Western Wireless Corp. said aloha to Honolulu’s wireless communications market by offering consumers yet another way to communicate-via a personal communications services handset.
The Bellevue, Wash.-based company announced it has activated its PCS 1900 network based on Global System for Mobile communications technology in Honolulu and is marketing its new service under the name VoiceStream Wireless. The network is the second PCS network launched in the United States.
Western Wireless spokeswoman Caroline Boren said VoiceStream has more than 50 base stations throughout the island of Oahu with coverage encompassing Oahu and parts of Kauai and Maui. Full state coverage is expected to be completed by 1998.
Customers have a choice between Nokia Corp.’s 2190 portable phone, which retails for $200 or Motorola Inc.’s PCS Flare pocket phone for $250. The handsets combine a wireless phone, numeric pager and answering machine, the company said. Other standard features include caller identification, call hold and call waiting. Centigram Communications Corp. is supplying its Series 6 communications server to provide advanced integrated voice, fax and data messaging as optional features and services.
Boren said VoiceStream’s basic service plan is priced at $20 per month with 15 minutes of airtime and a $25 activation fee. Additional airtime costs 25 cents per minute, and the first minute of every incoming call is free. Calls placed from one PCS phone to another PCS phone anywhere in the United States are 10 cents per minute. The company said it has agreements with U.S. PCS providers who have chosen GSM technology to allow interstate roaming as soon as their systems are operational. All pricing plans require a one-year contract, Boren said.
VoiceStream is competing with two 10-year-old cellular network providers in Honolulu: Honolulu Cellular Telephone Co. and GTE Mobilnet Inc. The company also will have to contend with the second PCS provider that emerges from the Federal Communication Commission’s C-block auction.
Robert Osias, general manager of Honolulu Cellular, welcomes the competition and said a new wireless carrier will spur growth in the market. But he believes the infant PCS provider is not ready to stand toe to toe with his network.
“We do not feel we are comparing apples to apples,” said Osias. “We feel confident the quality of our system is significantly better. VoiceStream is still a ways away from covering the entire state … and with respect to hardware pricing, we’re selling phones in the zero to $39 range.”
Osias noted that statewide coverage is essential to some customers who frequently travel to other areas of the state. Honolulu Cellular, majority owned by BellSouth Cellular Corp., provides coverage in all of Hawaii and belongs to the North American Cellular Network.
The company also differentiates itself by offering a service that calculates how much airtime a customer uses and automatically puts the customer in one of three pricing structures. Osias said the company has not lowered rates since VoiceStream’s introduction.
GTE Mobilnet spokeswoman Susan Asher said cellular’s longevity and its established nationwide networks are well-positioned to stay ahead of new market competitors.
“We don’t think a customer cares whether he gets his service from PCS or cellular or SMR [specialized mobile radio],” Asher said. “The customer cares about quality … In terms of wireless operations nationwide, it all amounts to the same thing-the ability to serve the customer … We feel we are very competitive with any new entry in the marketplace in terms of network and roaming ability.”
Asher said GTE Mobilnet is offering its Honolulu subscribers a service called Tele-Go that is priced at $25 per month and includes a free cellular telephone. The phone functions as a cordless phone when in the home or office and as a cellular phone when away. No airtime is charged for cordless use and cellular airtime is priced at 25 cents per minute, Asher said. Some of GTE Mobilnet’s pricing plans have been reduced by 30 percent during the past three months, she said.
Western Wireless also holds broadband PCS licenses in Albuquerque, N.M., Denver, Des Moines, Iowa, Oklahoma City, Portland, Ore., and Salt Lake City. The company purchased the Denver license from GTE Mobilnet in January.
Western Wireless paid $22.4 million for its Honolulu license.
