3 Launches Mobile Broadband Advertising

Mobile operator 3 UK has opened up its mobile broadband ‘dashboard’ as advertising real-estate. The dashboard, which launches every time a user connects to the Internet via their 3 dongle, will be visible to more than 1 million mobile broadband users, and receives more than 30 million impressions every month.
The network is currently looking for the initial set of advertising partners to sign up until the end of 2009. Launch brands will have the option to receive in the region of 1-3 million impressions each month. 3 will sell the inventory direct, or through advertising agencies.
3 says that customer experience of the advertising will be simple and unobtrusive, in line with its ongoing mobile broadband proposition. Once the mobile broadband dongle is plugged into the USB port of a computer, the dashboard will automatically appear with the connection manager and advertising pane alongside. 3 claims to have the UK’s largest high speed mobile Internet infrastructure, and offers a range of mobile broadband packages.
Mobile broadband dashboard advertising has already been used with great success by 3 UK’s sister network in Austria, which is already running campaigns with brands such as VW, Suzuki, Kia, Peugeot, Mazda, Honda and Land Rover. 3 says that companies advertising in this way are seeing a clickthrough rate of up to 6%.
 “3 UK has always led the market when it comes to providing innovative advertising space on mobile, because we have a uniquely powerful network,” says 3 UK Head of Advertising, Neil Andrews. “This has allowed us to do some very interesting things with mobile content and the advertising surrounding this. Our mobile broadband offering is seeing a huge amount of uptake. This new opportunity presents brands with the opportunity of getting in front of a large target audience in a bold and visible manner.”

Virgin and Samsung in V-Festival Giveaway

Virgin Media, headline sponsor of this year’s V-Festival, has teamed up with official phone partner Samsung Mobile to give away over 1,000 tickets to the festival.
This year’s event sold out within two hours of the tickets going on sale, with 186,000 tickets sold in the first 90 minutes. The Virgin/Samsung giveaway offers free tickets to consumers buying new Samsung phones on the Virgin Media network. 
The first 1,000 pay monthly consumers who choose the Samsung Tocco Lite on the £18-per-month contract from Virgin Media will get unlimited texts and 250 minutes, or unlimited web access, 500 texts and 150 minutes, plus a free day ticket to V-Festival Chelmsford.
Customers buying a Samsung C3050 in July on Virgin Media pay as you go are in with the chance of winning the ‘ultimate V Festival experience’ in a prize draw. The winner will be whisked away, along with five of their friends, for a VIP weekend at V-Festival, Chelmsford. The prize includes a personal Winnebago on site for relaxing after a hard day’s partying, the ‘Virgin Angel’ concierge service, and the chance to watch one V-Festival act from stage side. 50 runners-up will win a pair of weekend tickets to V-Festival, Chelmsford.

O2 Offers Free Twitter Alerts

O2 has announced an agreement with Twitter which will allow O2 customers to receive SMS alerts from Twitter for free from August. This joins existing agreements O2 has with Facebook and Bebo, meaning that O2 customers can enjoy free SMS alerts from all three social networking sites.
The Twitter deal allows O2 customers to receive tweets from chosen friends, @mentions, and direct messages via SMS. They can also send and reply to tweets by text which will come from their bundle or be charged at the standard network rate. Customers can already access their Twitter account using their mobile phone and as part of the agreement, Twitter’s mobile site will be heavily promoted on O2 Active.
O2 notes that social networking over mobile is currently experiencing phenomenal growth. Over 1 million customers per month now access social networking sites such as Twitter and Facebook using O2 Active. This is in addition to the hundreds of thousands of iPhone customers who have downloaded social networking applications. Over 12 million messages from Facebook are received by O2 customers every month.
“We believe that mobile will soon become the most popular way of accessing social networking sites, giving real time access to tweets and status updates wherever you are,” says Antony Douglas, Head of Content at O2. “The agreements we now have in place with Twitter and the other key sites brings this a step closer, making it quick and easy for O2 customers to access their favourite social networks straight from their mobile.”
O2 says the agreement with the network in the UK will form a framework for future agreements between Twitter and Telefónica operations globally.

Orange in DRM-free Music Move

Orange is to offer up to 2 million Digital Rights Management (DRM)-free music downloads for customers across Europe in a major refresh of its dual mobile and web portal service, the Orange Music Store. 
The new-look ‘Web and Wap’ music store went live in the UK last week, giving customers access to over 700,000 DRM-free tracks through a simpler interface. In a gradual roll-out, Orange will convert its entire catalogue of 2 million tracks from rights-protected to DRM-free. 
The Orange Music Store, first launched in 2005 and present in nine markets, already gives customers dual access on web and mobile to the full catalogue of 2 million downloadable tracks from the world’s largest record companies, including Universal Music, Warner Music, Sony Music Entertainment and EMI Music, as well as prominent indie labels.  
All the tracks that appear in the store will now be DRM-free. Customers only need to make one payment to receive two files: a DRM-free MP3 file for the PC and an over-the-air (OTA) download for the mobile phone. They can then use their purchased music however they like, whether listening to it on their mobile phone, sharing it with another PC, burning it to CD or transferring to a personal MP3 player.
Following the UK launch, the new DRM-free Orange Music Store will open in France, Switzerland, Romania, Slovakia, Portugal and other countries throughout 2009. It will have a clearer and simpler format, with enhanced browsing and navigation to make it easier to discover and download music.
“There’s huge consumer appetite for music on the move, and with our DRM-free music catalogue and the new-look Music Store, we have effectively removed all the current barriers preventing customers from enjoying music the way they want to,” says Orange Vice-President of Music, Laurence Le Ny. “By providing a more seamless experience across PC and mobile, our music partners can make their content available to millions of European customers, letting them enjoy a vast collection of music any way they want.”
At launch customers can enjoy DRM-free music through the new portal. In the next phase, the Orange Music Store will also feature improved search, faster billing processes, personalized recommendations, user community features and more.

GSMA RCS Goes Live in S. Korea

The GSM Association (GSMA) has revealed that the world’s first interoperable enhanced communication service, incorporating key elements of the GSMA’s Rich Communication Suite (RCS) specifications, is now a live commercial service in S. Korea. The GSMA’s RCS initiative is supported by some of the world’s leading handset vendors, core network vendors and mobile operators, including KT and SK Telecom, who joined the initiative to provide an interoperable service solution in S. Korea.
The services offered by the three S. Korean operators include KT’s ‘show moov’, SK Telecom’s ‘Mobile Messenger’ and LG Telecom’s ‘OZ messenger’. These services commercialise key features of RCS, such as phonebook-driven buddy lists; presence capability that includes taglines and status; and voice calls and messaging.
KT’s ‘show moov’ client application is available for mobile and PC platforms, enabling users to access RCS services from mobile and fixed terminals, which is a key feature of the RCS specifications developed by the GSMA. In addition, SK Telecom and KT are actively collaborating with fixed-line services. SK Telecom’ s mobile messenger, for example, is linked with one of Korea’s most popular messenger services, ‘Nate On Messenger’.
“We are delighted that three leading mobile operators in South Korea, KT, LG Telecom and SK Telecom, have together launched the world’s first commercial service incorporating key elements of the GSMA's Rich Communication Suite,” ssays GSMA CMO, Michael O’Hara. “We live in a world where users want to access and share information at any time, any place and from any device, and the GSMA’s RCS initiative provides operators with the ability to launch a variety of new and enhanced communication services that fulfils this need.”
The GSMA says its RCS initiative will provide an exciting, feature-rich portfolio of communication services that operators will be able to offer their customers. RCS unleashes the communities hidden in a user’s phone book and with one simple click, enabling the user to share lifestyle experiences and emotions using rich content such as images and video amongst their closest ‘buddies’.
Developed by the collaborative efforts of leading mobile operators, vendors and telecommunication companies, RCS service features for the end user include an ‘Enhanced Address Book’ with presence and capability indications; ‘Rich Call’ facilities to exchange different types of content during a call; and ‘Rich Messaging’ that expands on traditional instant messaging.
SK Telecom and KT are active participants in the GSMA’s RCS initiative. The GSMA says their interoperable commercial services in S. Korea will provide significant opportunities for feedback, which will assist the creation of new use , s the RCS specification focus moves into the PC-to-mobile domain.  
Further announcements on RCS trials and launched commercial services are expected around the world in the coming year.

3rd Space Delivers Ad-funded Video for Reliance

Indian telco Reliance Communications has announced a partnership with UK mobile marketing firm, 3rd Space Services, to launch ad-funded videos on its Reliance Mobile platform. Under the tersm of the agreement, 3rd Space will supply mobile video content to Reliance Communications. It will also offer premium content such as ‘Who wants to be a Millionaire’, Bollywood songs and films, and sports content. The service will be available on every data-enabled handset within the Reliance network. Customers will have access to the content in exchange for watching an ad embedded within the video.
“Our tie-up with 3rd Space will be mutually beneficial,” says Krishna Durbha, Head of Value Added Services at Reliance Communications. “It will not only increase the viewership, but also the revenue for both companies. Besides, the application offers outstanding video quality hitherto not experienced by mobile users, and will be accessible on every handset in our ecosystem. Our initiative will act as a launch pad for ad-funded videos in India, with more exciting things to follow.”

Tosh TG01 Launches on Orange

Orange has been unveiled as the exclusive network partner for the Toshiba TG01 handset in the UK.
The TG01 offers users a 4.1” W-VGA screen, and comes with an exclusive pre-loaded film trailer for the forthcoming summer blockbuster ‘GI Joe’. It is also the first handset to be sold in the UK which has 1GHz of processing power, offering fast mobile Internet connectivity.
The handset is the first from Toshiba to be part of Orange’s Signature Series and comes with quick links to the best of Orange TV & Video, Orange Maps (Orange’s own satnav service which utilises the TG01’s inbuilt AGPS), and the Orange World mobile Internet portal.
The TG01 will be free to customers who take out a £39.15 per month, 24-month price plan. The package includes 1,200 any network call minutes, unlimited texts, Orange Maps, and inclusive anytime Internet browsing, and is exclusive to Orange in the UK.
“We’re really pleased to have teamed up with Toshiba to bring the TG01 exclusively to the UK,” says Francois Mathieu, Director of Devices at Orange UK. “We believe the TG01 is a prime example of manufacturer innovation, and is a device that is at the very top of its game, which will allow users to make the most from their mobile experience.”

Smooth Operator

Turkcell is a mobile operator with a reputation for innovation. David Murphy talks to Head of Mobile Marketing & Advertising, Melis Turkmen, to find out why the company seems to be so far ahead of the game when it comes to mobile marketing

DM: So Melis, first off, tell us a little bit about Turkcell please.

MT: Sure. Turkcell operates in eight countries, and we have 62 million subscribers. In Turkey, we have 37 million subscribers so we are the second-largest operator in Europe and the 13th largest in the world.

DM: So, mobile operators do not have a great reputation. People talk about them as the ‘dumb pipe’ and say they are very slow to innovate, but whenever I hear Turkcell speak at conferences, or when other people talk about you, you seem to stand out from the rest, and you also seem to be very keen to share your experiences.

MT: Well we have more than 20 mobile marketing products and we are keen to give more information about them to people from other countries. We believe we are a leader in the sector, and the job of a leader is to educate and share best practice.
When we talk to some other operators, most of them hardly think about mobile marketing, but we see mobile marketing as a huge opportunity. Therefore, we have been active on new products and services since the beginning. Our database of 7.6 million opt-in subscribers that we can use for mobile marketing and advertising is a healthy revenue generator. This is one of the largest databases of its kind in Europe, possibly in the world, and we know a lot about them, including their location, demographics, and their data usage that we target subscribers accordingly

DM: That’s an impressive number. Do you give these people any incentive to opt in?

MT: We give up to 20 credits (which equals 10 texts) for pre-paid and 10 texts for post-paid, as they opt-in to the database. But the main incentive that we offer is to tell them that the mobile marketing that they will receive on their phones will be targeted to their needs and interests. So the youth segment will get texts offering discounts off Adidas equipment, and housewives will be targeted with offers for things they can use around the house.

DM: And when did you first get in to mobile marketing?

MT: We started in 2002 started with a Sweepstakes campaign for Lipton Ice Tea. We used a keyword and a Shortcode on the packaging that people could text in to in order to win a brand new car!

DM: So what sort of campaigns do you run?

MT: We try to reach our opted-in database via many different channels, SMS, MMS, WAP Push, video, even IVR (Interactive Voice Response). So a customer might get a call asking if they have any Olive Oil in the house, and they are asked to press 1 for Yes and 2 for No. If they press 1, then we send them a gift. If they press 2, then we tell them, if they buy the brand today, we will send you a gift, maybe something you can use in the kitchen.
Credit and airtime campaigns are also very popular. In fact, campaigns account for more than 60% of our mobile marketing revenues, with the rest coming from advertising. We sell credit and airtime to brands, in millions of units, that they can then give away for free to their subscribers
In May 2007 for example, we ran a campaign for Pepsi, where consumers had to text in to a Shortcode printed on cans of Pepsi. This was charged as one text message, but by texting in, they were guaranteed five credits, which equals two and a half texts or two minutes talk time. That was an enormous success. We received 13 million texts from 1 million people in three months.
The great thing about a campaign like this is that the consumer can’t lose. Everyone gets the guaranteed minimum, but you may get more. In this campaign, for example, we gave away 2009 credits and 500 minutes of talk time every hour.

DM: And what sort of revenues are you generating from mobile marketing?

MT: We estimate that in 2009, there will be $91 million (£55 million) of revenues from mobile marketing in Turkey, and we will take a 70% share of that. Next year, we are forecasting $125 million, of which we will take 69%, and in 2012, $260 million, with Turkcell again taking 69% of those revenues. These revenues are made up of all three operators in Turkey, plus the agencies. We have around 20 agencies who are selling our products to advertiser brands.
We are also now selling advertising on other publishers’ sites, and within iPhone applications, as well as our own mobile portal. We have set up a mobile advertising sales house to do this.

DM: And of course, many people will associate Turkcell with the Tone&Win campaign, where Turkcell subscribers get credit in return for using advertising messages as a Ringback Tone that their friend here when they call them. We came out and criticised the idea when you launched it, but it has been winning awards, so I guess you must be doing something right.

MT: Yes, Tone&Win was selected as the best mobile marketing and advertising service in the GSMA Global awards, Visiongain’s Mama and the Meffy Awards. This could only be explained by a technically well-powered service which is built on a good business model. Tone & Win is now hitting record levels with Pepsi’s new promotion in Turkey. Earlier this year, Turkcell cooperated with Pepsi for the brand’s summer promotion. Although the promotion mechanic is a typical text & Win, consumers are experiencing a one-of-a-kind interaction throughout the campaign. Pepsi’s new viral advertising on mobile has been so unique and well received by the consumers that 3.8 million consumers took part within the first month, outperforming all previous promotional campaigns.

DM: And what else are you planning?

MT: We have recently launched mobile surveys. It’s like a ‘fast-food’ survey service. The market research firms are still trying to do surveys on the streets, but you need a lot of people for that and it costs a lot of money. But with a mobile survey, we can profile the database, send them a WAP Push link to the survey and they can answer it right there on their phone. We are also talking to the big research firms about the service.

DM: Is anyone using it?

MT: Yes. One client, Garanti, has a credit card called Flexi. When they run a TV ad, we send out a WAP Push link to a mobile survey asking people what they thought of the ad, whether they liked it, whether it would make them want a Flexi credit card. 
For the future, we are launching 3G this summer, so we will have new products like Mobile TV with advertising, video calls and ad-funded video, so there will be even more mobile marketing and advertising products. We are also giving out information for free to subscribers in the form of ad-funded text messages, things like weather updates, lottery results. For the Weather service, we have 2 million subscribers, and Pepsi have bought the entire inventory for June, July and August. In fact, the whole year is sold. And when 3G arrives, we will offer video versions of these services.

DM: You have won lots of awards this year for mobile marketing and advertising, what is your secret?

MT: As I said, we are a leader in the sector, and the job of a leader is to educate and share best practice.  So that leads to appreciation in the local and global arena not only in mobile marketing articles and research studies, but also reputable awards. Tone&Win was selected as best mobile advertising service by the GSMA, the Mobile Entertainment Forum (Meffys) and Visiongain, and Visiongain also named our permission database as the runner-up for the best network for delivery of mobile marketing and advertising.

DM: Good stuff, keep us posted on what you’re up to, sounds like there’s plenty to talk about.

MT: Will do.

GTEL Selects Comverse

GTEL Mobile, a new mobile operator in Vietnam, has deployed the Comverse ONE Billing & Active Customer Management solution, a converged billing system that is designed to help differentiate the operator from other telecom providers by offering flexible billing models and a 360-degree view of the customer, regardless of touchpoint.
Established last July, GTEL Mobile is a joint venture between Vietnam’s GTEL Corporation and VimpelCom, which provides telecommunications services in Eastern Europe. Vietnam’s telecommunications industry has recently been growing at 20 to 25% annually, and the country now has more than 50 million mobile service users.
GTEL Mobile has also deployed a portfolio of Comverse HUB Value-Added Services, including SMS Center for text messaging, MMS Center for multimedia messaging, Messaging Gateway, Mobile Internet Gateway, Next-Generation Voicemail, Call Completion and Ringback Tone services.
“Comverse offered a truly convergent prepaid and postpaid platform, together with a suite of pre-integrated, value-added services, that gives us the needed functionality to establish a foothold in the competitive Vietnamese market,” says GTEL Mobile CEO, Alexey Blyumin. “Comverse's strong presence in Vietnam and its track record of successful deployments of its billing solutions and value-added services with many other VimpelCom affiliates were key factors in our decision.”
Comverse ONE Billing & Active Customer Management is a converged Business Support System (BSS) solution that will enable GTEL Mobile to support any type of payment, such as prepaid, postpaid or hybrid, as well as create and deliver any service over its network efficiently.
Comverse’s flagship billing solution also provides integrated customer management that allows operators to respond to the changing needs of customers, offer real-time marketing capabilities;, and provide a range of self-service options.

HulloMail Celebrates T-Mobile Success

T-Mobile has abolished premium call divert charges to customers using the HulloMail voicemail service. The network droped the charges on 29 June after prolonged pressure from Hullomail itself, and from customers incensed at being penalised for opting out of T-Mobile’s own voicemail service. T-Mobile had been the only operator to levy a premium of 17p or 26p depending on the customer’s tariff. The change means diverts will be considered as part of bundled minutes.    
HulloMail, the British company whose free downloadable voicemail app for the G1 phone was one of the early star performers on Android Marketplace, was T-Mobile’s most vociferous lobbyist. Given T-Mobile’s UK exclusivity over the G1, HulloMail boss Andy Munarriz had been lobbying the operator for several months. His calls had also been echoed by online petitions, with customers complaining of being penalised for using an otherwise free solution which was felt to be against the spirit of an open marketplace.
“These days, people expect voicemail to be as flexible as any other form of digital communications and our service allows precisely that,” says Munarriz. “I’m therefore delighted that when T-Mobile saw the advantages of our solution and how strongly users felt about it, they agreed to change their divert charge policy for HulloMail users.”
Currently, all mobile operators handle voicemail messages in much the same way, with all messages being stored on a central server, offering little flexibility in how they are then used. HulloMail says it plans to liberate UK consumers from archaic voicemail usage, allowing them to enjoy a fully integrated, free digital voice-email experience. Munarriz believes that, where users have a better choice, they should be able to use it.       
 “It always seemed unfair that our users should be penalised for wanting the best voicemail solution,” he says. “T-Mobile have shown they are willing to embrace developers who are striving to make mobile usage easier and cheaper, not putting barriers in our way. Hopefully, this is now what will happen.”

O2 gets the Palm Pre

Telefónica and Palm have announced an exclusive agreement to sell the Palm Pre phone initially in the UK, Ireland, Germany and Spain, when the device is launched in Europe “in time for the winter holidays”. 
Palm Pre is the first phone based on the new Palm webOS mobile platform. It features a smooth, rounded ergonomic design and a physical keyboard that slides out only when needed, Palm Pre is engineered to feel natural in the hand and small in the pocket.
“We are fast becoming the home of the Smartphone, with the addition of the hotly-anticipated Palm Pre to our already extensive portfolio,” says Telefónica Europe Chairman and CEO, Matthew Key. “Our customers will be the first outside of North America to experience one of the most successful mobile devices of the year.”
Customers who would like to register to receive additional information about Palm Pre and be notified when it’s available can register here for the UK and Ireland, here for Germany, and here for Spain.

Orange Unveils Watch Phone

Orange has unveiled the world’s first Touchscreen Watch Phone. The LG Touchscreen Watch Phone goes on sale in August and is one of several innovative ‘future phones’ that Orange will be launching over the next 18 months. Orange says the phones have been chosen specifically for their unique digital lifestyle benefits that allow users to make the most from the latest shifts in modern technology.
The device will be available from Orange for “a limited time period” at what Orange describes as an exclusive price point, on either Orange pay as you go or SIM-only. It comes with a Bluetooth headset (for those who don’t want to talk to their watch, Bond-style), in-built speaker and a full touch-screen interface, as well as 3G+ and video-calling capabilities.
“The Watch Phone is the must-have gadget of 2009,” says Orange UK CEO, Tom Alexander. “Our ambition is to become the best loved communications brand in the UK, and the destination brand of choice for high-end mobile users in the market. To help us achieve this, we have secured some of the most original and innovative devices available. The Watch Phone is the first of these devices, all focused on bringing a 21st-century experience to our 21st century customers."

Alcatel-Lucent Targets Operators with Mobile Ad Solution

Alcatel-Lucent has launched its Advertising Selection Server through its subsidiary Gettings and unveiled EPlus group in Germany as the first customer for the service.
The Advertising Selection Server features advanced targeting algorithmsa , and is designed to help mobile operators sell advertising inventory across a variety of formats, including SMS and MMS Push, mobile websites, Ringback Tones, pre- and post-roll video ads, and in-game advertising.
The solution is a key element of the Gettings business model around mobile advertising which was developed through extensive collaboration between Alcatel-Lucent and E-Plus group in the creation of new service features and system testing. Gettings enables advertisers to deliver targeted mobile advertising campaigns to all customers of the E-Plus group in an opt in model.
In the Gettings application E-Plus’ consumers choose between three packages - S, M and L - where they will receive between 10 and 25 mobile ads per week, in return for €1, €1.5 or €2 of credit. The Advertising Selection Server enables users to provide their preferences so they receive only mobile ads that interest them.
“Advertising must not be perceived as a nuisance. This is especially true for ads on a mobile phone,” says Daniel Euler, managing director of E-Plus’ Gettings. “Mobile Advertising only works if it strictly centres around the recipients' interests.”
The Advertising Selection Server provides mobile service providers with a single platform that is able to deliver a mix of push and pull targeted advertising campaigns tailored to an individual subscribers’ opt in preferences. The solution also offers a user-friendly interface for inventory and campaign management and acts as a single front-end for advertising players, with a suite of APIs for tight integration with third party services, profiling, and billing systems. The solution is generally available worldwide as a turnkey product, or as a hosted service.
Alcatel-Lucent says the Advertising Selection Server supports its broader personalized content and advertising strategy, which is geared toward enabling the delivery of relevant, interactive and personalized advertising to consumers over communications networks of all kinds.

Voda Cuts the Cost of Data Roaming

Vodafone UK  has launched new European data roaming tariffs for customers. Vodafone customers can now access the Internet from their mobile phone for £4.99 per day with a 25MB cap. Those who keep their usage below 1 MB will be charged on a per kb rate. Vodafone says that receiving and replying to a short email would  use around 100kb of data, and cost 50p.
Once a customer breaches the 1MB threshold, the £4.99 tariff kicks in, but that gives the customer 25MB of data to play with. Vodafone says that this would be enough data to browse approximately 250 Internet pages, read and reply to 25 emails, find your way to a restaurant on Google Maps, read eight news stories on the BBC website, change your status on Facebook, and watch three 90-second videos on YouTube. Any further Internet usage will be charged at £4.99 for each additional 25MB.
This greater clarity has also been introduced for laptop users who want to use the internet when they are abroad. Customers with their laptops in Europe will receive 50MB for £9.99.
For the purposes of roaming, a day is classified as midnight to midnight UK time, so customers need to be aware of their time zone. Outside Europe, customers will be charged £14.99 for each 25MB when accessing the Internet via their mobile and £29.99 for 50MB through a laptop.
Vodafone is currently the only UK operator to offer per day data roaming charging, which, when broken down, equates to 20p per MB in Europe. Later in the summer, customers will receive real time alerts as they approach the end of their data allowance.
On 1 June Vodafone UK abolished roaming charges for Vodafone Passport customers in 35 countries across Europe for the summer, Until August 31, Vodafone Passport customers can call, text and send picture messages from overseas for the same prices as they would at home.
There’s more information on Vodafone’s data roaming charges here. 

Analysis Reveals Top Global Operators

New analysis from Wireless Intelligence reveals that the top 20 mobile operators and operator groups ranked by total connections represented over 58% of global mobile connections in Q1 09. This collective footprint totals 2.4 billion connections and spans 118 of the 223 global markets tracked by Wireless Intelligence.
In first position is China Mobile, which accounts for 11.5% of the total global connections across its fully-owned interests in China and Hong Kong. With a combined 479 million connections, China Mobile surpasses any other aggregated group in the global study by a factor of two.
Vodafone Group takes second position with 247 million total connections across the 19 markets in which it holds a majority stake in an operator. Vodafone's most recent expansion comes via Ghana, India and the imminent commercial launch in Qatar. UK-based Vodafone has majority-holdings in 10 markets in its home region of Western Europe, the remainder falling across Eastern Europe, Asia and Africa.
Two groups are in close contention for third and fourth place: Spain's Telefónica and Mexico's América Móvil. The two groups’ respective footprints outline the intense competition between the two; Telefónica and América Móvil operate in 13 of the same markets in Latin America, with the latter running a close second place for connections worldwide, despite Telefónica’s heavy European presence.
Overall within the top 20, the study found that the next-generation connections base represents less than 20% of total connections. This is due to two main factors. Firstly, certain groups have footprints in regions where next-generation network deployment is at an early stage (China), or the majority of licence awards have yet to take place (India). Secondly, it highlights the expansion of the predominately European-based groups into the emerging markets.
“High penetration in mature markets is slowing the opportunity for organic growth, as operators push for multiple connections per customer and secondary data connections,” says Wireless Intelligence Analyst, Will Croft. “At the other end of the spectrum, the emerging markets still produce lucrative profit-making ventures and phenomenal growth. We are seeing more consolidation than ever before, as mergers and acquisitions drive non-organic growth in the mature markets, while expansion into the emerging markets remains a key priority for the larger operator groups.”

Voda's T-Mobile Bid Could Succeed, says Law Firm

A report in this morning’s FT suggested that Vodafone was weighing up a bid for T-Mobile after T-Mobile UK’s owner, Deutsche Telekom, appointed JPMorgan to advise on the strategic options for the business.
The report in the FT notes that any bid runs the risk of being blocked by the regulators, since the firm created would have create a 40% market share. But Mark Hodac, a Partner at technology and corporate law firm, White & Black Legal believes the mobile phone industry, which has not been immune to the economic downturn, may well welcome the news, on the basis that a reduction in the number of players in the market could allow the remaining operators to achieve healthier margins. Hodac adds that there are precedents for one company enjoying such a dominant position. He says:
“Whilst consumer groups will be concerned, it is by no means certain that regulators (in particular the European Commission) will block the deal, as circumstances already exist in other EU member states (Italy, France and Spain) where one mobile operator holds at least a 40% market share.
“Furthermore, our experience shows that network coverage is as, if not more, important to customers than pricing, and T-Mobile’s customers may welcome the increased capacity for infrastructure expenditure that Vodafone (as the world’s largest mobile phone operator) could offer.”
More news on the deal as we have it.

NSN Powers Vodafone's Indian Expansion

Vodafone Essar has completed a rapid service expansion into seven new regions across India. People living in or travelling to Assam, Bihar, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Madhya Pradesh, North East and Orissa will now be able to use services provided by India’s second largest GSM operator. Nokia Siemens Network (NSN), Vodafone Essar’s existing infrastructure partner in 12 regions, undertook the new network roll out in just 10 months.
The planning and building of the seven networks was undertaken as in the first phase of a three year expansion contract awarded to NSN in 2008. Further expansion will carry on through 2010.
NSN has a strong track record in speedy network roll out, and in India alone, it sets up 5,000 base stations a month. With this contract, the company has emerged as the largest network implementation partner for Vodafone in India, with more than 80% of Vodafone’s subscriber traffic in the country flowing through infrastructure set up by NSN.
“We are proud to partner with Vodafone Essar as it charts an aggressive growth strategy and are committed to helping it realize its goals,” says C B Velayuthan, Head, Vodafone Customer Team, Nokia Siemens Networks. “India’s vast geography and varied topology, in addition to the acute power shortage in remote areas, make network expansion a challenging task. Our Flexi Base Station and services capabilities are the ideal solution for service providers who want to achieve more, with less.”

O2 Opens up BT Openzone to Mobile Broadband Customers

O2 is offering its mobile broadband customers access to thousands of BT Openzone wi-fi hotspots for the first time. The partnership, which existing customers will see come into effect today, coincides with an upgrade to O2’s Mobile Broadband Connection Manager software, enabling users to manage their data consumption more effectively.
Existing customers can upgrade their software for wider wi-fi access from 29 June. New customers will automatically receive the new software and wi-fi access when purchasing from late July onwards. The upgrade is currently only available for use with Windows software.
The deal with BT Openzone offers an additional 3,000 hotspot, including most branches of Starbucks, and builds on the unlimited wi-fi all O2 customers receive as part of their O2 mobile broadband tariff.
As a result of the upgrade, O2’s Connection Manager software will automatically copy existing wi-fi profiles from a customer’s laptop into Connection Manager during the initial installation process. This will seamlessly connect users to their home or business broadband wireless networks, without the need to manually enter security codes.
The upgrade will also see the addition of a data counter, enabling users to monitor and control their data consumption more easily. The data counter will provide accurate usage information for individual sessions and link through to an overall usage page. To add extra peace-of-mind for consumers, an automatic notification will be sent to the Connection Manager when 75%, 90% and 100% of their data allowance has been reached.
“We appreciate that our customers want to get the most from their mobile broadband service and we continually look to provide value-added services for them,” says O2’s Head of Pay Monthly, Jonathan Earle. “E2xpanding our Unlimited wi-fi proposition by introducing BT Openzone wi-fi hotspots allowing our customers to stay connected to the people and things that matter to them most. Secondly, we know that customers want to be able to track how much data they have used. Our simple data counter gives the control that our customers want.”

Ukrainian Brief for Out There Media

Mobile advertising firm Out There Media has been appointed as the mobile advertising partner for Kyivstar, Ukraine’s number one mobile operator, with a customer base of more than 22.7 million mobile subscribers. Out There Media will provide Kyivstar with its multichannel mobile advertising solution, Mobucks, as well as operations, sales and business development services, in order to enable the mobile operator to monetise its mobile inventory effectively on a non-exclusive basis. In particular, Out There Media will enable Kyivstar to offer SMS and Mobile Portal Advertising, with the latter being a unique offering to advertisers in the Ukrainian market. Out There Media opened an office in the Ukrainian capital, Kiev, earlier this year.
The partnership kicked off with a mobile ad campaign for Sony Ericsson that launched earlier this month. The campaign was supporting the launch of the Sony Ericsson Xperia X1, a premium Smartphone. The campaign was targeted at customers who were directed to a custom-developed mobile mini-site through text messages and mobile banners within Kyivstar’s on-deck mobile portal, Starport. On the mini-site, customers were able to find information and technical specifications for the phone. They also had the opportunity to take part in a prize draw to win the an Xperia.
The campaign ran for two weeks, and produced a total of 1.55 million page impressions, with a 5% clickthrough rate of 5%, making it one of the most successful mobile ad campaigns Out There Media has executed in Central and Eastern Europe to date.

Informa Charts Latin American 3G Growth

Latin America’s mobile operators are pushing data services in order to offset falling voice revenues and satisfy consumers’ growing hunger for value-added products. That helped make 2008 the year of 3G in Latin America, where virtually every Latin American mobile operator launched 3G services. So says Informa Telecoms & Media, which notes that there were more than 6.8 million active WCDMA connections across Latin America at end March 2009, up 50% in just one quarter. Possibly the most striking growth of all has been in Brazil, where there were 3.8 million WCDMA subscriptions at end-March 2009, up from 2.2 million three months earlier.
“We can expect that number to continue to accelerate, because America Movil has made it clear that its investment priority in the region for 2009 concerns its 3G network,” says Informa Senior Research Analyst, said Eva Benguigui.
Informa says it expects investments in 3G networks will accelerate across Latin America. For instance, there will be more than 15 million WCDMA subscriptions in Latin America at end-2009, or less than 3% of the total 522 million mobile subscriptions in the region. However, WCDMA subscriptions will grow to 320 million at end 2014, or 46% of the region’s 689 million total mobile subscriptions at that time.
While the region’s operators are focused primarily on 3G today, Informa believes that mobile broadband technologies such as HSPA, HSPA+ and LTE will be on their technology migration paths as they continue to expand next-generation services in order to offset falling voice revenues with higher data revenues.
However, LTE deployments in Latin America are expected to be a challenge since spectrum is congested in many areas. Nonetheless, operators across the Americas are expected to continue aggressively rolling out mobile broadband networks over the coming years where they have adequate spectrum availability, graduating from today’s 3G and 3.5G networks to faster offerings promised by LTE and, in some cases, WiMAX.

GSMA Launches Mobile Money Exchange

The GSM Association (GSMA), has announced the launch of the Mobile Money Exchange initiative, and unveiled Visa and Globe Telecom asthe first two founding partners.
The initiative aims to engage with new stakeholders and sectors that are entering the mobile ecosystem, providing a common voice and formal business forum for business collaboration. The ethos behind the formation of the Exchange is for best practise and innovations to be highlighted and shared, both across industry and inter-industry. The Mobile Money Exchange will feature an online knowledge portal, with social business networking and community functionality designed to advise and serve the interests of the mobile money industry.
“Mobile Money Exchange builds on the Mobile Money Programme that the GSMA launched in 2006 and which has been a tremendous success in terms of building a global community,” says Bill Gajda, Chief Commercial Officer at the GSMA. “Through the Mobile Money Exchange, fundamental principles and requirements which are not currently being met, such as fragmentation and therefore lack of ability to scale, will be addressed, and the Exchange will advance, advise and serve the interests of the mobile money market.”
The Mobile Money Exchange is open to any organisation and seeks to establish a broad-based stakeholder community that comprises key areas of mobile money including mPayments, mBanking, MMU (Mobile Money for the Unbanked) and MMT (Mobile Money Transfer). It will facilitate new partnerships and business models, drive thought leadership, champion innovation and knowledge transfer through engaging all elements of the mobile money industry.  The Mobile Money Exchange will have an Advisory Board consisting of a select number of thought leaders to shape and develop the Exchange, working alongside discussion groups and committees who collaboratively set guidelines, standards and best practise.
For more information about partnerships or sponsorship opportunities send an email to: mobilemoneyexchange@gsm.org

Orange Unveils an Android Hero

Orange says it will launch the HTC Hero, its first Android phone, early in July. The handset will  be available for free on selected price plans and will be exclusive to Orange in a Graphite colour.
The phone offers users a choice of seven user interface options and comes with a 5 megapixel camera, gravity sensor, AGPS and 512 MB of memory with space for a 16Gb MicroSD card. It’s 3.2 inch HVGA display features an anti-fingerprint screen coating for improved smudge resistance.
Orange is offering the HTC Hero for free to customers who take out a £39.15 per month, 24 month contract. The package includes 1200 any network call minutes and unlimited texts, as well as inclusive anytime Internet browsing.
“The first of several Android devices you can expect from us this year, we believe the Hero is a great all round device which will allow consumers to get to grips with all the things they love about the Internet, whilst on the move,” says Orange UK Director of Devices, Francois Mahieu. “We expect it to be extremely popular when it hits shelves this summer.”

Vodafone Launches Femtocell, But Calls it Something Else

Vodafone has launched the Vodafone Access Gateway service, designed to improve reception indoors for Vodafone customers. It’s a femtocell by any other name, but in a show of outstanding common sense, Vodafone has chosen to avoid using that term, which means nothing to most people outside the femtocell business.
Available online and in store from 1 July, the Vodafone Access Gateway service takes the form of small box, similar in size to a router, that plugs into any home broadband line to bring customers improved and more reliable 3G coverage indoors.
The Gateway works with all 3G handsets and can support up to four voice calls at any one time. Vodafone notes that Gateway customers will be able to take advantage of the full range of Vodafone services via their handset anywhere in the home.
The Gateway is available from free or as part of an inclusive price plan from as little as £15 a month. It is also available as a one off purchase for £160, or from £5 per month.  
 “The Vodafone Access Gateway will boost indoor mobile phone coverage for customers who today, find they need to move around the rooms in their home to get a consistent signal strength,” says Ian Shepherd, Consumer Director, Vodafone UK . “We are committed to delivering the best, most reliable network and this is another step towards maintaining a seamless service.”
The Vodafone Access Gateway can be ordered from July 1 via the Vodafone website or in Vodafone stores and is delivered to the customer. Customers then register online the mobile numbers they want linked to the Vodafone Access Gateway and within 24 hours the service will be ready and working.

Vodafone Germany Revamps Ringback Tone Offering

Vodafone Germany has launched an upgraded Caller Ringback Tone (CRBT) portal. In addition to a more user-friendly interface with a new design, the portal, based on technology by RealNetworks, also features a new shuffle mode. This function automatically shuffles the selected ringback tones in a random order.
According to the caller's phone number, the receiving parties can select the type of caller ringback tone their contacts hear and assign music either individually or on a group basis. Furthermore, receiving parties may also link their selected caller ringback tones to specific days or timeframes, choosing a different song for each day of the week, for example. The service also features a silent mode, enabling customers to go back to their regular calling tone.
Customers can subscribe to ringback tones via the Vodafone Germany website, Vodafone live, via text messaging or by calling the toll-free number, 22580. The service will be invoiced on the customer's regular mobile phone bill.
Caller ringback tone services are available for a basic service fee of €0.99 per month, with each ringback priced at €1.99, which entitles the customer to use the selected  music tracks for 12 months. A three ringback tone package is available for €2.99, and a none-tone package for €5.99.
“It is absolutely crucial to offer intuitive, entertaining platforms to our customers, especially in the age of Web 2.0, during which mobile Internet services are rapidly gaining momentum,” says Volker Glaeser, Director of Internet services at Vodafone Germany.

Vesta Releases Prepaid Top-up Survey Results

Vesta Corporation, which specialises in electronic payment solutions, has released the results of an independent research study that it says indicates how an effective prepaid top-up strategy can deliver significant value to the prepaid mobile market. The study, based on operator interviews, shows that the implementation of a direct operator top-up strategy can bring double digit revenue gains and reduced costs.
Given the size of the prepaid market in Western Europe, says Vesta, this can equate to hundreds of millions of Euros annually. Direct operator top-up channels include all operator-managed top-up channels that rely on electronic transactions outside a retail environment, such as the operator’s website, IVR and handset applications.
Vesta says the research indicates the significant advantages that direct operator prepaid top-up has over other existing top-up methods, including improved performance metrics, lower costs and improved CRM capabilities.
In addition, it notes, direct handset top-up has the ability to remove the fragmentation and complexity impacting the take up of m-payment services, and drive new revenue streams for operators.
The research was carried out by independent telecom consultancy Northstream and is based on the feedback of leading wireless operators across Western Europe. The results have been published in a whitepaper, ‘Time to Top-Up the Prepaid User Experience: How an effective top-up strategy can improve operator performance metrics and accelerate mobile payments’.
According to the whitepaper, with overall growth in the prepaid market slowing, operators are looking at ways to reduce costs, while increasing prepaid customer loyalty and revenues. Non-cash (credit/debit card/bank) payment penetration has grown significantly in Europe, and 91% of operators interviewed intend to drive top-up transactions from costly, commission-based retail infrastructures to virtual non-cash top-up (NCTU) channels.
Aligned with this view, says Vesta, not only are operators exploring alternatives to retail top-up, but 100% of those interviewed want to shift their non-cash payment mechanisms from a bank-centric to a direct operator model.
Given this finding, the company says, it is somewhat surprising that less than 20% of the NCTU offerings analyzed in the research included handset-based top-up applications, even though top-up frequency using handset applications can be up to 80% higher than other channels. This increased frequency also results in an ARPU increase of 23%.
The main imperatives stated for adopting a direct top-up approach were avoiding zero credit service interruptions, increasing top-up frequency and improving customer experience with anytime, anywhere top-up availability via  handsets, the web and IVR. However, the research also indicated the ability of direct top-up to enhance CRM capabilities, enabling operators to identify high value customers and cross-sell, while customizing and optimizing user experience. Indeed, over 90% of operators interviewed highlighted the need to strengthen the way that top-up integrates with their online services and other operator-controlled channels.
“When prepaid direct top-up is executed properly, it not only offers an opportunity to increase the ARPU of prepaid but also provides the foundation for operators to seamlessly offer a wide range of profitable mobile payment services from the same platform,” says Vesta CMO, Chris Parsons. “Aside from prepaid debit reload, other services such as peer-to-peer transfer, international remittance and mobile commerce become far more readily accessible”.
You can download the whitepaper here.

Orange Launches Improved GlastoNav App

Orange has launched a new and improved version of its ‘Orange GlastoNav’ application, a free mobile download that provides Glastonbury revellers with the ultimate interactive festival planner.
The free service, in association with the Guardian Guide, gives Glastonbury-goers information and stage times for the full Glastonbury line-up, the ability to personalise their own artist schedule for the whole weekend, plus an interactive map of the site, as well as essential festival news, advice and alerts. Everyone who downloads Orange GlastoNav will also be eligible to receive a half-price annual subscription to Q Magazine.
In addition this year, there will be competitions running throughout the festival weekend giving Glastonbury revellers the chance to win money-can't-buy side-of-stage access to the Pyramid Stage.  At 12pm every day, a bull icon will appear on the GlastoNav map showing where you need to go to find a life-size bull on site. Once at the secret location, revellers need to click the icon on the map and enter a code word written on the bull to be in with a chance of winning exclusive side-of-stage access for one of the featured performances.
“Orange GlastoNav is the best way to plan the perfect Glastonbury weekend,” says
Orange UK Brand Director, Spencer McHugh. “Sharing your schedule with friends means you will never miss meeting up for your favourite bands and GlastoNav will keep you up to date with the latest news and the chance to win side of pPyramid Stage passes everyday.”
From today, those lucky enough to have a ticket to the most loved UK festival can download the application from www.orange.co.uk/glastonav or by texting GLASTO to 64446.

Amdocs ChangingWorlds Deployed in Brunei

Amdocs, which provides “customer experience systems”, has revealed that B.mobile Communications Sdn Bhd, Brunei’s leading mobile provider, has deployed its ChangingWorlds personalised mobile portal solution. The Amdocs ChangingWorlds’ solution enhances content relevance through advanced personalisation techniques, enabling B.mobile to offer a more compelling end-user experience by automatically delivering relevant, personalised mobile content and services to individual subscribers. 
“B.mobile is committed to providing quality, reliability and innovation in 3G mobile communications, which is why we view personalisation capabilities as critical,” says B.mobile CEO, Song Kin Koi. “The Amdocs ChangingWorlds solution allows us to truly personalise customer experience by delivering relevant, valuable content and services to suit each customer’s needs and lifestyle. This level of personalisation will also help us to increase data revenues through more effective targeted marketing campaigns and personalised advertising.”
The solution includes Amdocs’ ChangingWorlds Intelligent Navigation, which restructures the portal menu hierarchy for an individual subscriber based on his or her regular usage patterns, content preferences and behavioral profiles. Intelligent Navigation makes relevant content easier and faster to find by reducing the number of clicks and time required to reach content of interest. The solution also enables B.mobile to deliver personalised content teasers and recommendations to encourage and increase mobile Internet usage, and generate more data revenues.
B.mobile has also implemented Amdocs’ ChangingWorlds Business Intelligence solution, which gives the network detailed and timely visibility into the key performance indicators (KPIs) relating to mobile portal usage, such as churn trends, the number of unique portal visitors, and the detailed breakdown of subscriber activity on the mobile Internet. This helps the operator to identify new revenue opportunities, continue to improve the user experience, and gain a sustainable competitive advantage.

Blyk Promises Numbers Update

Ad-funded mobile network Blyk says it will update its membership numbers over the summer. The company launched in September 2007, offering 16-24 year olds 217 free texts and 43 minutes of free talk time each month, in return for accepting targeted advertising on their phone each day.
A year later, Blyk, which relies on a member-get-member promotion to sign up new members, said it had signed up 200,000 members in the UK, but since then, has issued no updated membership numbers, and recently changed the terms of its offer, replacing the 217 free texts and 43 minutes of talk time with £15 of credit each month.
But speaking to Mobile Marketing Magazine this afternoon, Blyk COO Leif Fågelstedt said that the company would issue an update on UK membership numbers “before the summer break, or when people come back.”
He also said that brands and agencies who criticised the firm for a lack of reach were missing the point.
“If you look at magazines targeting young people with over 200,000 subscribers, you have to look very hard to find them,” he said. “And if you’re an agency buying media, you don’t just buy one media, you buy a portfolio, of which mobile may be one element."

Virgin Mobile France Hands Apps Task to GetJar

Virgin Mobile France, the 4th French mobile operator, has appointed GetJar to provide its entire catalogue of free mobile applications for its newly announced mobile app store to be launched this Wednesday. The launch of Virgin’s app store coincides with the release of Virgin’s new unlimited voice, SMS and data plans. The announcement further broadens GetJar’s range of industry partnerships, which already includes Sony Ericsson and 3 UK. Consumers in France will be offered access to over 45,000 free apps via the Virgin Mobile portal, alongside other content including ringtones and premium games.
As the world’s largest independent app store, GetJar has been providing mobile applications to consumers since 2005 and now receives over 1 million downloads a day across more than 200 countries.  The company boasts over 200,000 developer accounts and has been delivering millions of downloads for leading applications developers and content owners such as Google, Facebook, YouTube, Nimbuzz, and eBuddy among others
“GetJar’s track record, extensive cross platform catalogue, scale and expertise were really what we were looking for in an app store partner,” says Virgin Mobile France Marketing and Communication Director, Julien Allisy. “We can immediately offer our consumers who subscribed to our new unlimited data plans the largest range of apps on the largest range of handsets, via a platform which is trusted around the world.”

Virgin Selects Samsung for V Festival

Virgin Media, the main sponsor of the V Festival, has unveiled Samsung as the official phone partner for this year’s event, which takes place over the weekend of 22/23 August, at Hylands Park, Chelmsford and Weston Park, Staffordshire.
The partnership will promote a range of Samsung handsets, including the new Samsung Beat DJ, the Classico and the Tocco Lite. In the lead up to the festival, there will be extensive marketing and promotional activity which will include competitions to win handsets as well as ‘Ultimate V Festival Weekend’ packages and V Festival tickets.
“This is a great opportunity for Samsung Mobile to become a key partner for this ever popular musical extravaganza,” says Mark Mitchinson, Vice-President, Samsung Mobile UK and Ireland added Our latest phones such as the Tocco Lite and the Beat DJ are ideally suited to the V Festival audience, and we look forward to working with Virgin Media to make the most of the opportunities on offer to us.”

MTS Signs Nokia deal

Mobile TeleSystems OJSC (MTS), the largest mobile phone operator in Russia and the CIS, has signed a memorandum of understanding with Nokia for the direct delivery of Nokia devices to MTS’ retail network. The first fruits of the agreement will be the launch of the Nokia N97, equipped with exclusive software from MTS.
The agreement, signed by MTS and Nokia at the 2009 St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, provides for the direct supply of Nokia products to MTS’ retail network, joint marketing campaigns to promote Nokia’s handsets, and a training program for MTS’ retail employees.
“This partnership agreement with Nokia is a milestone in our development of the MTS proprietary retail network,” says MTS President and CEO, Mikhail Shamolin. “Teaming up with the world's leading maker of mobile devices will allow us to further differentiate MTS' retail network by matching cutting-edge products with tariff plans to enhance customer experience and spur the growth of data usage by our subscribers.”  
MTS has developed a number of branded applications for Nokia N97, aimed at business users. These will be distributed on a free 2 GB micro-SD memory card. Sales of the handset will start on 17 June in all MTS stores in Moscow, and in the flagship Nokia store. By the end of the month, the device will become available to subscribers of all mobile operators through the MTS retail network in Russia, and the 30 Nokia stores in the largest Russian cities.

ROK Launches 2.5G Streaming TV Service in India

ROK Entertainment Group, the mobile technologies, applications and services company, has announced the launch of TINY TV across India, in conjunction with Indian mobile operator, BSNL. TINY TV is the first nationwide, subscription-based, mobile TV service in India to be streamed over mass-market 2.5G GPRS. BSNL has a customer base of more than 90 million people across its mobile, fixed-line and Internet service companies, including 54.2 million GSM, and 4.6 million CDMA subscribers.
Offering a range of live and on-demand Mobile TV channels, including local and international news, sports, music and movie channels, TINY TV is priced at Rs 150.00 (approximately £1.70) per month, payable via reverse-bill SMS.
Specifically, TINY TV channels include  News 24 (Hindi news), E-24 (Bollywood entertainment), ROK Bollywood (celebrity news), Geet (Hindi songs), Green (evergreen Bollywood music), Red (Bollywood music), Gyan (devotional), regional channels of Gujarati - Marathi for West India, Bengali for the East Zone, Tiny Sports TV, Tiny Comedy, Mobifun and a Movie Channel, offering a regularly-updated list of full length movies that users can pause, fast forward and rewind.

Samsung and O2 Team Up for AQA Offer

Samsung, O2 and AQA 63336 have teamed up to offer 10,000 customers who buy the Samsung C3050 handset on O2 will to download a new application from AQA 63336 that gives them 30 free questions (worth ££1 each), check their Q&A history, and access the best daily answers given by AQA 63336.
10,000 leaflets have been printed with a code that enables customers to download the AQA application and get their first 30 answers free of charge. These leaflets are available in O2 stores and online, and will be distributed to customers who buy a new Samsung C3050 phone , priced at £48.93, on Pay & Go through the O2 network from 1 June.
The C3050 is the latest slider handset from Samsung that features a VGA camera, Bluetooth, micro SD card slot with expandable memory and MP3 player.There’s more information about the promotion here.

Fonestarz Handed Downloads Task by Vodafone Egypt

Mobile content storefront specialist FoneStarz Media has won one of its most significant deals, having been appointed to manage the entire content downloads portal for Vodafone live! in Egypt.
FoneStarz has vertically integrated games, ringtones, video and personalisation products like wallpapers, themes and Flash Lite into one fully managed storefront, using its content management and delivery system, Daius, for the dual-language English and Arabic downloads service. The second phase of the site will see involve FoneStarz managing the App Store for the Vodafone network in Egypt, which has more than 17 million subscribers.
FoneStarz notes that this is the first time it as created an end-to-end mobile entertainment solution for an operator, and both parties claim that it gives customers the best possible browsing and retailing experience across all mobile Internet devices.
FoneStarz will bring its own licensed content, from a local market and international catalogue that includes more than 130 suppliers, and will also host, manage and aggregate content using Vodafone licenses, both local and from Group.
“This co-ordinated storefront is at the heart of what we are trying to achieve as a company,” says, FoneStarz CEO, Dave Moreau. “We firmly believe that by pulling together all the different mobile entertainment categories under one properly managed store, we can significantly improve the mobile content experience for customers.
FoneStarz already works with Vodafone around the world, managing the ringtones and pictures business for them on Vodafone live! in the UK and other on-deck services in Ireland, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa.
It says that an increasing number of mobile network operators, especially in emerging markets like Egypt, are looking to companies like FoneStarz as an outsourced services solution for the hosting and management of all or part of their downloads portals.FoneStarz has recently signed up five deals with Hutchison 3 to manage on-portal categories in the UK, Ireland, Sweden, Denmark and Austria.

Apps The Way To Do It

Hot on the heels of the launch of Nokia’s Ovi Store earlier this week, Jay Seaton, Chief Marketing Officer at Airwide Solutions offers operators 10 tips on how to successfully enter into the App Store market, without suffering some of the limitations the current app store models present

On Tuesday, Nokia launched the Ovi Store, its answer to Apple’s App Store. It was the latest in a string of similar announcements made recently by players across many aspects of the mobile value chain, from device manufacturers through to application developers and mobile operators, all looking to follow Apple’s lead and capitalise on the growing consumer demand for mobile Internet services.
When you look at the statistics, it’s easy to see why. A recent announcement by Vodafone anticipated that the operator would take a 30% share of revenues generated through consumers downloading apps on its network.
Yet while the app store phenomenon is clearly good news for the industry, for any app store to become a mainstay, operators must play a part in ensuring that the applications can be accessed by the mass market - despite handset fragmentation and existing limitations imposed on consumers without high-end Smartphones.
At Airwide Solutions, we’ve come up with a 10-point plan to help mobile operators make their play in the apps game, without suffering some of the limitations the current App Store models present. We're happy to share it with you.

1. Is the App Store model open for debate? 
Operators talk about replicating the App Store model, but can that be done when the model is still in its infancy? The reality is that there is no set model and no right way to go about it. The market will continue to see the model evolve over the next few months and years, and carriers should focus on enhancing app stores, rather than re-engineering them.

2. What does “enhancing” actually mean?
In order to stimulate additional revenue opportunities and reduce churn, operators should not only offer their customers a range of applications and services, but should also consider using the unique network assets, context and intelligence they have at their disposal to enhance those applications and services, helping them avoid being cut out of the revenue loop.

3. Should all apps be available to all subscribers or should carriers target apps for enterprise users and apps for consumers differently? 
A successful app store will be one that offers innovative applications to users no matter what their device or what their function. App offerings should not be limited to business (i.e.
Smartphone) users. Carriers must establish a model that offers device-agnostic, service-enhanced apps.

4. Relevance is king
Similarly, mobile operators should be careful to ensure the mobile applications and services they offer are cleverly targeted to subscribers, based on network intelligence such as information on location, devices and subscriber preferences.

5. How much is too much?
Operators shouldn’t underestimate their customer base. While there is a lot of competition among carriers, device manufacturers and developers to hook the subscriber on an initial app sale, all customers want the same things: ease-of-use, uncomplicated purchasing agreements, and most importantly, personalisation and customisation. Flooding the web and consumers with new app options is only as good as the services delivered with them, and that is the differentiator that carrier-driven app stores offer.

6. How do operators negotiate a revenue share with application developers to make an app store worthwhile?
Operators should think outside the box when it comes to mobile applications and find a way to layer services on top of third party apps for maximum revenue potential. Developers want viable entry points to subscribers and realise it’s ultimately the pathway to success, but mobile operators shouldn’t be afraid to break away from traditional service and content delivery models to make the collaboration with developers work.

7. Set the right foundations
Operators should be mindful of the mistakes of the past when deploying monolithic, technology-based infrastructure, and instead seek out flexible solutions to network upgrades which will enable them to seamlessly roll out services, without negatively impacting upon their current network architecture or services. It is this modular approach that will enable operators to pick and choose the services they want to roll out - and when - while also ensuring they future-proof their architecture.

8. AP-why?
Central to the success of building a long-term ecosystem for applications and services are open APIs that enable third-party application developers to integrate their services with an operator’s architecture. Truly open APIs for developer communities are likely to drive substantial application-based revenues.

9. Does it all come down to trust?
Carriers have an incredible advantage in the app store business to leverage the trust and loyalty of subscribers. Recent reports suggest that while Apple’s App Store saw a record number of downloads, most free apps eventually get deleted after the first download. There’s no staying power. Factor into that there is little tying a subscriber to third party app, and you have a very tenuous basis for repeat purchasing. Carriers, on the other hand, with long-term relationships and a trust factor unlike that on the web, can bring a new level of engagement between consumers and the apps they purchase. This is good for everyone. 

10. Sound the alarm!
As the number of applications and services increases, so too will the levels of spam and viruses. Mobile operators must therefore be careful to secure their networks and subscriber relationships by enabling a range of security services and parental control.

Virgin Takes Mobile Broadband Gong

Virgin Media has scooped the overall ‘Dongle on the Move 2009’ Award, the top prize in the first Mobile Broadband Genie Road Trip Awards. Vodafone took the runners- up prize. 
Armed with laptops, plus dongles supplied by all six providers, Genie staff took a 350-mile round trip from Cambridge to Bournemouth, putting the dongles through their paces all the way. The road trip was designed to see how well mobile broadband really performed on the move, as it is often advertised by providers.
This was an on-the-spot exercise over two days, using the kind of frustrating conditions consumers find them themselves in every day. The results echoed the general reaction Mobile Broadband Genie gets from its visitors: we expect much more than it is currently able to supply.
“Mobile broadband has come a long way in a short time, but consumers need to be aware of its limitations,” says Broadband Genie Editor, Chris Marling. “The service is often oversold, which can leave customers disillusioned. However, for many people, it can be a great solution to their Internet problems.”
Marling adds that both Virgin Media and Vodafone performed admirably.
“They completed the majority of challenges and maintaining reasonable average upload and download speeds throughout,” he says. “However, both still suffered disconnects and long periods of downtime in rural locations.”
Mobile Broadband Genie performed a variety of tests throughout the journey. As well as running the Mobile Broadband Genie speed tests throughout the trip, the team performed common tasks such as downloading BBC podcasts, streaming audio and video via YouTube and Spotify, and uploading photos to Facebook.
Here’s the full list of award winners:

• Dongle on the Move 2009: Virgin Media. (Runner up: Vodafone)
• Road Trip Downloader 2009: Virgin Media. (Runner up: Vodafone)
• Road Trip Uploader 2009: Vodafone. (Runner up: O2)
• Road Trip's Most Stable 2009: O2. (Runner up: Orange)
• Road Trip Coverage 2009: Vodafone. (Runner up: Virgin Media)
• Dongle Software 2009: T-Mobile and Virgin Media (joint winners)

There’s more information about the tests and the results here.

3G Vision Powers Telstra Mobile Advertising Solution

3GVision, the developer of the i-nigma 2D mobile barcode solution, and Telstra Corporation, the Australian telco and information services company, have announced the commercial launch of the Telstra Mobile Advertising Campaign Manager, the next evolution in Telstra’s mobile code solution. 
The advertising campaign manager provides marketers with real-time reporting on campaign performance metrics, including the number of codes scanned, and response volume by location, time and media type. It powered by 3GVision’s Enterprise Manager Reporting system.
The Telstra Mobile Codes service enables Telstra Next G network customers to scan Quick Response (QR) codes on media such as newspaper ads, posters, point of sale material and product packaging with their cameraphone. The code reading software is embedded in Next G handsets. Once scanned, codes direct phones to information and promotional offers hosted on the mobile web, eliminating the need to manually enter mobile web addresses or response details.
“The introduction of the campaign manager allows marketers harnessing Telstra Mobile Codes to access response data including approximate location, response rates and time, media type and consumer segment,” says Ross Fielding, Executive Director, Telstra Product Management. “This intelligence helps advertisers maximize their promotional spend and equips them to adjust elements like media mix and location mid-campaign if necessary.”
The Telstra Mobile Advertising Campaign Manager is powered by 3GVision’s end-to-end 2D mobile code solution. The system incorporates a server hosted by Telstra, a customized campaign manager application integrated with specific operator services and data, and code reading software embedded in Telstra Next G handsets.
The Telstra Mobile Code service was launched in mid-2008 and the code-reading application is currently installed on more than 1.5 million handsets across 22 different models. It is available on a wide variety of mobile platforms, ranging from JAVA devices to Symbian, Windows Mobile and Blackberry handsets, with an iPhone version due “in the near future”. 

Virgin Media Launches LBS-enabled Mobile Portal

Virgin Media has launched a mobile Internet portal, available for all UK mobile users, featuring the RoundU local search service provided by location-based services (LBS) provider, Mobile Commerce.
RoundU is free to use and integrates handset location with a comprehensive range of local information. Using listings aggregated from Mobile Commerce partners, including toptable, Itchy Guides and The Press Association, the service brings a full range of UK arts and entertainment content, as well as Thomson business listings, to the handset.
Users can find and book cinema tickets, secure a restaurant table, read local gig reviews, find a hotel room and the nearest cash machine or petrol station, using a simple menu on their handset. This is combined with updated Multimap mapping, to ensure that users can easily locate their choice of venue.
 “This is very exciting partnership for us, and to be working with such a large and respected high profile, company as Virgin Media - with 10 million customers - is something we’re relishing,” says Mobile Commerce CEO, Steve Page. “Our RoundU service is designed to meet the demands of people’s ever busier lives. Not only do we have over 11,000 recommended drinking and dining venues and 1.9 million business search listings, but the service is integrated with our ad server, so it can be monetised with relevant advertising and sponsorship. This deal is another endorsement of our leadership in mobile content aggregation and location based search.”

Comverse Powers Visual Voicemail for 3 Hong Kong

Comverse has revealed that 3 Hong Kong has launched Hong Kong’s first visual voicemail service. Powered by Comverse’s Visual Voicemail, the service enables 3 Hong Kong customers with iPhones to see information about each voicemail, such as sender, time of call and message length, and then click and listen to any message. Users also can delete and reply to any message.
Visual Voicemail is part of the Comverse Voice HUB, a single platform for multiple voice-related services, such as next-generation voicemail, ringback tones and call completion. Comverse says that operators can reap cost savings from the Voice HUB’s unified platfor, since it reuses major components and takes advantage of centralised operation, maintenance and provisioning.
“Being the first operator in our market to provide visual voicemail on the iPhone3G extends our string of market firsts, which also includes launching the city’s first 3G network,” says Amy Lung, Chief Operating Officer – Mobile of Hutchison Telecom Hong Kong, which operates 3 Hong Kong. “Comverse has supported us to bring a feature-rich solution to market quickly with satisfactory results. The user feedback has been strongly positive.”

MTS Brings 3G to Moscow

Mobile TeleSystems OJSC (MTS), the largest mobile phone operator in Russia and the CIS, has announced the launch of the first phase of its 3G network in Moscow. The first indoor network was launched in Expocentre, one of the largest exhibition centers in Eastern Europe.
MTS has covered the Expocentre exhibition space with the next-generation network, providing customers with data download speeds of up to 3.6 Mbit/s using HSPA technology.
MTS is planning to launch additional 3G networks in the 35 largest business and shopping centres in Moscow during 2009, including Domodedovo International Airport. MTS will also launch indoor 3G networks in the offices of the largest Moscow-based corporations. 3G services will also be rolled out in several cities in the Moscow region, including Noginsk and Orekhovo-Zuyevo.
MTS has also received permission to deploy 3G networks in the Moscow metro. The first test network will be launched on the Sokolnicheskaya line.
MTS says that the development of 3G networks is a cornerstone of its strategy, aimed at providing mobile broadband in the CIS. As these markets demonstrate relatively low levels of fixed-line penetration and historic underinvestment in infrastructure, MTS views its networks as an ideal vehicle to meet the growing broadband Internet needs of its subscribers, through attractive data products and services.
MTS already operates 3G networks in Russia, Uzbekistan and Armenia and offers high-speed data access through its proprietary CDMA-450 network in Ukraine.

Amobee Delivers Mobile Ad Solution for Telefónica

Amobee Media Systems, which delivers advertising solutions for mobile operators, has launched a mobile advertising service for Telefónica in Spain. Amobee is providing holistic advertising solutions for Telefónica over the mobile Internet. The move is part of the two companies’ global alliance, announced in June 2008.
“Telefónica is a great example of a mobile operator taking control of advertising revenues on its network and, in the process, ensuring a positive customer experience,” says Amobee CEO, Zohar Levkovitz. “That, in our opinion, is the future of mobile advertising, and it is made possible by Amobee. We enable the operator to build a profitable revenue stream from advertising, while giving advertisers an exciting channel to reach their target audience.”
Using Amobee’s media system, mobile operators can sell ad-enabled inventory to agencies and advertisers who want to buy, deploy, and monitor campaigns across mobile channels. The Amobee system works with the operator’s existing infrastructure to ensure customers get a relevant mobile advertising experience.
Amobee’s ad-serving solution dynamically inserts relevant ads into all mobile entertainment and communication channels, including video, music, messaging, games, and WAP sessions.
“Our customers’ experience is of paramount importance to us, and was our first priority in considering a mobile advertising solution,” says Susana Rodríguez Urgel, Online Channels and Mobile Commerce Manager at Telefónica. “We chose Amobee because of its ability to provide a relevant mobile advertising experience for our users.”
According to research from INFOADEX 2009, the Spanish mobile advertising market grew by over 60% in 2008 and is the fastest growing digital advertising channel.

Xtract Offers Social Links Software as a Service

Xtract has announced that from today, it is offering its flagship social intelligence product, Social Links, as a service, while still fully supporting the software licensing model. Xtract says that the Software as a Service (SaaS) version, called Social Links On-Demand, enables mobile operators to cash in on the social networking phenomenon for targeted, viral marketing on a pay-as-you-go service model.
Social Links uses social network analytics to enable companies to leverage social intelligence in marketing. Social Links utilises anonymised subscriber transaction data to generate customer insight based on social intelligence, predict the behaviour of subscribers (e.g. for churn management and product up-sell/cross-sell) and to understand the network of influence between subscribers. Social Links is based on analytics that dig deep into the granular communication patterns between subscribers to draw accurate profiles and targeting. The solution has been deployed by top-tier mobile operators worldwide, and won several industry awards
The On-Demand model means minimum upfront investment and no operational hassle. Xtract estimates that Social Links On-Demand is 74% faster to set up than traditional in-house implementations and offers 39% faster payback time.
Social Links On-Demand combines software, hardware, implementation, customer support, operations and maintenance in a bundled service, hosted by Xtract. This means that operators don’t need to invest upfront in software licenses or hardware platforms. The solution is delivered via a service level agreement that best suits each operator’s business needs, dependent on the number of subscribers served, or the amount of data or level of security required. All data is processed anonymously, and customer transaction results are processed in a way that complies with data security and privacy regulations.
Marketing and campaign managers are provided with a secure, browser-based graphical user interface which they can use to view social intelligence dashboard reports and graphs; create Social Links analytics runs; define campaign targeting; configure and export target lists; and, view their community dynamics.
“Efficient analysis is key to leveraging the power of social networks and eventually monetising them through relevant content and advertising,” says Julien Theys, Mobile Industry Analyst at Screen Digest. “An on-demand solution can provide access to social network intelligence that is light, flexible and financially less cumbersome than traditional software licenses. It is therefore ideally suited for operators who prefer not to invest heavily in in-house analytics and database marketing solutions and resources, especially in the current economic climate.”

GSMA Takes ITU Award

The GSM Association (GSMA) has been presented with the ITU World Telecommunications and Information Society Award at the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) awards ceremony in Geneva. The award is presented each year to distinguished laureates for their contribution towards building an inclusive and more equitable Information Society. The GSMA has received the award for its work in combating the distribution of child sexual abuse content via the mobile phone.
In February last year the GSMA announced the launch of ‘The Mobile Alliance Against Child Sexual Abuse Content’ at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. The members of the Alliance, which includes the world’s biggest and most influential operators, came together to attempt to stop the spread of digital child sexual abuse content.
The aim of the Alliance is to obstruct the use of the mobile environment for the consumption of, or to profit from, child sexual abuse content, and halt any growth of this content. The Alliance has engaged with many other initiatives and coalitions to combat online child sexual abuse. The ITU’s Child Online Protection initiative is one of these, and the GSMA has been working with all stakeholders who share the common goal of protecting children.
The GSMA has been promoting the activity across its membership, providing input to operators, and sharing best practice and technical guidance to facilitate the implementation of proactive measures against child sexual abuse content. Toolkits, technical documents and expertise are available to all operators and are also promoted through information sessions held at GSMA regional events and GSMA’s Mobile Congresses.

3 Kills Off 3 Like Home

3 is withdrawing its ‘3 Like Home’ service, under which 3 customers in the UK can use their inclusive minutes, texts and services on 3 sister networks in other countries, with effect from 1 July, which is when the new EU regulations capping the price of texts sent while roaming in the EU at a maximum of €0.11 (£0.10) kick in.
The company says the decision has been taken in order to prevent bill shock for customers who roam by mistake on to non-3 networks in its sister network countries. It says it will also allow the company to offer even more competitive pricing for all of its customers when they travel abroad, not just those with 3 Like Home.
The company has issued a statement, which reads:
“3 Like Home has offered great value, but by giving away roaming calls on our sister networks we’ve been less able to compete on price in countries where we have no network (often the destinations most popular with UK customers). In order to be able to offer the best prices across the board, after 30 June, we will no longer offer 3 Like Home. This means that customers travelling to Austria, Denmark, Italy, Ireland and Sweden, will no longer be able to use their inclusive minutes, texts & services on the 3 sister networks and after June 30th 2009, they will pay our new standard roaming prices for calls and texts.
“By retiring 3 Like Home, we are also reducing the risk of bill shock and simplifying our offer. In the past, although a small percentage of our customers have benefitted considerably from 3 Like Home, we have had some customers report larger than expected bills after roaming by mistake on to a non-3 network in our sister network countries. With our new pricing, which we will announce shortly, customers won't need to worry whether or not they're roaming on the right network in order to gain most from our great value voice and text roaming rates. We'll be announcing new EU roaming pricing this summer and will continue to push for lower wholesale roaming rates so that we can offer even better prices across the board in the future.”

Red Bend In "Milestone" DOCOMO Deployment

NTT DOCOMO has signed a multi-year agreement to license Red Bend’s full portfolio of mobile software management (MSM) solutions.
Red Bend says the agreement with DOCOMO marks a major milestone, in licensing its full portfolio of MSM solutions directly to a Tier 1 operator, and signals the acceleration of market adoption of mobile software management. Red Bend will provide DOCOMO with Red Bend’s vCurrent Mobile solution for updating firmware over-the-air (FOTA), vRapid Mobile solution for managing software components over-the-air (SCOTA) and its vDirect Mobile device management (DM) client.
DOCOMO is known for pioneering mobile communications networks and services, including voice, data and its credit card business. It serves more than 54 million customers and is the leading operator in Japan, with 51.3% market share as of December 2008. The success of i-mode, DOCOMO’s mobile data service in Japan, has been expanded globally by operators seeking to leverage advanced technologies to provide practical and convenient mobile data services. Red Bend will have the ability to reach i-mode alliance partners as well.
“Japan’s mobile consumers are the most demanding in the world, and look for personalised mobile devices that have the latest technology before they are available elsewhere,” says Kazuhiro Abe, President of Red Bend Software Japan KK. “With this comprehensive agreement, DOCOMO once again will lead the mobile industry in adopting innovative solutions like mobile software management. Red Bend will work closely to support DOCOMO, its manufacturers and alliance partners in adopting our MSM solutions to ensure their success.”
Red Bend is the leading provider of FOTA and DM software to mobile phone manufacturers in Japan, including deals with Sharp, NEC, Kyocera and others. Red Bend first began providing FOTA software to DOCOMO subscribers in 2007. Red Bend says its MSM solutions enable customers to increase revenues, reduce support costs and achieve faster time to market of new mobile devices, applications and services.
Red Bend’s MSM solutions have shipped in more than 300 mobile device models reaching more than 500 million consumers worldwide. According to research firm Ovum, the company has a 60% share of new FOTA-enabled mobile phones. Red Bend’s MSM solutions can be integrated across mobile platforms, including Symbian OS, Android and real-time operating systems, and are interoperable with servers supporting Open Mobile Alliance Device Management (OMA DM) standards.

Unitech Selects Alcatel-Lucent

Indian mobile operator Unitech Wireless has selected Alcatel-Lucent to support the initial launch of the company’s GSM/EDGE mobile service offering. Alcatel Lucent will deploy turnkey GSM/EDGE networks in Kerala and Orissa circles.
Under the terms of the contract, Alcatel-Lucent will design, deploy and maintain its multi-standard GSM/EDGE radio access solution, including its latest Base Station Controller platform and TWIN transceivers, along with a next-generation network (NGN) mobile core network. Alcatel-Lucent will build out Unitech Wireless's network and provide operations management under a comprehensive management services contract. As part of the contract,  Alcatel-Lucent will offer a range of services, including project management, network design, integration, testing, installation, maintenance, multi-vendor radio network planning and optimization and network management.
 “We thank Unitech Wireless for their confidence and are looking forward to strengthen our ongoing partnership as we deploy, maintain, manage and grow their network”, says Alcatel-Lucent India Managing Director, Vivek Mohan. “Our leadership in the rapid delivery of the latest generation of GSM/EDGE radio solutions, and ability to provide quick and seamless support for future evolutions to 3G and beyond, puts us in a unique position to support Unitech Wireless’ ambitious rollout plans.”
Alcatel-Lucent says this new project underlines its strong presence in the Indian mobile networking market, as well as its ability to provide competitive solutions while ensuring a high quality of support services locally. The company has more than 190 GSM/EDGE customers in over 100 countries.

Voda Offers Summer Roaming Holiday

Vodafone UK is abolishing roaming charges this summer, and also lowering prices for international calls.
From 1 June to 31 August, Vodafone Pay as you Go and Pay Monthly customers will be able to call, text and send picture messages to friends and family back home from over 35 countries for the same price as if they were in the UK. For example, a customer on a plan with 600 minutes and unlimited texts who opts in to Vodafone Passport would use these minutes and texts when they are on holiday with no extra charges.  
Existing Vodafone Passport customers automatically benefit from the three-month promotion. From May 15, customers who don’t currently use Vodafone Passport can sign up for free by texting the word PASSPORT to 97888 if they pay monthly or to 2345 if they use Pay as you Go, or they can sign up online.
Vodafone UK business customers on Anytime or Your Plan price plans will also benefit from the three-month Vodafone Passport promotion. Customers on these plans and already on Vodafone Passport will automatically qualify for the promotion. Non Vodafone Passport customers can opt in online,
or by calling their account manager.
In addition, from tomorrow, for Vodafone Pay as you Go customers on the ‘Simply’ tariff, international calls will cost from as little as 5p per minute to both landlines and mobiles. Customers can opt in to the new Vodafone International call plan by calling 36888, texting the word INTERNATIONAL to 2345 from their handset, via the Vodafone website, or in any Vodafone store.
Separately, Vodafone has also extended the closing date for the Vodafone Mobile Clicks mobile Internet start-up competitions for UK entrants to Friday 22 May. There's more information on the competition here.

Blyk Refutes MVNO Closure Reports

Ad-funded virtual mobile network Blyk has denied reports that it is planning to scrap its direct-to-consumer offering, which launched in September 2007. A story which appeared in New Media Age earlier today said that Blyk was preparing to close down its direct-to-consumer business to focus on operator partnerships.
But speaking exclusively to Mobile Marketing Magazine, Ann Sarimo, who is responsible for communications at Blyk, described the story as “complete speculation”.
“There was a discussion between New Media Age and (Blyk UK CEO) Antti Öhrling, about our partnering approach, but this has been misconstrued and sensationalised, and it has created a bit of a mess for us unfortunately,” Sarimo said. “We are not closing shop. We are actively expanding, and we are in negotiations with partners right now. Our members are our core asset. Our total proposition is partly based on the advertising side of things, but it’s also about the whole user experience and audience management. We are not just a technology solution, we are a total mobile marketing solution, based in part on the advertising and messaging component, but it’s very much about a total experience and an audience of happy, engaged users.”
In a statement released by Blyk, there’s a line that says: “This change is part and parcel of Blyk’s journey”. When asked about this, Sarimo said the change in question was not a move away from acting as a virtual network, but the addition of the partnership model to the company’s existing direct-to-consumer model.
Blyk originally offered 16-24 year olds 217 free texts and 43 minutes of free talk time each month, in return for accepting targeted advertising on their phone each day. Blyk’s model has been widely lauded, with high response rates to campaigns being seen by many as proof that the ad-funded mobile network concept could work.
But Blyk recently changed the terms of its offer, replacing the 217 free texts and 43 minutes of talk time with £15 of credit each month. And even if the company is retaining its direct-to-consumer operation, it has some work to do to convince brands and agencies to use it. One mobile marketing firm who used Blyk once, said today that they did not return because they felt the network does not have sufficient reach. Christian Louca, UK Country Manager and Head of Publishers at YOC, told Mobile Marketing:
“When the idea first emerged, it seemed like a really interesting concept, a clever idea with lots of potential, but the problem is reach. In order to be able to give brands value, they need to have reach, and an extensive strategy in terms of acquiring customers and then retaining them, and this is always difficult.
“We ran a campaign with Blyk for Coca-Cola, which was a relatively OK experience, but we did not go back, because as a mobile marketing agency using Blyk, it’s a great place to run a test campaign, but it comes back to reach. It’s a good place to test the marketplace, but it doesn’t seem to have come out of that space.”

Orange To Offer Nokia Comes With Music

Orange and Nokia are to jointly launch Nokia’s ‘Comes With Music’ service exclusively for Orange customers in the UK, on the Nokia 5800.
Offering access to the Nokia Music Store with over 6 million tracks, ‘Comes With Music’ will be available from Orange on the device across a selection of Orange pay monthly price plans and upgrades from Friday 29 May. In addition, the Nokia 5800 Comes With Music handset will be available exclusively to Orange customers in black or silver.
Orange will be the only UK network to offer the service, which starts at £24.47 per month for 200 minutes of talk time, 300 texts and unlimited music downloads from the Nokia Music Store, which holds over 6 million songs. There are four other packages, all offering unlimited music downloads, the most expensive being a £44.04 per month deal offering 1200 minutes talk time and 500 texts. All are on 24-month contracts.
Once signed up, customers will be able to download unlimited free tracks from the Nokia Music Store to their PC, for transfer to their Nokia 5800 handset. Orange customers will also be able to download tracks over the air via their handset at standard mobile data prices. Consumers will be able to download as much music as they like for the length of the two year contract and can keep that music once that period ends.
“Mobile music is key to both Orange and Nokia, so we’re delighted to have them as our exclusive operator for ‘Comes With Music’ on our best-seller, the Nokia 5800,” says Nokia UK Managing Director, Mark Loughran. 

O2 Launches Fitness First Campaign

O2’s recently-launched media business unit has launched a location-based mobile marketing campaign for health club group, Fitness First. The campaign offers five days free membership and a personal training session via SMS to O2 customers living in specific postcodes near Fitness First gyms. The use of location to target consumers maximises both the effectiveness and relevance of the offer, says O2.
In creating the campaign for Fitness First, O2 was able to target the brand communication to opted-in O2 customers who are interested in health, well-being and sports, aged between 18 and 35, while at the same time removing current Fitness First members form the database of those targeted.
Target customers within three miles of a Fitness First gym are sent a short text message which asks them to respond to a Shortcode with their postcode. Those that respond receive a personalised text message reply with the address and phone number of their local gym, and with a five day voucher to use in that gym. O2 provides Fitness First with a daily email with qualified leads of customer mobile numbers and postcodes to call the customer and book an appointment.
“Using this highly targeted medium is helping ensure maximum campaign effectiveness, proving mobile to be one of our most successful acquisition tools to date,” says Fitness First Marketing Manager, Sophie Lawler-Hall. “We are delighted that so many O2 customers have already taken up the offer.’’
O2 Media provides marketers with targeted brand communication opportunities across O2’s mobile, email, online, in-store, direct and experiential channels, enabling brands to tap into the wealth of information O2 has about its customer segments, across multiple channels.