SYDNEY, Australia-Cable & Wireless Optus confirmed it has received revised proposals from parties interested in buying the Australia-based carrier. Vodafone Group plc, Singapore Telecommunications and Telecom New Zealand are understood to be interested in buying the carrier, which has mobile, consumer and corporate data...
MELBOURNE, Australia-Cable & Wireless Optus established a subsidiary, Agility Networks, responsible for rolling out Australia's first tail-end broadband wireless network using local multipoint distribution system (LMDS) technology. The new company's role was confirmed late last year after Optus paid US$19.7 million for 500 megahertz...
MELBOURNE, Australia-The Australian Communications Authority (ACA) will hold the keenly awaited auction of third-generation (3G) spectrum in the 2 GHz radio-frequency band in early March.The new 3G mobile services are expected to combine popular communications forms, such as mobile phones, the Internet and computers,...
HELSINKI, Finland-Nokia Corp. announced 10 operators around the world now have commercial GPRS services based on Nokia solutions up and running.The company said the next step will be to optimize GPRS networks for transporting WAP and other content.The companies launching GPRS services are Fujian...
LONDON-Cable & Wireless Optus announced it is conducting an ongoing review of structural and strategic options for all three of its operating businesses, Data and Business Services, Mobile and Consumer & Multimedia.The company said the review will include looking at an equity partnership in...
DENVER, United States-One of the world's most savvy and chic brand names is coming to the U.S. mobile-phone market next year.Virtual network operator (VNO) Virgin Mobile USA said it plans to ink an agreement with a carrier here and offer nationwide service by the...
EricssonCanada. With Microcell Connexions for a GPRS network.Value: UndisclosedChina. With China Unicom for GSM expansions in Jilin, Sichuan, Jiangsu, Anhui and Hubei provinces.Value: US$176 millionLaos. With Lao Telecommunications Co. for GSM switching.Value: US$1.2 millionMexico. With Pegaso forCDMA equipment for its PCS network.Value: US$200 millionTurkey. With Turkcell for a...
One of the world's most savvy and chic brand names is coming to the U.S. mobile-phone market next year.Virtual network operator Virgin Mobile USA said it plans to ink an agreement with a carrier in the United States and offer nationwide service by the...
SYDNEY, Australia-Cable & Wireless Optus, which operates a mobile-phone network in Australia, said it is in discussions with other telecom companies about forming a partnership in mobile telephony outside Australia. In addition, the company announced alliances for offering mobile data services to businesses.The alliances,...
The Australian government has banned Telstra, Australia's dominant telecommunications provider, from bidding on 165 megahertz of spectrum in the 3.4 GHz auction in September, citing Telstra's existing foothold in the delivery of high-speed wireless voice and data services."Telstra has a number of existing and...
NEW YORK-Telstra Corp., Australia's dominant telecommunications provider, "hates to be considered an incumbent because we transitioned to a New Age company years ago," said Philip Wise, managing director of its Mobile Consumer Division.To provide a full suite of services, the company is involved in...
HOUSTON-Crown Castle International Corp.'s subsidiary, Crown Castle Australia Ltd., signed a definitive agreement to purchase about 700 wireless communications towers from Cable & Wireless Optus for $135 million, including an exclusive right to develop all future tower sites for Optus during the next six...
MELBOURNE, Australia-The explosive growth in mobile telephony and the last chance to buy personal communications services (PCS) spectrum in the 1.8 GHz band have led to a fierce bidding war among Australian carriers. The auction for spectrum in all mainland state capital cities also...
The UMTS Forum said it welcomed proposals by the Asia-Pacific Telecommunity Conference Preparatory Group (APG) for adoption of the 2520-2670 MHz band to support the terrestrial component of IMT-2000. APG proposed that administrations make up to 160 megahertz of additional spectrum available for IMT-2000.AustraliaVirgin...
Research In Motion Ltd. last week received a $25 million investment from Nortel Networks and an order for more than 2,000 BlackBerry handheld devices in the next three months from Intel Corp., leading to a strong surge in the company's stock.The Nortel pact is...
AustraliaACCC, Australia's corporate regulator, rejected Telstra Corp.'s proposed terms and conditions for other carriers to interconnect with its analog and digital mobile networks. The decision followed another decision by ACCC to reject Telstra' proposed terms and conditions for interconnect with its fixed network. Mobile...
NEW YORK-AAPT Ltd. announced last week it awarded Samsung Electronics of South Korea a $205 million turnkey contract to design, construct, operate, maintain and provide systems integration services for its new Code Division Multiple Access network in Australia.The carrier plans to launch commercial CDMA...
SYDNEY, Australia-In a year-end earnings announcement Aug. 12, Australia's Cable & Wireless Optus reported after-tax profits of $113 million for the fiscal year ended June 30."The after-tax profit result is 74 percent higher than the company's forecast in its prospectus last November," Optus said.Chris...
AlcatelAustria. With Tele.ring for its new GSM 1800 network.Value: US$298 millionEricssonBrazil. With Telecom Italia Mobile to expand its TDMA network.Value: US$100 millionChina. With China Telecom (Hong Kong) Ltd. for GSM equipment to expand its network in Guangdong province.Value: US$290 millionFinland. With Sonera for a GPRS system.Value: UndisclosedJapan. With...
AUSTRALIA-Cable & Wireless Optus announced enhancements to its Global System for Mobile communications network to bring high-speed data services to the Australian market.The carrier said it has implemented General Packet Radio Service technology, added the Wireless Application Protocol and carried out a $50 million...
The Australian Communications Authority has decided to require pre-selection for calls originating on a fixed network and terminating on a mobile network.The ACA, which is responsible for regulating telecommunications and radio communications in Australia, said fixed-to-mobile services should be included by June 30 in...
NEW YORK-Cable & Wireless Optus Ltd., Australia's second largest multiservice telecommunications carrier, sold a wildly successful initial public offering Nov. 17, raising $1.56 billion, double the amount it expected.Optus operates a Global System for Mobile communications network with 1.6 million customers, or a 30-percent...
NEW YORK-Cable & Wireless Optus, Australia's second-largest multiservice telecommunications carrier, plans to raise about $600 million in a stock sale Nov. 16, its initial public equity offering.Merrill Lynch & Co. Inc. and Warburg Dillon Read L.L.C. are global coordinators for the IPO, whose shares...
NEW YORK-Australia's Optus Communications, a multiservice carrier, announced fiscal year-end results Aug. 31 that showed significant declines in operating losses compared with the prior year.Optus closed out Fiscal 1998, ended June 30, with 1.7 million wireless telephony customers, of which 158,000 were net new...
