijing: The State Council appoints MII chief Wang Xudong as director of the State Council Informatisation Office, which promotes national telecoms policy.(News map: around wireless Asia)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Beijing: The State Council appoints MII chief Wang Xudong as director of the State Council Informatisation Office, which promotes national telecoms policy. The new post raises speculation that Wang will have a stronger mandate to reform the...

Beijing: China Unicom plans to invite bids from vendors for Phase 3 of its CDMA network expansion.(News map: around wireless Asia)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Beijing: China Unicom plans to invite bids from vendors for Phase 3 of its CDMA network expansion, which reportedly will increase network capacity to 50 million subscribers.

Hong Kong: China Unicom is reportedly looking for a syndicated issue of at least $700 million.(News map: around wireless Asia)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Hong Kong: China Unicom is reportedly looking for a syndicated issue of at least $700 million, with the aim of acquiring more networks from its parent.

Hong Kong: Peoples Telephone reports a strong first half, with its net profit more than doubling and its sales revenue and market share also on the rise.(News map: around wireless Asia)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Hong Kong: Peoples Telephone reports a strong first half, with its net profit more than doubling and its sales revenue and market share also on the rise. The only figure going down is its ARPU, down 4% year-on-year to HK$230 ($29.49) for the...

Hong Kong: Hutchison 3G HK awards contracts to NEC and Siemens Mobile to supply the radio network for its W-CDMA network for an undisclosed amount.(News map: around wireless Asia)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Hong Kong: Hutchison 3G HK awards contracts to NEC and Siemens Mobile to supply the radio network for its W-CDMA network for an undisclosed amount. Hutchison's planned August 3G launch comes two months behind schedule.

Bangkok: AIS bondholders approve a plan.(News map: around wireless Asia)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Bangkok: AIS bondholders approve a plan to raise the company's dividend limit from 40% of earnings to 70%.

Bangkok: UCOM withdraws its $739 million bid.(News map: around wireless Asia)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Bangkok: UCOM withdraws its $739 million bid to build a CDMA network that has been delayed since last year due to concerns over the project's viability.

Hanoi: Saigon Postel launches Vietnam's first cdma2000 1x network, S-Fone.(News map: around wireless Asia)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Hanoi: Saigon Postel launches Vietnam's first cdma2000 1x network, S-Fone.

Kabul: Afghanistan gets its second GSM network, TDCA, which started offering commercial GSM service in July in the capital of Kabul.(News map: around wireless Asia)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Kabul: Afghanistan gets its second GSM network, TDCA, which started offering commercial GSM service in July in the capital of Kabul. TDCA, which is owned by a consortium grouping the Aga Khan Fund for Economic Development, Monaco Telecom...

New Delhi: Bharti Tele-Ventures reports a $6.71 million profit and a 90% increase in group revenues in the fiscal first quarter to June 30.(News map: around wireless Asia)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... New Delhi: Bharti Tele-Ventures reports a $6.71 million profit and a 90% increase in group revenues in the fiscal first quarter to June 30, thanks to sharp growth in demand for mobile services.

Seoul: KT Corp plans to buy about 4.17 million of KTF's outstanding shares in the market over the next few months.(News map: around the wireless Asia)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Seoul: KT Corp plans to buy about 4.17 million of KTF's outstanding shares in the market over the next few months. The share purchase, worth 100 billion won ($84.68), will raise KT's shareholding in its mobile carrier affiliate from 44.8% to...

Seoul: SK Telecom will invest 221.2 billion won ($186.9 million) to expand its handling capacity and coverage area.(News map: around the wireless Asia)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Seoul: SK Telecom will invest 221.2 billion won ($186.9 million) to expand its handling capacity and coverage area. SKT will use its own funds for the investment, and says the expansion project will end in June 2004.

Seoul: the MIC opens the wireless Internet gateway to non-mobile carriers such as Internet portals and content providers from August.(News map: around the wireless Asia)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Seoul: The MIC opens the wireless Internet gateway to non-mobile carriers such as Internet portals and content providers from August. The move breaks the monopoly previously enjoyed by Korea's three mobile operators.

Taipei: Asia Pacific Broadband Wireless (APBW) is set to launch cdma2000 1x services in the third quarter this year, after completing construction of the network with Nortel equipment in July.(News map: around the wireless Asia)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Taipei: Asia Pacific Broadband Wireless (APBW) is set to launch cdma2000 x services in the third quarter this year, after completing construction of the network with Nortel equipment in July. The company also plans to offer 1x EV-DO services in...

Taipei: Fast EasTone launches a range of multimedia services.(News map: around the wireless Asia)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Taipei: Fast EasTone launches a range of multimedia services, including downloadable movie clips and music videos for a variety of different GPRS- and Java-enabled handsets.

Tokyo: KDDI sells its 1.24% stake in SingTel for S$344.3 million ($198.9 million).(News map: around the wireless Asia)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Tokyo: KDDI sells its 1.24% stake in SingTel for S$344.3 million ($198.9 million).

Tokyo: NTT DoCoMo says it will cut its interconnection charge for fixed-to-mobile calls from the current rate of 70 yen per 3 minutes to 50 yen per 3 minutes starting from March 2004.(News map: around the wireless Asia)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Tokyo: NTT DoCoMo says it will cut its interconnection charge for fixed-to-mobile calls from the current rate of 70 yen per 3 minutes to 50 yen per 3 minutes starting from March 2004.

Sydney: Telstra will expand its Wi-Fi footprint to Australian airports in conjunction with airline Qantas.(News map: around the wireless Asia)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Sydney: Telstra will expand its Wi-Fi footprint to Australian airports in conjunction with airline Qantas.

Sydney: AAPT signs an agreement with one of Australia's largest retailers, Dick Smith Electronics Group.(News map: around the wireless Asia)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Sydney: AAPT signs an agreement with one of Australia's largest retailers, Dick Smith Electronics Group, to expand the operator's presence in the mobile retail market by a further 366 stores across Australia.

Kuala Lumpur: Telekom Malaysia begins a pilot 3G service ahead of next year's planned commercial rollout.(News map: around the wireless Asia)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Kuala Lumpur: Telekom Malaysia begins a pilot 3G service ahead of next year's planned commercial rollout. Rival Maxis Communications also expects to begin a 3G pilot by the end of this year.

Singapore: MobileOne posts a 4% drop in its second quarter profit.(News map: around the wireless Asia)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Singapore: MobileOne posts a 4% drop in its second quarter profit, although it forecasts a brighter second half as the economy recovers from SARS.

The big squeeze: China's domestic vendors have aggressively leveraged their local knowledge to take market share from foreign firms in the Chinese handset market. But with margins falling and inventories at record highs, a shakeout looms in the supplier market.
July 1, 2003... On the bustling floor of the Jinfei Communications Market, a typical mobile phone mega store in Beijing, duty manager Leslie Zhang cocks his head, knits his brow and counts quickly on his fingers. "I don't have an exact number," says the...

Shall we Wi-Fi? Cellcos ponder the WLAN business case: many cellcos are debating whether the economics of cellular/Wi-Fi integration can be justified. Interestingly, it's not just about the revenue.(Wireless Biz)
July 1, 2003... Like cellcos everywhere, US mobile operators have their problems. And in the last 12 months they have grown more pronounced. Competition has stashed prices, the FEE has hounded carriers on mandatory emergency functions, while interest in data...

Built to last: Peoples Phone may not be the sexiest cellco in Hong Kong, but it's profitable enough to withstand the city's constant price wars, and aims to be one of Asia's first EDGE operators. CEO Charles Henshaw talks with global technology editor John C. Tanner about why EDGE makes for a better strategy than 3G and Wi-Fi.(1_2_1)
July 1, 2003... Wireless Asia: Hong Kong operators often say that no one wants a price war, but they keep cropping up--why? Charles Henshaw: I'm not sure why--I don't think anyone is really quite sure why. There's a price war going on right now. We are...

Meet the machines: cellcos take on the M2M value chain: the next hot customer segment for cellcos may be machines as next-gen cellular technologies and falling equipment costs allow them to support M2M (machine-to-machine) traffic on their networks.(Wireless Tech)
July 1, 2003... Go to almost any telecoms trade shows these days, and one of the more inevitable demos you're likely to come across is the wireless vending machine. Choose your drink, send a text message to the appropriate number, the vending machine drops the...

Spam filter.(tools)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... bmd wireless commercially releases its SMS Spam Filtering platform solution to detect, filter and block SMS spam and unwanted messages. The SSF platform enables mobile operators to define specific blocking rules at the network level, while...

Test-drive UMTS.(tools)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Comarco Wireless Test Solutions launches Seven.Five, a drive-test tool for UMTS that combines an integrated tri-band RF scanning receiver with voice, data and video QoS tests that can measure QoS from the perspective of the wireless subscriber...

Real-time dynamic billing.(tools)(Intec Telecom Systems' data network services )(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... OSS vendor Intec Telecom Systems announces its new Dynamic Charging Platform, which enables real-time, value-based charging of advanced data network services such as content, mobile commerce and location-based services.

Change the channel.(tools)(Agilent Technologies Inc.)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Agilent Technologies has unveiled what it says is the industry's first low-power infrared (IR) transceiver and application software combination that enables mobile phones and PDAs to function as universal IR remote control devices for...

Nokia J2ME kit with MIDP 2.0.(tools)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Nokia releases its Developer's Suite for J2ME Version 2.0, which supports the Java MIDP 2.0 specification and offers developers enhanced functionality, such as the ability to integrate additional communications protocols beyond HTTP, including...

Virtual camera deal.(deals)(LineFusion contract with Newpalm)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Singapore-based mobile apps developer LineFusion strikes a deal with Newpalm, the mobile applications unit of chinadotcom, to launch a new Chinese MMS service based on its iSnapper Virtual MMS Camera application, which allows user to "snap" any...

World's first BGP.(deals)(KTF signs agreement with Qualcomm)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... KTF signs an agreement with Qualcomm to become a BREW Global Publisher (BGP) for BREW applications. The agreement authorizes KTF, the first CDMA operator to become a BGP, to assist developers with the export and distribution of BREW apps to...

Fingerprint authentication.(deals)(Fujitsu Microelectronics and Motorola Semiconductors to develop service for personal digital assistants)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Fujitsu Microelectronics and Motorola Semiconductors Hong Kong will develop a PDA reference solution supporting biometric fingerprint authentication. The new PDA platform combines Motorola's Dragonball i.MX processor and Fujitsu's solid-state...

SAP and Sharp tackle corporate mobility ...(deals)
July 1, 2003... SAP and Sharp form a partnership to develop and market technology for corporate mobile solutions. Under the partnership, which will focus initially on Japan, Sharp will develop software and handheld terminal devices for SAP's mobile platforms...

... so do Fujitsu and Ericsson.(deals)(Fujitsu and Nokia to develop mobile services)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Fujitsu and Nokia will develop end-to-end mobile solutions for enterprises utilizing Nokia business terminals and platforms and Fujitsu's consulting, SI and managed services capabilities. Rollouts will start immediately in the Nordic region and...

Parrot licenses Ericsson Bluetooth tech.(deals)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Ericsson signs a licensing agreement with Parrot, a Bluetooth vendor targeting the automotive market. The license covers Ericsson's new Core Bluetooth Baseband Platform Q-E1, which Parrot will use to develop its own system-on-a-chip (SoC) to be...

Good morning, Angels ...(out now)(wireless application service developed by Mobileway and Mobile Internet Group)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Messaging company Mobileway, and its partner, co-publisher and wireless application service provider Mobile Internet Group (MIG) launch "Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle", a premium mobile services package developed with Sony Pictures Mobile....

More MMC memory.(out now)(ATP Electronics releases new multi media card)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... ATP Electronics introduces a 512MB flash memory MultiMediaCard for portable and mobile devices that support the MMC form factor and/or SD memory cards. The 512MB MultiMediaCard is capable of storing up to 15 hours of digitally compressed music,...

More GPRS video clips.(out now)(helloNetwork and Far EasTone partner to release new multimedia service)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Java-based wireless streaming media technology vendor helloNetwork partners with Far EasTone to launch a new range of multimedia services for FET's Bravo subscribers, including downloadable movie clips and music videos for a variety of...

GPRS video clips.(out now)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Thai cellco DTAC launches DTAC Streaming, a GPRS-based mobile multimedia service offering downloadable movie previews, and music video and karaoke clips to users with Nokia 3650 handsets. The service was jointly developed by DTAC and Nokia via...

The handset's the ticket.(out now)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... HP and iTrove--a Singapore project with HP and 20 industry partners, including SingTel, to pilot interactive wireless solutions aimed at tourists--launch Singapore's first mobile ticketing service with a pilot at the Esplanade performing arts...

Chinese OEM handsets face feature shortage.(Street Wise)
July 1, 2003... You don't need to be very streetwise to realize that there is something big happening in the Chinese handset market. Walk into any shop and you will be confronted with more than a dozen handset models from domestic vendors. More...

EV-DOing Baghdad and other tall tales.(Lynch)
July 1, 2003... Whenever I need the release of laughter, I always turn to the writings of telecom pundits such as Ira Brodsky and George Gilder. If they can make a good living with analysis that almost always favors the triumph of credulous hope over rigor,...

Now that's a feature-rich handset.(Short message: around the wireless industry)(NTT DoCoMo's new handset features)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Who says 2G can't be sexy? Not NTT DoCoMo, whose FOMA exploits haven't distracted it from finding new hardware and software features to add to its PDC handsets--like scanners, biometric security features and surround sound. The F505i PDC...

Wi-Fi disqualified from Olympics ... again.(Short message: around the wireless industry)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... If you're making plans to attend next year's Olympic Games in Athens, Greece, don't bother to pack your Wi-Fi PC card. The International Olympic Committee announced last month that its IT system will include some 10,000 desktop PCs and 850...

May cause skin irritation.(Short message: around the wireless industry)(health aspects of mobile phones)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... More fuel was added to the controversy over the health impact of mobile phones last month in separate studies. The good news: a study from St Vincent's Hospital in Sydney which used live human brain cells for the first time found that the...

Buzz buzz buzz ...(Short message: around the wireless industry)(SK Telecom downloadable service)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... This month's most startling mobile app: SK Telecom's mosquito repellant service, which allows customers to download a sound wave file that is inaudible to human ears but annoys mosquitoes within one meter. While SK Telecom says the app has...

That's entertainment.(Short message: around the wireless industry)(service offered by SmarTone)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... When it comes to mobile content, some cellcos shy away at the very mention or "adult entertainment". But not SmarTone, which inaugurated its new 18 Plus Channel with--but of course--a "Ms. T-Back Beauty Pageant". Heavily promoted in...