Wireless Asia articles from October 2001

Wireless Asia archives from October 2001

What is 3G?(Street Wise)
October 1, 2001... Auctions and non-auctions seem to be the prevailing conditions surrounding the allocation of 3G licenses in Asia and, indeed, the world. But, ultimately, what is 3G? There has been much discussion about price, merit and ultimately...

MVNOs the winners after Hong Kong 'auction': Hutchison, CSL, SmarTone and Sunday may each have taken home a 3G license without a fight, but the real winners, if any, in Hong Kong's 3G field may just be the companies planning their futures as MVNOs. Tony Chan reports.(News Analysis)
October 1, 2001... Hong Kong's Office of the Telecommunications Authority handed out four 3G licenses in a non-auction that saw on[y four bidders show up for four licenses. The top three mobile operators in Hong Kong--Hutchison Telecom, CSL and...

3G: Hutchison can't get enough; the mobile market might be in retreat the world over, but Hutchison Whampoa is on the march, collecting two new 3G licenses in the last month alone.(News Analysis)
October 1, 2001... For a company that pricked the bubble of European spectrum mania last year, Hong Kong's Hutchison group is unusually keen on 3G cellular. It was Hutchison's withdrawal from the German auction last year, when the bidding topped $5.8 billion,...

China CDMA: the scent of a handset opportunity; with China Unicom's nationwide cdma2000-1x network set to kick off later this year, domestic Chinese electronics firms scent an opportunity. But much depends on Unicom's success in the market--not to mention the long-existing problem of black market phones.(News Analysis)
October 1, 2001... The granting of production licenses to 19 electronics companies to make CDMA phones has set off another goldrush in China. China Unicom estimates the market will generate as much as 50 billion yuan ($6 billion) within the first tire years of...

Back in the black.(News Analysis)(Iridium purchased by Boeing)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Having gone bankrupt with losses in the billions, Iridium is back and it looks like finally living up to its age-old promise of offering a global mobile personal communications systems. Iridium, which was perhaps the world's single biggest...

Motorola has struck a deal with UK-based Freeplay Free Energy to market a wind-up technology that powers mobile phones.(Movements)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Motorola has struck a deal with UK-based Freeplay Free Energy to market a wind-up technology that powers mobile phones. The device, which will be compatible with some Motorola and other handsets, can provide three to six minutes' talk time...

SingTel receives 98% acceptance from Cable & Wireless Optus shareholders as it closes it's $6.9 billion offer for the Australian telco.(Movements)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... SingTel receives 98% acceptance from Cable & Wireless Optus shareholders as it closes it's $6.9 billion offer for the Australian telco. SingTel said it will drop the Cable & Wireless section of the name, but will keep the Optus brand.

Vodafone asks its suppliers to find a way to make W-CDMA and cdma2000 compatible, so that its subscribers can use a single handset worldwide.(Movements)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Vodafone asks its suppliers to find a way to make W-CDMA and cdma2000 compatible, so that its subscribers can use a single handset worldwide. All of Vodafone's mobile interests worldwide will migrate to W-CDMA except US CDMA operator Verizon,...

Ericsson sets up a new company.(Movements)(Ericsson Mobile Platforms)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Ericsson sets up a new company, Ericsson Mobile Platforms, to license out 2.5G and 3G cellular handset technology to ODM and OEM manufacturers.

Virgin Group is reportedly readying a major push in the mobile sector.(Movements)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Virgin Group is reportedly readying a major push in the mobile sector, going as far as to offload assets in other sectors to fund the initiative, Virgin has already sold its Megastores in France for $130 million.

Mobile phone giant Nokia says its first GPRS handset, the 8310, will be available later this month and other models will be in shops by the end of the year.(Movements)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Mobile phone giant Nokia says its first GPRs handset, the 8310, will be available later this month and other models will be in shops by the end of the year. Asked why Nokia was so late in getting a GPRS handset to the market, Matti Alahuhta,...

SingTel agrees to pay Dutch operator KPN $601 million for a 22.3% stake in Indonesian cellco Telkomsel.(Movements)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... SingTel agrees to pay Dutch operator KPN $601 million for a 22.3% stake in Indonesian cellco Telkomsel, which has 2.2 million subscribers with a capacity for 10 million.

Japanese mobile phone manufacturer Kyocera Corporation and China Zhenhua Group plan to form a 70:30 joint venture to make CDMA handsets for the Chinese market.(Movements)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Japanese mobile phone manufacturer Kyocera Corporation and China Zhenhua Group plan to form a 70:30 joint venture to make CDMA handsets for the Chinese market. The venture, with capital assets worth approximately $15 million, will be located in...

Beijing: China grants licenses to 19 companies to produce CDMA handsets for China Unicom's CDMA network scheduled for operation by the end of this year, according to the official China Daily.(Newsmap: around Wireless Asia)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Beijing: China grants licenses to 19 companies to produce CDMA handsets for China Unicom's COMA network scheduled for operation by the end of this year, according to the official China Daily. Motorola (China) is the only foreign firm, with the...

Hong Kong: after almost a year of delays, OFTA auctions off four 3G licenses.(Newsmap: around Wireless Asia)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Hong Kong: After almost a year of delays, OFTA auctions off four 3G licenses. Hutchison Telecom, CSL, SmarTone and Sunday are the provisional winners, as well as the only bidders. New World Mobility and Peoples both issue statements suggesting...

Hong Kong: Nokia launches its first Club Nokia in Asia, offering mobile services to its users.(Newsmap: around Wireless Asia)
October 1, 2001... Hong Kong: Nokia launches its first Club Nokia in Asia, offering mobile services to its users. The move, which allows Nokia phone users in Hong Kong to purchase and download content from Nokia, puts the vendor potentially into conflict with one...

Hong Kong: China Unicom's listed unit posts a $264 million.(Newsmap: around Wireless Asia)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Hong Kong: China Unicom's listed unit posts a $264 million interim net profit--11.8 times higher than last year's half-year results.

Hong Kong: PCCW mobile unit CSL reports a 7% increase in net profit for the six months to June 30, despite its monthly ARPU dropping 4.7% in the same period.(Newsmap: around Wireless Asia)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Hong Kong: PCCW mobile unit CSL reports a 7% increase in net profit for the six months to June 30, despite its monthly ARPU dropping 4.7% in the same period. CSL chief Hubert Ng credits effective cost control and adding another 80,000 subs to...

Beijing: China Mobile makes the top of the MII's latest quarterly survey on telecom services complaints.(Newsmap: around Wireless Asia)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Beijing: China Mobile makes the top of the MII's latest quarterly survey on telecom services complaints. The ministry's customer complaint service center received 1,305 complaints and comments about Chinese carriers during the quarter, 92 of...

Bangkok: the Telephone Organization of Thailand announces plans to launch a new mobile operator to replace the now-defunct ACT Mobile, a previous operation set up in July 2000 by TOT, the Communications Authority of Thailand and Aeronautical Radio of Thailand.(Newsmap: around Wireless Asia)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Bangkok: The Telephone Organization of Thailand announces plans to launch a new mobile operator to replace The now-defunct ACT Mobile, a previous operation set up in July 2000 by TOT, the Communications Authority of Thailand and Aeronautical...

Kuala Lumpur: Maxis Communications reported[y raises $735 million in loans from foreign and local banks to buy back a 46% stake held by British Telecom and AT&T.(Newsmap: around Wireless Asia)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Kuala Lumpur: Maxis Communications reported[y raises $735 million in loans from foreign and local banks to buy back a 46% stake held by British Telecom and AT&T. BT currently owns 33.3% of Maxis while AT&T's subsidiary, MediaOne Group, owns...

Manila: Alcatel signs a $200 million turnkey contract with Philippines fixed-line operator Digitel to roll out a GSM 1800/GPRS network by 2002.(Newsmap: around Wireless Asia)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Manila: Alcatel signs a $200 million turnkey contract with Philippines fixed-line operator Digitel to roll out a GSM 1800/GPRS network by 2002. When completed, the network will have enough capacity for 500,000 subscribers and cover the larger...

Manila: Globe subsidiary Islacom is launching a low-end prepaid GSM service. Branded "Touch Mobile" the new service will offer discounted call rates in a bid to raise its market share.(Newsmap: around Wireless Asia)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Manila: Globe subsidiary Islacom is launching a low-end prepaid GSM service. Branded "Touch Mobile" the new service will offer discounted call rates in a bid to raise its market share. Islacom is currently the country's smallest GSM operator...

Tokyo: KDDI says it will delay the launch of its cdma2000 1x service.(Newsmap: around Wireless Asia)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Tokyo: KDDI says it will delay the launch of its cdma2000 1x service until the end of this year or early 2002 because of a lack of handsets.

Tokyo: NTT DoCoMo announces plans to increase the capacity of its i-mode service from the current 9.6 kbps to 28.8 kbps by early next year.(Newsmap: around Wireless Asia)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Tokyo: NTT DoCoMo announces plans to increase the capacity of its i-mode service from the current 9.6 kbps to 28.8 kbps by early next year. With the new network, the amount of continuous data that can be downloaded at one time will also be...

Tokyo: NTT DoCoMo confirms it will launch the world's first fully commercial 3G service on October 1.(Newsmap: around Wireless Asia)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Tokyo: NTT DoCoMo confirms it will launch the world's first fully commercial 3G service on October 1. Initial service offerings will include voice, SMS and both circuit and packet-switched data--the packetized version enabling 384 kbps...

Tokyo: Vodafone aims to lift its stake in Japan Telecom, the company behind number two mobile carrier J-Phone.(Newsmap: around Wireless Asia)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Tokyo: Vodafone aims to lift its stake in Japan Telecom, the company behind number two mobile carrier J-Phone. It is planning to spend up to $2.7 billion to increase its shareholding from 45% to 66.7% and challenge market leader NTT DoCoMo.

Seoul: The Ministry of Information and Communication is looking to revise a law banning handset subsidies.(Newsmap: around Wireless Asia)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Seoul: The Ministry of Information and Communication is looking to revise a law banning handset subsidies, by adding a condition that would allow handset subsidies under appropriate authorization from the government.

Seoul: the government announces plans to reduce charges on mobile phone services as part of an attempt to stabilize consumer prices in the country.(Newsmap: around Wireless Asia)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Seoul: The government announces plans to reduce charges on mobile phone services as part of an attempt to stabilize consumer prices in the country. The government will hold a public hearing for consumers, government officials and mobile phone...

Taipei: FarEasTone reports a 55% increase in revenue for the first half to NT$19.6 billion ($574 million).(Newsmap: around Wireless Asia)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Taipei: FarEasTone reports a 55% increase in revenue for the first half to NT$19.6 billion ($574 million), with net income up 72.9%.

Canberra: the Australian government is looking at extending current regulations on the pricing of wholesale GSM mobile service to CDMA networks.(Newsmap: around Wireless Asia)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Canberra: The Australian government is looking at extending current regulations on the pricing of wholesale GSM mobile service to CDMA networks. The Australian Competition and Consumer Council says it will hold a public inquiry into the issue,...

Sydney: MNP is launched in Australia.(Newsmap: around Wireless Asia)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Sydney: MNP is launched in Australia. The Australian Communications Authority and the Australian Consumer and Competition Council say they will jointly monitor mobile operators over MNP's implementation to ensure it is marketed properly to...

Singapore: SingTel Mobile and Aon Risk Singapore.(Newsmap: around Wireless Asia)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Singapore: SingTel Mobile and Aon Risk Singapore offer an insurance scheme for its postpaid subscribers that offers coverage for users' mobile phones against theft, accidental loss or damage.

Capacity vs quality: the tripwire in mobile communications: Boosting Network Capacity with GSM 900/1800 Dual-band Strategy.
October 1, 2001... Swift growth in the number of mobile subscribers brings high profits to cellular operators worldwide, but it also puts stress on existing radio resources. For operators, the most effective way to expand network capacity and solve the shortage...

And the winners are...(M-apps)(Wireless Asia M-apps Awards)
October 1, 2001... When we launched the Wireless Asia M-apps Awards, we could not have imagined the response from mobile applications developers across me region. Just under 100 entries were received, although 27 did not qualify because they were incomplete...

Targeting the fixed-line dollar: UTStarcom is not a household name in the wireless world but its PAS system is the technology of choice for China Telecom's "Little Smart" service.(1-2-1)
October 1, 2001... Targeting the fixed-line dollar: UTStarcom is not a household name in the wireless world but its PAS system is the technology of choice for China Telecom's "Little Smart" service. While it is being marketed as a fixed line alternative rather...

Plugging the WLAN security gap; wireless LANs discovered a major security problem after theoretical attacks on its encryption standard became real and automated. New and better standards are expected over the next 12 months--in the meantime, D1Y security measures are highly recommended.(Tech Focus)
October 1, 2001... After a slow start thanks largely to technology standards battles and high prices, wireless LANs--specifically, short-range broadband wireless networks offering up to 11--Mbps connectivity on the unlicensed 2.4 GHz band as defined by the IEEE's...

HK mobile payment trial.(tools)(Hutchison Telecom, Dao Heng Bank and Visa International start six-month pilot mobile payment program)
October 1, 2001... Hutchison Telecom, Dao Heng Bank and Visa International have kicked off a six-month pilot mobile payment program, in which 1,000 Dao Heng Visa cardholders who are also Hutchison subscribers will be able to conduct transactions, such as phone...

Palm music package.(tools)(Palm, Liquid Audio and Shinei International introduce new digital music package)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Palm, Liquid Audio and Singapore-based Shinei International have announced a digital music package for handheld users, including Shinei's expandable Porteson snap-on MP3 player and Palm co-branded Liquid Player Plus desktop software. The...

End-to-end GPRS MMS.(tools)(CMG Wireless Data Solutions and Compaq develop gprs multimedia messaging software)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... CMG Wireless Data Solutions and Compaq claim to have the industry's first end-to-end GPRS multimedia messaging solution, which allows end-users to send and receive SMS messages that include audio, color images and video. The integrated solution...

New SMS apps for excelcom.(tools)(OpenMobile Asia Pacific and Excelcom launch new applications)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... OpenMobile Asia Pacific and Indonesian mobile operator excelcom have launched five SMS applications--MChat, Mdate, MCupid, Date Assistant, and Spin The Phone--for exelcom customers.

Silicon to software.(tools)(Motorola Semiconductor releases new handset software)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Motorola Semiconductor has released a new platform, the i.250, on which ODMs and OEMs can develop advanced GSM and GPRS handsets. Motorola says its "silicon-to-software solution" is a scalable, highly integrated platform combining an advanced...

Developer support for Intel's PCA.(out now)(personal client architecture)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Intel has introduced a developer support program around its new personal client architecture (PCA) for wireless devices. The new PCA Developer Network will provide technical and marketing support and access to more than 300 tools for those...

Secure wireless intranet.(out now)(Microsoft and Materna develop solution enabling wireless access to secure corporate Intranet information)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Microsoft and wireless ASP Materna have developed a solution enabling wireless access to secure corporate Intranet information. They say the Anny Way Mobile Data Server supports specific functions of Microsoft Mobile Information 2001 Server...

MPEG-7 video for 3G handsets.(out now)(NTT DoCoMo and IBM Japan)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... NTT DoCoMo and IBM Japan have jointly developed new technology for transmitting video to 3G handsets and devices at a maximum speed of 384 kbps. The technology uses next-generation MPEG-7 compression and content segmentation, which allows a...

Java-based iBroker.(out now)(software developed by Bitfone Corp.)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Software company Bitfone has unveiled its iBroker Java-based software infrastructure that enables mobile operators to offer subscribers the ability to access, store, message and share multimedia content including photos, cartoons and images...

Voice-activated Bluetooth office.(deals)(partnership between Norwood Systems and Nuance Communications)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... UK-based Norwood Systems is partnering with speech recognition vendor Nuance to develop a Bluetooth-based wireless office solution using voice-activated dialing. Norwood Systems has integrated its EnterpriseMobility software solution with...

Benefon signs speech recognition deal.(deals)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Speech technology vendor Voice Signal Technologies has signed an agreement to license its embedded speech recognition software to Finnish handset maker Benefon, which plans to incorporate Voice Signal's software into its new generation of...

LGT and Visor target mobile enterprise.(deals)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... LG Telecom, Handspring, and Taiwan-based GrandTech, Handspring's value-added distributor in Korea, intend to work together exclusively on wireless data products and services based on Handspring's Springboard expansion platform for the Korean...

Zi licenses eZiText to CEC.(deals)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Zi Corporation has struck a licensing agreement for its eZiText software to CEC Telecom Science & Technology, a Chinese JV formed by six companies, including China Electronics Corporation, China's largest electronics enterprise. Under the...

Pixo signs HP integration deal.(deals)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Mobile platform and apps vendor Pixo has announced plans to work with Hewlett-Packard to market its Pixo Mobile Download Server, which promises to deliver and manage personalized wireless applications and content. The server supports J2ME, the...

Hutchison Australia CEO resigns.(Telecom Career)(Barry Roberts-Thomson)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Barry Roberts-Thomson, chief executive officer and key founder of Hutchison Telecom Australia, has stepped down. He will remain as deputy chairman. Kevin Russell, the current CO0, takes over as the company's new chief executive.

Virgin Mobile senior management.(Telecom Career)(Ross Cormack, Norliza Kassim, David Gibbons)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... MVNO Virgin Mobile has announced its senior management team. The appointments are: Ross Cormack, chief executive officer; Norliza Kassim, chief marketing officer; David Gibbons, chief financial officer; Lynne Kenworthy, chief customer...

New appointment at Equant.(Telecom Career)(Benny Lee)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Equant has promoted Benny Lee, currently general manager of its integration services division, to head of sales and marketing for Asia-Pacific, Australasia and acting head of Greater China. Prior to joining Equant, Lee held a number of...

Sunday non-executive director resigns.(Telecom Career)(Sunday Communications Ltd.'s Johnson Chan)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Hong Kong GSM 1800 operator Sunday Communications said Johnson Chan has resigned as non-executive director of the company. Chan had been with the company since 1999. In addition to his directorship with Sunday, he is a director of Distacom...

Qualcomm Internet services president.(Telecom Career)(Peggy Johnson appointment)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Qualcomm has promoted Peggy Johnson to president of Qualcomm Internet Services, a division of Qualcomm and part of the wireless and Internet Group. Johnson began her career at Qualcomm in 1989 as a software engineer with the company's...

Star EVP China quits.(Telecom Career)(Star TV says Laurie Smith has resigned)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... News Corp's wholly owned subsidiary, Star TV says Laurie Smith has resigned for personal reasons as executive vice president of Star China and CO0 of News Corporation China. Jamie Davis, current senior vice president for Star's...

Concord strengthens Asian presence.(Telecom Career)(Garry Ko and Dave Tinas appointments to Asian operations)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Nasdaq-listed Concord Communications has appointed Garry Ko as general manager for Asia and Dave Tinas senior consultant for its Asian operations, respectively. Previously Ko was major account sales manager at Novell. Tin joins Concord...

Agilent communications solutions VP.(Telecom Career)(Jimmy Tan appointment to Asia-Pacific group of Agilent Technologies Inc.)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Agilent Technologies has appointed Jimmy Tan as rice president of the company's communications solutions group in Asia-Pacific, replacing Alan Grahame, who is now rice president of worldwide sales and marketing operations of the same group. ...

Infonet Asia GM.(Telecom Career)(William Thompson appointed to Infonet Asia-Pacific)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Communications services provider Infonet Services Corporation has promoted William Thompson to vice president and general manager for Infonet Asia-Pacific. Prior to his new position at Infonet, Thompson served as vice president of the...

Acterna Indian sales MD.(Telecom Career)(Vishnu Goel appointment)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Acterna has appointed Vishnu Goel managing director for sales, spearheading customer operations at Acterna's locations in New Delhi, Bangalore and Mumbai. Goel joins Acterna from Agilent Technologies, where he was general manager of the...

Packeteer expands China management.(Telecom Career)(Ken Gong appointment)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Packeteer, a provider of application performance infrastructure systems, has appointed Ken Gong as general manager for the PRC. Gong joined Packeteer in December 1997 as director of technical services for Asia-Pacific. Before joining...

Senior appointments at Oztime.(Telecom Career)(Andrew Nevin and Helen Chen)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Oztime, a subsidiary of Zi Corporation, has appointed Dr Andrew Nevin as the company's CO0 and Helen Chen as vice president, project development. Prior to joining Oztime, Nevin was senior president and managing director of TD Waterhouse....

LMDS, showcases broadband without wires, or profits.(Unwired)
October 1, 2001... After last year's auction excitement, spectrum sales have cooled considerably. Of the many auctions set down for this year in the Asia Pacific, only two have actually taken place, and one was only for 2G spectrum. For Singapore's IDA, this...

Key actor.(Short message: around the wireless industry)(Mobile phones played key role during Sept 11)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... If any doubt remained about the essential role of the mobile phone, it was removed by the tragic events in the US on September 11. Both for good and for bad, the mobile phone was a key actor in the horrific drama of the day. Evidence is...

More delay.(Short message: around the wireless industry)(Attacks on New York and Washington look likely to push back even further the arrival of 3G cellular in the US)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... The attacks on New York and Washington look likely to push back even further the arrival of 3G cellular in the US. Most of the frequencies allocated by the ITU for next generation cellular are owned by the US military. Despite a review ordered...

Mobile coverage.(Short message: around the wireless industry)(Careless British mobile phone users lose or destroy over 10,000 handsets every week)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Careless British mobile phone users are losing or destroying more than 10,000 handsets every week, according to insurance company Link Coverplan. The most common cause of loss is in the toilet, though many are also lost as they fly out from...

Big ring.(Short message: around the wireless industry)(Virgin Mobile has not yet begun its MVNO service in Asia, but its UK parent is making noise on streets of London)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Virgin Mobile is yet to start its promised MVNO service in Asia, but its UK parent is making a big noise on the streets of London. The company gathered 254 people together in Leicester Square on September 5 for Virgin's Big Ring, with the aim...

Parking meters.(Short message: around the wireless industry)(Drivers in Sydney, Australia, get help from their mobile phones to park their cars)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Drivers in Sydney, Australia, are getting help from their mobile phones to park their cars. In trial currently underway in the district of Leichhardt, drivers, can feed parking meters through their mobile phone, adding the sum either to their...