Headlines for: 10 Sep 2008

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The Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) has revealed that the winner of the country's second fixed line licence will be announced before the end of October, reports Zawya. The announcement was made at a meeting between the TRA and representative...

Peru's investment promotion agency ProInversion is seeking a consultant to assist in auctioning concession licences in the 800MHz and 1900MHz bands. The auctions will be for 25MHz of national spectrum in the 1900MHz band and in the 821MHz-824MHz and 866-8...

Brazilian cellco Telecom Americas, which operates under the Claro brand, has launched 3G services in Minas Gerais state, writes BNamericas citing a company statement. Coverage includes the state capital Belo Horizonte, Contagem and Betim; the company expe...

After just over one year of operations Etisalat Misr has announced that its network now covers 93% of Egypt, Daily News Egypt is reporting; the cellco has also revealed that it now has 2,780 base stations using a combination of 2G and 3G technologies. Acc...

Indian news source The Economic Times is reporting that the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) is planning to increase spectrum usage charges for telcos planning to offer 3G services; the move comes in response to the Financial Ministry demanding that...

Telefonica O2 Slovakia has announced that its GSM mobile network, which it launched in August 2007, now covers 88% of the Slovakian population via 800 base station transceivers (BTSs), up from 38% at the end of January and far exceeding its licence stipul...

Globes Online is reporting that Israeli telco Bezeq’s subsidiaries Pelephone and Bezeq International will widen their roaming contract as part of Pelephone's new network. The report indicates the companies are set to invest ILS1 billion (USD278 million)...

Orange France is launching what it claims to be the world’s first commercial 3G unlicensed mobile access (UMA) service next month, it announced in a press release. Two 3G/UMA Orange handsets from Samsung and Sony Ericsson will be available to French cus...

Unitech has raised INR12 billion (USD267 million) for its telecom venture from a syndicate of public sector banks led by Punjab National Bank and Canara Bank, Indian news source The Economic Times is reporting. Unitech Wireless, the group’s telecoms arm...

Dutch cellco KPN has revealed that it signed up 10,000 subscribers to its mobile TV service by the start of this month. Last summer, KPN introduced the mobile TV service with ten channels - including two exclusively for mobile users - over a newly built D...

O2 UK has announced a deal that will see the cellco offer wireless coverage to the Glasgow subway system. The contract, negotiated with transmission provider Arqiva and Strathclyde Partnership for Transport (SPT), will initially allow O2 to provide covera...

Portugal’s telecoms regulator Anacom has launched a tender for a mobile licence to operate in the 450MHz-470MHz band. Interested parties have until 3 October to submit their bids. Local press reports say that bids are likely from Zon Multimedia, Cabovis...

The Court of Appeals in Bucharest has decided to postpone making a decision on the recent award of a mobile licence to fixed line operator RomTelecom. The firm was announced as the winner of the concession, which offers spectrum in the 410MHz-415MHz and 4...

Econet Wireless Kenya is set to begin testing its network later this month ahead of a commercial launch which is due by November. The operator is working with Swedish equipment manufacturer Ericsson on its network rollout and the vendor’s managing direc...

Telecompaper reports that GlasvezelNet Amsterdam (GNA), BBNed and InterNLnet will initiate a pilot of 1Gbps symmetric fibre-optic connections this week. The trial will be carried out in the Amsterdam districts of Osdorp, Zeeburg and Oost/Watergraafsmeer. ...

Despite the award of the government contract for the nation’s high speed broadband project to Telekom Malaysia (TM) at the beginning of September, alternative provider High Speed Broadband Technology (HSBT) will continue to seek a licence to build an al...

Clearwire’s chief financial officer, John Butler, says his company is on track to complete its merger with the WiMAX operations of Sprint Nextel before the end of this year. Butler says he is pleased with the progress towards regulatory approval, despit...

Peruvian telecoms operator Telefonica del Peru (TdP) has acquired cable TV operator Star GlobalCom from Liberty Global for USD12 million, reports BNamericas citing local newspaper Correo. Star GlobalCom operates cable networks in the cities of Arequipa an...

Spectrum, the management company behind Gambian wireline and mobile operators Gamtel and Gamcel, aims to quash rumours in the local press of alleged financial and operational problems in a report to be published in the first quarter of next year, the Leba...

Bosnian telco Telekom Srpske generated net profit of BAM52 million (USD37.5 million) for the six months ended 30 June 2008, Limun.hr is reporting. Total revenues for the same period were reported as BAM220 million. Telekom Srpske is 65% owned by Telekom S...

Belgian investment company Bayarmont Ventures plans to make a takeover bid for Croatian alternative telco and broadband operator Metronet by the end of this month, according to Croatia Today. Bayarmont Ventures plans to offer up to EUR1 million for a cont...

Tradingmarkets.com writes that Hong Kong-based property developer Sun Hung Kai Properties is ‘likely’ to offload the 58% stake it holds in the Special Administrative Region (SAR) 2G/3G mobile operator SmarTone-Vodafone to telecoms carriers based in ma...

Russian telco Uralsvyazinform has said it will issue five-year credit linked notes (CLNs) worth USD150 million in the fourth quarter of this year, Reuters reports. The firm said it expects a rate of 9% in the first 18 months of the notes’ duration. ‘T...

Web giant Google, international cable holding company Liberty Global and Europe's biggest bank HSBC are backing plans to provide low-cost, broadband internet access via satellite to billions in Africa and other emerging markets. O3b Networks, whose missio...