CommsUpdate
TeleGeography's free daily email summary of the world’s top telecom news stories.
14 Mar 2013
WIRELESS
Orange Guinea plans EUR120m expenditure
Orange Guinea has announced plans to invest EUR120 million (USD156 million) on the upgrade of network infrastructure and the extension of services to all of the country’s regions. In a... more
Czechs begin process of redrafting 4G auction rules
The Czech Telecommunication Office (CTU) has begun the process of redrafting the rules for the country’s auction of 4G-suitable mobile frequencies, noting that bidders who dipped out in the aborted... more
Arcep outlines 1800MHz refarming plans
Following a consultation period on the refarming of 1800MHz spectrum for Long Term Evolution (LTE), French telecoms regulator Arcep has decided that only from 25 May 2016 will these frequencies... more
Unitel only applicant to meet requirements for second telecoms licence
Unitel International Holding, backed by Isabel dos Santos, is expected to be announced as the recipient of Sao Tome and Principe’s second fixed and mobile licence, according to a report... more
TRA to revise spectrum auction timetable
Bahrain’s Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) has temporarily postponed its upcoming multi-band mobile frequency auction in order to revise the timetable for the licensing process. It issued the original invitation to... more
Mobile money users overtake traditional bank accounts
Transactions carried out through mobile financial services (MFS) totalled UGX11.7 trillion (USD4.374 billion) in 2012, up from UGX3.75 trillion in 2011, the Daily Monitor quotes the deputy governor of the... more
DTAC’s 2100MHz 3G network to launch in June
Thailand’s second largest mobile operator DTAC will launch its 2100MHz 3G network in late June, later than rivals AIS and True which aim to launch 3G and 4G 2100MHz services... more
MinTIC to kick off 4G auction in June
The Ministry of Information Technology and Communications (MinTIC) has announced plans for the sale of seven blocks of spectrum for 4G services. The auction, which is set to launch on... more
Preliminary 3G rates set by NBTC
The telecom committee of Thailand’s National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) has approved in principle the base rates for voice and data service fees of 3G cellular operators using the... more
BROADBAND
Spanish units of Vodafone and Orange to roll out joint fibre network
The Spanish subsidiaries of European telecoms giants Vodafone Group and France Telecom-Orange (FT-Orange) will invest up to EUR1 billion (USD1.3 billion) on the construction of a joint fibre-optic network. Under... more
StarHub launches new ‘StarHub TV on Fibre’ IPTV service
Singapore fixed, broadband and mobile provider StarHub has unveiled a new IPTV service, initially available to commercial/business customers in the city state. From 18 May subscribers will be able to... more
MTS to enter Eurasian transit market with Chinese fibre link
Russian telecoms giant Mobile TeleSystems (MTS) plans to enter the Eurasian data traffic market in June 2013, following the completion of a 100Gbps capacity fibre-optic link between Blagoveschensk in the... more
Telekom Slovenije wins latest court decision over T-2
Ljubljana District Court has ruled against Slovenian alternative telco T-2 in the latest decision regarding a dispute stretching back to 2007 when T-2 claimed Telekom Slovenije abused its dominant market... more
WIRELINE
Turk Telekom seeks to sell off unwanted copper cables
According to local media reports, Turk Telekom is planning to sell off its copper wireline infrastructure as its nationwide fibre-optic deployment gathers momentum. Turkish daily Sabah reports that the telco... more
ICH threatens to block calls over FCC recommendation
ProPakistani writes that the nation’s international long-distance (LDI) operators have announced that there will be no change in international termination fees and providers that fail to pay the determined amount... more
CORPORATE/FINANCIAL
Bezeq’s revenue, net profit in 2012 down on increased competition
Israeli fixed line incumbent Bezeq saw net profit fall by 10.1% in the year ended 31 December 2012, on revenues that fell by 9.6%. Bezeq posted a net profit of... more
Jazztel outlines operational and financial expectations for 2013-2017
Alternative Spanish broadband operator Jazztel has published its business plan for the period 2013 to 2017 in which it has set out a number of targets, both operational and financial.... more
Apax set to offload Numericable Be/Lux, Cabovisao to partner Altice
Private equity group Apax Partners MidMarket has agreed to sell the cable operations held by its portfolio company Codilink to its co-investor Altice VII. Codillink will sell its 40% stakes... more
Slovakia begins talks on selling Slovak Telekom stake
Slovakia’s government has decided to begin negotiations on the potential sale of its 49% stake in Slovak Telekom (ST), majority owned by Germany’s Deutsche Telekom (DT), which holds the right... more
Loss-making state telcos make move to recover debt
State-owned telcos Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) and Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd (MTNL) were owed a combined total of INR62.15 billion (USD1.144 billion) in outstanding arrears from customers at the... more
MISCELLANEOUS
GTA unveils refreshed brand identity
Following a strategic review of its operations, GTA, a provider of fixed and mobile telephony, internet access and digital television services in Guam, has announced a complete rebranding that includes... more