OXFORD, United Kingdom-Vodafone has joined the fast-growing group of European operators to announce delays of third-generation (3G) network deployments. The company said technical problems now mean it is likely to be at least early 2003 before 3G commercial services will be launched in Germany, instead of later this year as originally stated.
According to Juergen von Kuczkowski, head of Vodafone’s German mobile operations, 3G handsets were also a factor in the delay. “It is less a question of terminal quantity than quality standards, and we are simply not satisfied with various performance features. This is particularly so with handover problems. Our suppliers, Nokia and Motorola, are often not able to keep to agreed timetables, and they delay again and again features and handset deliveries.”
In support of this complaint, Nokia admitted it has had problems harmonizing 3G networks and terminals made by different firms.
Separately, Germany’s Quam, a joint venture between the Spanish and Finnish telecom groups Telef
