BROWSING: MVNO

LONDON-Virgin Mobile U.K., a mobile virtual network operator, said it added more than half a million new customers in the fourth quarter of 2003. The quarter's 506,448 new clients, a 37-percent rise over quarter-fourth 2002 figures, brings the company's subscriber figures to more than...

LondonFollowing its launch of an MVNO service in the United Kingdom promoted through a multimillion-dollar ad campaign, British Telecommunications Inc. launched a new service, BTringtones.com, on its public Internet kiosks. The new service offers ring tones, as well as multimedia messaging service backgrounds, logos,...

LONDON-British Telecommunications plc, a fixed-line operator that spun off its mobile division as MmO2, is in its second mobile virtual network operator deal to get back into the mobile arena, according to international press reports.Last year, the company purchased airtime from MmO2 to provide...

In an industry drowning in acronyms and meaningless catch phrases, few labels are as hard to pin down as the European-derived mobile virtual network operator. Separately the words are familiar and seem to have meaning, but when put together to describe a business model...

NEW YORK-Tele2 AB said it signed a mobile virtual network operator agreement with Radiolinja, the Finnish mobile operator. Tele2 recently purchased 100 percent of Finnish 3G Suomen 3G, its Finnish mobile business, from Finnet Group and said the MVNO agreement will allow it to...

LONDON-Tesco, one of the United Kingdom's major supermarket chains, announced plans to launch its own mobile service in partnership with MmO2.The supermarket will offer branded mobile services to the consumer market based on MmO2's network via its stores countrywide. The 50:50 joint venture is...

LONDON-Tesco, one of the United Kingdom's major supermarket chains, announced plans to launch its own mobile service in partnership with MmO2.The supermarket will offer branded mobile services to the consumer market based on MmO2's network via its stores countrywide. The 50:50 joint venture is...

OSLO, Norway-Norway's Reitan Group, a retail giant best known for its grocery chain and franchise holdings, made a bid for Sense Communications International, the country's largest mobile virtual network operator (MVNO).The bid of 3.50 Norwegian kroners (US$0.48) per share was assessed as fair by...

STOCKHOLM, Sweden-As expected, Tele2 has returned its third-generation license in Norway to the government. Tele2 plans to offer mobile virtual network operator services through an agreement with Telenor instead of building a 3G network in the country.The company said the MVNO agreement will offer...

TOKYO-Fujitsu, a leading telecommunications vender in Japan, on 1 October launched mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) services based on PHS networks owned and run by DDI Pocket. Fujitsu's MVNO service, Mobile Plus, offers two programs-32 kilobits per second (kbps) service for 5,000 yen (US$40.65)...

LONDON-Virgin Mobile UK said it had signed up 232,000 customers during the third quarter giving the company more than 2 million customers at the end of September, which is less than three years after Virgin launched its MVNO service in the United Kingdom."The astonishing...

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina-The Telecommunications Secretary in Argentina authorized Millicom to rent the infrastructure network of existing cellular operators. This is the first time there has been a legal directive in place that allows for a mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) to operate in the...

OXFORD, United Kingdom-Having operated as a fixed-line operator in Spain since early 2001, Sweden-based Tele2 has now obtained the necessary license agreements to become the country's first mobile virtual network operator (MVNO). The 20-year license enables Tele2 to interconnect traffic and roam across the...

HELSINKI, Finland-Tele2, Sweden's second-largest network operator, has threatened to "hand back" its Norwegian third-generation (3G) license unless regulatory authorities in Norway relax the terms under which the license was granted and permit Tele2 to delay the rollout of its 3G network in Norway.Norwegian authorities...

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina-The Telephone Cooperative in La Paz (Cotel) announced it will soon launch its new service, Cotel M

HONG KONG-Shell Hong Kong and Sunday Communications, the six-largest mobile operator in Hong Kong, announced they will shut down their joint mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) venture Shell Mobile, effective 26 September. The service began just a few months ago.The company said the closure...

NEW YORK-Tele2 said it signed a mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) agreement with Connect Austria, allowing it to use Connect's network to provide an alternative mobile service."This MVNO will enable Tele2 to offer an attractively priced package of fixed and mobile services to our...

OXFORD, United Kingdom-As operators in Scandinavia call for a relaxation of 3G license conditions or opt to share the cost of network deployment, the concept of the mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) business model has come back into sharp focus. New findings from the...

LONDON-A new mobile virtual network operator service launched in the United Kingdom through One.Tel, which is leasing capacity from Vodafone Group plc. The group is touting its service, priced at less than

TOKYO—Fujitsu, a leading telecom vendor in Japan, is planning to launch a mobile carrier business renting PHS networks owned by DDI Pocket. The vender is planning to launch the service targeting corporate users in July at the earliest. The firm is also considering launching...

STOCKHOLM, Sweden—Several groups are lining up to bid for Italian company Blu, the country's smallest mobile operator.Sweden's Tele2 AB partnered with Star Capital Partners and has made an offer to purchase Blu. The company said it will serve as a technical and industrial partner,...

PARIS—A French newspaper reported European mobile operator Orange is interested in launching a branded service in the United States and is currently in talks with a U.S. operator. Orange has denied the reports.The report said Cingular is currently the most likely partner after talks...

ORLANDO, Fla.—The Yankee Group and Sentori Inc. announced an emerging niche within the MVNO wireless market space during a press conference at CTIA Wireless 2002 earlier this week.The new niche players, mainly affinity and specialty channel MVNOs, offer billing and customer care options to...

MAISONS-LAFFITTE, France—Webraska said it will supply Chinese and English location-based services to Shell Mobile, a mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) service in Hong Kong targeted at motorists. Motorists will be able to purchase subscriptions to a range of location-enabled Subscriber Identity Module-Toolkit services from...