SYDNEY, Australia-Australian mobile operators Vodafone Australia and Telstra Wholesale announced a network-partnering trial that will see the operators share mobile base-station infrastructure in areas where duplicate coverage exists.
If the pilot project in central regional Victoria is successful, Vodafone will move forward to partner with Telstra Wholesale in other areas to minimize the costs of duplicate equipment in each carrier’s GSM infrastructure, Vodafone said.
“This project will allow Vodafone and Telstra to share elements of their GSM base station infrastructure, removing costly and unnecessary duplication in regional and rural Australia,” said Deena Shiff, managing director of Telstra Wholesale.
L.M. Ericsson is the joint vendor for both operators.
In other Vodafone Australia news, the operator said it has signed on 50,000 Vodafone Live! customers since it launched the multimedia service in April. The company said it signed new global and local content deals with brands such as Sony Pictures, Ministry of Sound, EA Sports, Acclaim and Eidos Interactive, and the new services will go live in October. The company also added the Sharp GX20 handset to its line of Live! handsets in Australia.
