Industry News from Intelecon's Research Team

South Africa: Vodacom's WiMAX pricing comes under fire

August 27: Telecoms.com reports that Vodacom, in partnership with WiMAX licence holder Wireless Business Solutions (WBS), has announced it will launch WiMAX services in October. While Vodacom has deployed a nationwide 802.16e Mobile WiMAX network comprising 120 base stations, there are no immediate plans to offer true mobility services over WiMAX.

Tanzania: Zain Leads in Rural Coverage

August 27: According to a story from The Citizen, mobile firm Zain Tanzania Ltd is the leading operator in the country in terms of coverage and reaching people in rural areas, a senior official said in a statement yesterday.

Namibia: Telecom, Cell One Gang Up Against MTC

August 27: An article from The Namibian says that Telecom Namibia and Cell One have ganged up against MTC over what they regard as exorbitant interconnection fees charged by MTC. They have appealed to the Namibia Communications Commission (NCC) to intervene.

Kyrgyzstan: Turk Telekom says bids in Kyrgyztelecom tender

August 27: Reuters says that Turk Telekom has bid in a tender to buy up to 78% of Kyrgyzstan fixed-line phone monopoly Kyrgyztelecom, the company said in a statement to the stock exchange on Wednesday. The Turkish operator said it would also obtain a mobile licence through fixed-line operator Kyrgyz Telecom if it won the fixed-line tender.

Guinea wants new partner for state telecom

August 27: Guinea will seek a new partner for its state telecommunications company Sotelgui after Telekom Malaysia gave up its 60% stake, the communications minister said. Telekom Malaysia paid $45 million for the stake in fixed line and mobile phone operator Sotelgui in 1995 but reached a final agreement with the Guinean government this month to relinquish its share.

Proprietary source: Factiva / Reuters

Argentina starts tender for WiMAX spectrum licenses

August 26: Telecom Paper reports that Argentina's telecoms ministry Secom has started a public tender for fixed data service licences in the 3.3-3.4 GHz and 3.4-3.7 GHz bands, writes Infobae. The WiMAX licences cover over 200 communities across the country.

New Zealand govt seeks applications for broadband fund

August 26: According to Telecom Paper, the New Zealand government is seeking applications for the government’s NZD 340 million broadband fund. The Broadband Investment Fund contains NZD 325 million operating and NZD 15 million capital funding available over a maximum of five years. The fund is a key part of the government’s Digital Strategy 2.0 package of over NZD 500 million. Applications for the Broadband Investment Fund close on 30 September.

India: Telcos to mutually settle linking issues

August 26: An Economic Times article says that following the resolution of the interconnect issue between GSM operators and Reliance Communications (RCOM), all telcos have now signed an agreement to resolve all other pending issues related to linking their networks. The agreement was signed in the presence of telecom regulator TRAI over the weekend. The agreement envisages that telcos mutually settle all other interconnect requests (outside the recent controversy) by October 15.

Nigeria: FG Picks BNP Paribas As Advisers for Nitel Privatisation

August 26: This Day reports that as the December deadline for the race to pick a new core investor for the Nigerian Communications Ltd NITEL draws near, the Federal Government has picked BNP Paribas as its adviser on the deal. The Federal Government through its Minister of State for Communications, Alhaji Dasuki Nakande, announced that BNP Paribas won the bid to advise government on the plan to secure a core investor for NITEL.

India: Public telephone services reach 550,000 villages

August 26: Of India's 594,000 villages, 550,000 now have telephone connections whether through satellite technology or conventional lines, and 30,500 villages even have broadband cover. The over 92% rural connectivity has been provided by Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd. The Department of Telecommunications provided connections to about 54,700 villages through the Village Public Telephones (VPTs) mission under the Bharat Nirman Programme.

Proprietary source: Factiva / Indo-Asian News Service

Saudi Arabia: Zain Launching Network on August 26

August 25: Cellular-News reports that Kuwait based, Zain has announced that it will launch its mobile network in Saudi Arabia tomorrow (26th August), and connect it to the group's borderless roaming service, One Network. At launch date, Zain’s coverage area will initially cover 53% of the population in 36 major cities and 14 highways spanning over 4,000 kms.

Poland / Ghana: Vodafone expansion

August 25: The Financial Times says that Vodafone is in talks with TDC, Denmark’s leading telecoms company, about buying part of its stake in Polkomtel, Poland’s second-biggest mobile phone operator. The development at Polkomtel came as Ghana’s parliament on Thursday voted to approve Vodafone’s plans to buy a majority stake in Ghana Telecom, the country’s leading telecoms company, for $900m (£482m).

Grameen Foundation holding a Village Phone Grant competition

August 25: Developing Telecoms posted information about the Grameen Foundation’s launch of its inaugural Village Phone Grant Competition, which is set to provide two organisations with US$10,000 each to launch Village Phone programmes. The competition is open to microfinance institutions and other non-profit organisations and is being run through Grameen Foundation’s Village Phone Assistance Centre website.

Ghana: GT-OneTouch launch fixed GSM phones for schools

August 25: TeleGeography writes about GT-OneTouch, the mobile arm of Ghana’s national fixed line PTO Ghana Telecom, which has launched fixed public GSM terminals in secondary schools under the banner S-Link, in an effort to expand its subscriber base.

Uganda: Country Cannot Take More GSM Operators, Says UCC

August 25: A report from The East African says that Uganda's extravagance in allocating GSM spectrum is now causing problems, as it emerges that the country has run out of GSM spectrum. The consequences is that the regulator can no longer allocate frequencies in the 900/1800 range. As a result, more than half a dozen telecommunication license holders are at a loss as to whether to get out of business or to launch services over alternative platforms.