News taken from this week's issue of EAST EUROPE TELECOM-WEEK
Thursday 22 January 2009
Velcom, a Belrussian cellco, has launched a new service for its subscribers and clients of Belagroprombank OJSC, an SMS-banking service became available at service number 1250. To operate the account card the holders of Belagroprombank cards have to send SMS-message to short number 1250.
The service allows subscribers to check their cash balance on their card using a phone and also allows them to make payments by means of SMS-messages, including Velcom services, to fill up an EasyPay electronic purse, to pay for the services of ISPs and cable television.
Mobile TeleSystems has also announced access to the service for its subscribers, also using 1250. MTS said access via its network would be charged at BYR 105 (USD 0.04) exclusive of taxes.
Thursday 15 January 2009
On 29 December 2008 Siberitelecom said that it had closed its last analog station ATC-37 in Ulan-Ude.
In the capital of Buryatia it has achieved a 100 percent digital telephone network. The last 4,000 subscribers, served by ATS-37, were diverted to digital equipment during December.
Andrew Zdarova, Deputy Director General - Director of the Buryat branch of Sibirtelecom said: "Currently the Ulan-Ude has 100,000, and the average level of digitalisation in the republic of Buryatia is 89.7 percent."
The new technology provides additional services such as Automatic redial, call waiting, hot line, conference calls, alarm calls, abbreviated dialling, etc.
Thursday 08 January 2009
TeliaSonera’s Azercell Telecom has commissioned a new base station in Gusar, its 1,500 BTS to be commissioned.
Halim Ates, Azercell CEO of the Telecom LLC emphasised that this new station is very important to extending Azercell’s coverage area and rendering support to the regional development programme implemented by national authorities.
Elman Mustafayev, deputy head of Gusar Executive Power Office said: “This radio-base station located at 1,500 meters high above sea level will serve 6 villages of our region. It will cover 8 thousand local residents and provide more stable communication”. Also in attendance was Ali Agan, deputy-CEO of Azercell.
Following this inauguration, an opening ceremony of a new Azercell Express Office of Azercell Telecom has taken place in Khachmaz city. The new Azercell Express Office is based upon the concept of having three types of services at one place. Customers can pay phone bills, use customer services and buy a new phone or number. The operator plans to increase the number of Azercell Express Offices, with offices planned to be opened in Gabala, Sheki, Zagatala, Sumgayit, Ganja and other districts.
Azercell is the leading mobile operator at the end of 3Q 2008 with some 3,395,000 mobile subscribers. In second place is Bakcell with some 1,520,000, followed by Nar Mobile’s Azerfon with 900,000. CATEL had an estimated 20,000 subscribers.
Thursday 18 December 2008
The Kazakhtelecom WLL CDMA rural telecommunications project saw Chairman of the Agency on Information and Connection, Kuanyshbek Esekeyev and Kazakhtelecom Chairman Askar Zhumagaliyev visit the Almaty region on 12 December to review progress.
They visited Tuimebayev village in the Ashibulak rural district where subscribers are being connected to the CDMA-450 network.
It is hoped that the project will eliminate the deficit on telephony services in rural areas. A CDMA-450 base station in a rural area has a range of some 25-35 km, and potentially serve up to 1,000 people.
Kuanyshbek Esekeyev said: "[The] breakthrough nature of the project due to the fact that the proposed WLL CDMA technology is very convenient in terms of a speedy solution to the problem of total teledensity of our villages. This is both cost-effective technology than, say, cable telephony and advanced technology from the standpoint of building third-generation networks".
CDMA-450 technology now connects 13,550 subscribers in the Almaty region, and a further 1,500 subscribers are expected to be connected by the end of 2008.
To date some 171 base stations have been erected in 12 areas of Kazakhstan, and the operator plans to finish the year with some 200 base stations, handling some 61,000 phones.
Plans for 2009 include connecting 165,000 lines, including the commissioning next year of 117 base stations throughout the Republic. Overall, the project involves the installation of up to a total of 900 stations by the 2013.
Meanwhile, the interest in conventional GSM remains unabated. Last week the three GSM operators in Kazakhstan purchased GSM-1800 frequencies. Deputy Chairman of State Agency for Information and Communication Republic (AIS) Askar Bishigaev said that GSM Kazakhstan, Kar-Tel and MTS had bought 5 MHz packages of frequency, paying a total of KZT 7.5 billion (USD 63.7 million). He added that the operators are obliged to fulfil their investment commitments to infrastructure development in rural areas, regardless of the economic situation in the country.
GSM Kazakhstan remains the largest mobile operator in the territory with some 7.0 million subscribers at the end of 3Q 2008: in second place was VimpelCom’s Kar-Tel with 5.6 million. JSC Artel, which operates a CDMA800 network, had an estimated 484,000 subscribers at the end of the third quarter, whilst GSM-operator Mobile Telecom Service had some 308,000 subscribers.
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Thursday 11 December 2008
Vala, a Kosovan mobile operator, has begun to apply cheap call rates (off-peak) during official holidays, and therefore this week cheap call rate will apply for Eid on 8 December 2008. This means the off-peak call rate will apply through the holiday, as well as on all national holidays.
Vala has announced last month that it is now offering rates 25 percent cheaper than any other operator, with pre-paid customers now being charged only EUR 0.04 per minute.
Vala also implemented its GSM NGN (Next Generation Network) on 23 September 2008.
Vala dropping call prices will help it increase its lead in the Kosovan mobile market as the State undertakes a privatisation programme in an attempt to open up the mobile market to more competition.
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Thursday 04 December 2008
Bakcell Company, the first mobile operator to launch its services in Azerbaijan, has launched its new 'Meloton' service to subscribers. Any Bakcell subscriber can take advantage of this service starting from 28 November 2008.
Using the 'Meloton' service Bakcell subscribers can choose and install melodies and phrases which will play instead of standard long tones in phone tubes of calling subscribers.
To order the 'Meloton' service it is necessary to send a USSD request to *123* Meloton code#yes. The subscribers can also send SMS with the Meloton code on number 6970. After a short time subscribers will receive an SMS confirming their order of the melody or phrase.
The cost of one 'Meloton' for Klass subscribers is AZN 1 including VAT, and for Cin Kart subscribers - AZN 0.25. The melody or phrase is usable for 30 days. Bakcell subscribers can get additional information about 'Meloton' service from www.meloton.az.
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Friday 14 September 2007
Azercell Telecom and Celtel in the Republic of Niger have signed an international roaming deal.
Azercell has some 336 roaming agreements with mobile operators in 140 countries, and a domestic subscriber base of some 2,500,000 users.
Celtel Niger is the largest operator in Niger with some 397,000, representing an 82 percent market share. The other two operators are Sahel-Com with 8 percent share, and Telecel-Niger with a 10 percent share.
Azercell Telecom was founded on 19 January 1996, and is a joint company of the Communication and Information Technology Ministry of Azerbaijan and Fintur Holdings BV company. Fintur Holdings is, in turn, owned by TeliaSonera, with a 58.55 percent stake, and Turkcell with 41.45 percent.
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Friday 31 August 2007
From 1 October 2007 V odafone Romania will use Euro instead of USD, as currency for calculating the tariffs for its services.
Liliana Solomon, CEO Vodafone Romania.said: "The conversion to Euro has been a complex process, which lasted over 6 months and involved significant changes in our informatics systems and in our billing plans."
Subscriptions, national tariffs for voice and data services, the existing credit on Cartela Vodafone and the Vodafone 2 in 1 subscription, will be converted from USD to Euro, using 0.73421 as conversion rate (1 USD = 0.73421 EUR). The rate was calculated as an average of BNR rates of exchange for EURO/RON and USD/RON. The billing will have as reference the new tariffs in Euros, that will be converted in RON, at the BNR exchange rate at the invoice issuing date.
The new tariffs will be available on www.vodafone.ro, from 28 August 2007.
Vodafone Romania, a subsidiary of Vodafone Group Plc., had 8.223 million customers, as of 30 June 2007.
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