GSM Association applauds Kenyan gateway license decision

Call for better regulation in Sierra Leone

19th July 2006 - Johannesburg: The GSM Association (GSMA), the global trade association for mobile operators, has welcomed the Kenyan government's decision to grant international gateway licenses to its two mobile operators, Celtel and Safaricom. International calls for mobile users are already 50% cheaper for Kenya's six million mobile subscribers who previously had to connect through state owned Telkom Kenya's gateway, paying a large premium.

Tom Phillips, Chief Government and Regulatory Affairs Officer at the GSM Association comments: "This is a great development for Kenyan consumers who are already seeing improved services and greatly reduced prices for overseas calls. Liberalising international gateways removes a bottleneck that has been choking African businesses as they seek to compete in a global market. It also allows operators to interconnect at a regional level, leveraging existing infrastructure to provide better quality and more affordable services to consumers."The Kenyan decision contrasts with draft legislation in Sierra Leone, which threatens to return exclusive gateway rights to the incumbent fixed operator, SierraTel, thereby raising costs and compromising service levels. Phillips adds: "It is disappointing that the Sierra Leone government is considering such legislation. Not only does it threaten the service currently enjoyed by 350,000 mobile subscribers but also it goes against the pro competition principals endorsed by WATRA and ECOWAS. Sierra Leone would join Gambia as the only country in the region that maintains monopoly control of gateways and as such it risks missing out on the substantial economic and social benefits, and increased tax receipts, that competition brings."

Celtel, the pan-African operator, has businesses in both Kenya and Sierra Leone and can point to the great consumer benefits of international gateway liberalisation. Marten Pieters, CEO of Celtel International comments: "When Celtel received regulatory approval to connect its networks across the Congo B, DRC border, traffic between Kinshasa and Brazzaville increased 20 fold as we passed on cost savings to our customers."

The elasticity of demand for communication services is extremely high in Africa. A study by PriceWaterhouse Coopers has highlighted the critical impact that government regulation has on mobile operators' business plans and their ability to meet the demand for mobile services.

"Across Africa policy makers recognise that liberalisation has brought growth and investment not only to the telecoms sector but also to the wider economy, creating jobs and boosting GDP," added Pieters. "We know that foreign direct investment levels correlate strongly with the quality of the telecoms infrastructure and therefore call on the Sierra Leone government to reject the proposed amendment that threatens all stakeholders."

The GSMA points to the specific drawbacks of the proposed legislation:

* Creating a monopoly will destroy competition, increase prices and reduce efficiency. The demand for low cost, high quality services will not be met.
* Both consumers and business will suffer from higher costs. Fewer calls will be made and lower traffic volumes will reduce Government tax receipts from international calls.
* Creating a monopoly bottleneck will lead to traffic congestion and result in poor service quality on international calls.
* An advanced liberalised telecoms sector, such as that enjoyed by Sierra Leone, is a requisite for foreign direct investment. Returning the international gateway to monopoly control would send the wrong signal to international investors.

About the GSM Association

The GSM Association (GSMA) is the global trade association representing more than 690 GSM mobile phone operators across 213 countries of the world. In addition, more than 180 manufacturers and suppliers support the Association's initiatives as key partners.

The primary goals of the GSMA are to ensure mobile phones and wireless services work globally and are easily accessible, enhancing their value to individual customers and national economies, while creating new business opportunities for operators and their suppliers. The Association's members serve more than two billion customers - 82% of the world's mobile phone users.

Source: GSM Association

GSM Association: Commission Spectrum Proposals May Curb Growth Of 3G

17th July 2006 - London: European Commission proposals to change the way in which radio spectrum is allocated could affect the future progress and availability of advanced mobile phone services, such as video downloads, high-speed Internet access and mobile TV, according to the GSM Association (GSMA), the global trade association for mobile operators.

The European Commission is proposing to establish the principle that specific spectrum bands shouldn’t be tied to any one technology. The GSMA is concerned that this will lead to fragmentation, where the same spectrum is used for many different technologies and different services across Europe. Such an outcome would make it difficult for manufacturers to sell the same equipment worldwide and realize the economies of scale that have dramatically reduced the cost of GSM handsets and network infrastructure. The GSMA is particularly concerned about the fate of the 3G extension bands (2.5 – 2.690 GHz), which it believes must be reserved for the IMT2000 family of technologies*."The harmonisation of spectrum, in markets where economies of scale are important, has been a universal benefit – to governments, users and operators alike," said Tom Phillips, Chief Government and Regulatory Affairs Officer of the GSMA. "Standardisation has created a healthy, open global mobile market with huge economies of scale and fierce competition amongst vendors and operators."

The GSMA fears that the long-term socio-economic benefits of third-generation (3G) mobile services are at risk without the kind of regulatory harmonisation which supported GSM in its infancy and which is needed now to protect 3G extension bands. The fast pace of change means that advanced technologies such as mobile TV and HSDPA are already being deployed, but the GSMA believes they will require the extension bands in order to realise their full potential.

"By reserving 3G extension bands for IMT2000 technologies, governments will protect and leverage their country's existing investment in 3G, rather than artificially constraining its potential," added Mr. Phillips. "A lot rides on these decisions, which will set the path for the evolution of mobile technologies over the next ten to 20 years."

The GSMA also fears that developing nations will be the hardest hit by the fragmentation of spectrum usage, as people in these countries are the most price-sensitive, especially for handsets. "If a lack of spectrum harmonization means the price of a low-end 3G phone increases by$30, the effect will be severe," said Mr. Phillips. GSMA studies have shown the strong link between mobile phone penetration and economic growth in developing markets.

Notes for Editors
*The ITU, which is part of the UN, has specified a number of frequency bands for use globally for third generation mobile services. The 3G standards identified by the ITU are referred to as the IMT 2000 family of technologies. Any new technology can enter this family if it meets certain criteria, such as minimum data rates and mobility.

*The GSMA has just published a white paper: "Optimising spectrum for future mobile service needs".

About the GSM Association
The GSM Association (GSMA) is the global trade association representing more than 690 GSM mobile phone operators across 213 countries of the world. In addition, more than 150 manufacturers and suppliers support the Association's initiatives as key partners The primary goals of the GSMA are to ensure mobile phones and wireless services work globally and are easily accessible, enhancing their value to individual customers and national economies, while creating new business opportunities for operators and their suppliers. The Association's members serve more than 2 billion customers - 78% of the world's mobile phone users.

Source: GSM Association

MS To Take Maximum Advantage of UMTS/HSPA

3G Americas Publishes White Paper on IMS as an Application Enabler

Bellevue, WA, July 25, 2006 - The IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) architecture is able to take maximum advantage of UMTS/HSPA (Universal Mobile Telecommunications Service/High Speed Packet Access) network technology and drive mobile data growth and user adoption. 3G Americas, a wireless industry association, today published a white paper that focuses specifically on IMS architecture, as defined by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), as the new application enabler for IP-based multimedia services.

The paper, entitled IMS: Application Enabler and UMTS/HSPA Growth Catalyst, addresses the ways in which 3GPP IMS architecture is best suited for the blending of real-time and non real-time multimedia services, and how it optimizes the application life-cycle through rapid and efficient service creation and deployment. Further, the paper illustrates how basic IMS services such as Presence, Messaging, and others, can become enablers of larger, personalized, interactive and collaborative multimedia services. The paper describes how IMS will play a key role in the introduction of these new revenue-generating services, and how the deployment of the GSM evolution through UMTS/HSPA will improve the user experience and generate demand for additional services. "IMS provides an architecture that facilitates the creation and deployment of complex multimedia applications, and provides service transparency and integration between networks," stated Chris Pearson, President of 3G Americas. "UMTS/HSPA combined with IMS together provide significant value added benefits from innovative services that will elevate customer satisfaction, leading to lower churn and increased subscription levels for new applications."

With IMS in place, it will be possible to deliver services over high-speed mobile networks and fixed broadband IP networks concurrently. What this means for users is a newfound ability to access multiple services in the course of the same call or session with multimedia applications such as Push-to-Talk over Cellular, Video Share and others. The reduction of lead time for new services and the ability to personalize these services, as well as other benefits such as an 'always on' connection, high quality of service, security and regulatory support, will all work to ensure a positive user experience.

The IMS: Application Enabler and UMTS/HSPA Growth Catalyst white paper was collaboratively developed by 3G Americas' board member companies and is available for free download at the 3G Americas' website: www.3gamericas.org.

About 3G Americas: Unifying the Americas through Wireless Technology

The mission of 3G Americas is to promote and facilitate the seamless deployment throughout the Americas of GSM and its evolution to 3G and beyond. The organization fully supports the Third Generation technology migration strategy to EDGE and UMTS/HSPA adopted by many operators in the Americas that is expected to account for up to 85% of next-generation customers worldwide. 3G Americas is headquartered in Bellevue, WA with an office for Latin America and the Caribbean in Dallas, TX. For more information, visit our website at www.3gamericas.org.

3G Americas' Board of Governor members include AT&T Wireless (USA), Cable & Wireless (West Indies), Cingular Wireless (USA), Ericsson, Gemalto, HP, Lucent Technologies, Motorola, Nokia, Nortel Networks, Openwave Systems, Research In Motion, Rogers Wireless (Canada), Siemens, T-Mobile USA, Telcel (Mexico), Telefónica Móviles (Spain), and Texas Instruments.

Source: 3G Americas

3G Americas Provides Technical Recommendations for Mass Market UMTS 3G Handsets for the Americas

Bellevue, WA, July 18, 2006 - 3G Americas, a trade organization focused on the mobile industry in the Americas, has recommended a set of common technical elements for operators and vendors for the production of 3G handsets in order to increase the access of customers in developing markets to 3G services. Technical Recommendations for a Mass Market UMTS 3G Handset, published today on the organization's website, www.3gamericas.org, defines the minimal requirements of and provides technical recommendations for an entry-level voice and data multi-media supported UMTS 3G (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System- Third Generation) device for the Americas, and offers a roadmap for the production of these UMTS 3G handsets for the region.Operators and vendors from the organization's Board of Governors companies collaborated on the technical reference document for a dual purpose: to provide to the vendor community guidelines regarding operator requirements for entry-level 3G cellular terminals, and to present a statement from the vendor community on product capabilities now essential for 3G wireless voice and data services in the Western Hemisphere.

Chris Pearson, President of 3G Americas, stated, "The 3G Americas' technical recommendations offer a suggested feature set as a reference to vendors and operators in the area of economical 3G handsets. The information on core terminal needs will serve to drive common RF (radio frequency) and base-band development platforms, thereby reducing overall cost and complexity inherent to the launch of 3G services. Consequently, the increased availability of mass market, economical 3G handsets will allow customers in many areas of the Americas access to cutting-edge, high-speed wireless services, often for the first time."

UMTS networks improve spectral efficiency, lower operating costs, and increase data throughput, allowing a substantially increased range of services and applications to the enterprise or consumer customer. In the past, one of the principal barriers to widespread uptake of 3G services has been the relatively expensive cost of high-end 3G devices. With the publication of this document, it is the intention of 3G Americas to advance the development of 3G wireless terminals for the mass market, which will prompt the wider-scale deployment and conversion of operators' product portfolios from 2G to 3G. By focusing vendor innovation on core 3G phone requirements, operators worldwide, and especially in the Americas, may both reduce network costs and increase revenue by transitioning to a UMTS network.

To view and download the (free) 3G Americas' Technical Recommendations for a Mass Market 3G Handset reference document, visit www.3gamericas.org.

About 3G Americas: Unifying the Americas through Wireless Technology

The mission of 3G Americas is to promote and facilitate the seamless deployment throughout the Americas of GSM and its evolution to 3G and beyond. The organization fully supports the Third Generation (3G) technology migration strategy to EDGE and UMTS/HSPA adopted by many operators in the Americas that is expected to account for up to 85% of next-generation customers worldwide. 3G Americas is headquartered in Bellevue, WA with an office for Latin America and the Caribbean in Dallas, TX. For more information, visit our website at www.3gamericas.org.

3G Americas' Board of Governor members include AT&T Wireless (USA), Cable & Wireless (West Indies), Cingular Wireless (USA), Ericsson, Gemalto, HP, Lucent Technologies, Motorola, Nokia, Nortel Networks, Openwave Systems, Research In Motion, Rogers Wireless (Canada), Siemens, T-Mobile USA, Telcel (Mexico), Telefónica Móviles (Spain), and Texas Instruments.

Source: 3G Americas

UMTS Evolution Ready to Meet the Growing Demands for High Speed Wireless Data Services

3G Americas Publishes White Paper on 3GPP Release 7 and Beyond

Bellevue, WA, July 13, 2006 - 3G Americas, a wireless industry group supporting the GSM family of technologies in the Americas, today published Mobile Broadband: The Global Evolution of UMTS/HSPA -- 3GPP Release 7 and Beyond, a white paper covering industry progress towards UMTS/HSPA and its long term evolution.

3GPP has set forth the roadmap for the evolution of UMTS/HSPA from Release '99 through Release 7 with developmental and standardization work in place. Mobile Broadband: The Global Evolution of UMTS/HSPA -- 3GPP Release 7 and Beyond explores Release 7 and the future beyond HSPA (UMTS/HSDPA/HSUPA) with the HSPA Evolution (HSPA+), Long Term Evolution (LTE) and System Architecture Evolution (SAE) initiatives. Also highlighted in the paper are the growing demands for wireless data, as well as the successes of a variety of wireless data applications that are increasing average revenue per user (ARPU) for carriers. Chris Pearson, President of 3G Americas stated, "The innovative standards work at 3GPP is providing the foundation of advanced wireless broadband functionality, to the benefit of operators and their customers worldwide. UMTS and its long term evolution will lead the way in meeting the high speed wireless data application demands of customers for years to come. UMTS offers an advanced, mass market, future-proof migration strategy for the next decade and beyond."

There are nearly 75 million UMTS customers worldwide today, across 107 commercial networks. In December 2005, Cingular Wireless launched UMTS/HSDPA in sixteen US markets and became the first operator in the world to launch this enhanced UMTS technology on a wide scale commercial basis. Today, there are 41 operators in 31 countries offering HSDPA services, with additional HSDPA commitments from 67 more operators as of this date. It is expected that most UMTS operators will deploy HSDPA.

3GPP Release 7, currently in standards development, continues UMTS momentum by enabling even faster speeds and capacity improvements as well as improved support of real-time services like voice-over-IP (VoIP), interactive gaming and push-to-talk over cellular. Enhancements include features such as Multiple Input Multiple Output (MIMO), taking theoretical peak rates well above today’s 14 Mbps, in addition to improving the average cell throughput. Other new Rel-7 features include: Radio Access Network (RAN) enhancements such as continuous connectivity, setup latency improvements, Core Network and IMS enhancements related to multi-media telephony, support of voice call continuity, and Policy and Charging Convergence (PCC).

Looking beyond Release 7 to HSPA Evolution (HSPA+), SAE (System Architecture Evolution) and 3GPP LTE (Long Term Evolution), the white paper uncovers 3GPP's work on a new radio interface and new system architecture, to handle the rapid growth in IP data traffic, and to ensure competitiveness for the next decade and beyond. The continued evolution of the 3GPP technologies will bring theoretical peak rates to above 100 Mbps for downlink and 50 Mbps for uplink, and reduced latency to levels comparable with fixed broadband internet, e.g. less than five milliseconds in ideal conditions.

The Mobile Broadband: The Global Evolution of UMTS/HSPA – 3GPP Release 7 and Beyond white paper was collaboratively developed by 3G Americas' board member companies and is available for free download at the 3G Americas' website: www.3gamericas.org. The paper includes appendices of UMTS, EDGE/UMTS, and HSDPA deployments worldwide.

Terminology of the GSM Evolution

Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), also known as WCDMA: The GSM evolution to Third Generation (3G) high speed wireless data services, adopted worldwide as the leading wireless standard. UMTS represents an evolution from GSM Second Generation (2G) mobile networks in terms of capacity, data speeds and new service capabilities. It is an Internet Protocol-based (IP) technology that supports packetized voice and data, delivers theoretical peak data rates of up to 2 Mbps, and average speeds of 220-320 Kbps. Compared to other next generation technologies, UMTS has the greatest spectral efficiency and lowest latency. Additional benefits of UMTS include simultaneous vice and data capability for users, high user densities that can be supported with low infrastructure cost due to the scope and scale of 2 billion GSM customers, and support for high-bandwidth data applications.

High Speed Packet Access (HSPA): A nomenclature for developments encompassing both directions of information transmission – the downlink (HSDPA) and the uplink (HSUPA) directions. HSPA is an enhancement to UMTS and offers a successful combination of spectral efficiency (4-5 times that of UMTS), high speed data throughput (eventually averaging 550-1100 Kbps on the downlink), and low latency (less than 100 ms), thus enabling true mass market mobile broadband. HSPA also lowers the cost per bit, enabling cost-effective, rich multimedia services.

HSPA Evolution (HSPA+): HSPA+ is a study item of 3GPP to enable operators to capitalize on existing RAN infrastructure investments by further improving the radio performance of HSPA, as well as leveraging the use of the SAE core with the current radio interface in 2 x 5 MHz spectrum. HSDPA is now being deployed and HSUPA (E-DCH) will be deployed by 1Q 2007. HSPA+ is an enhancement where simplifications and rationalizations agreed upon for LTE/SAE are partially applied to the HSPA system with a vision of providing full service delivery through the Packet Switched (PS) Domain.

System Architecture Evolution (SAE): The 3GPP work item for developing a framework for a higher-data-rate, lower-latency, packet-optimized system that supports multiple radio access technologies with a focus on the packet-switched domain to support voice services. The main drivers for the network evolution are: to be able to meet the targets for the evolution of the radio-interface (LTE), to enable the evolution towards an All-IP Network, and to support mobility and service continuity between heterogeneous access networks.

Long Term Evolution (LTE): The 3GPP work item on the long term evolution (LTE) of UTRAN (Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network) or the Air-Interface Evolution to develop a framework for a high-data-rate, low-latency and packet-optimized radio-access technology. Products are not expected to be available until 2009-2010.

About 3G Americas: Unifying the Americas through Wireless Technology

The mission of 3G Americas is to promote and facilitate the seamless deployment throughout the Americas of GSM and its evolution to 3G and beyond. The organization fully supports the Third Generation technology migration strategy to EDGE and UMTS/HSPA adopted by many operators in the Americas that is expected to account for up to 85% of next-generation customers worldwide. 3G Americas is headquartered in Bellevue, WA with an office for Latin America and the Caribbean in Dallas, TX. For more information, visit our website at www.3gamericas.org.

3G Americas’ Board of Governor members include AT&T Wireless (USA), Cable & Wireless (West Indies), Cingular Wireless (USA), Ericsson, Gemalto, HP, Lucent Technologies, Motorola, Nokia, Nortel Networks, Openwave Systems, Research In Motion, Rogers Wireless (Canada), Siemens, T-Mobile USA, Telcel (Mexico), Telefónica Móviles (Spain), and Texas Instruments.

Source: 3G Americas

J.D. Power and Associates Reports: The Incidence of Wireless Users Contacting Their Carrier for Customer Care Issues is at an All-Time High

T-Mobile and Verizon Wireless Rank Highest in Wireless Customer Care Performance

WESTLAKE VILLAGE, Calif: 26 July 2006 — Wireless phone customers who have problems or issues with their service are more likely to contact their current provider than they have been in the past in order to resolve the inquiry, according to the J.D. Power and Associates 2006 Wireless Customer Care Performance StudySM – Volume 2 released today.

The study, now in its fourth year, provides a detailed report card on a semi-annual basis of wireless provider customer care performance based on customer experiences with three point-of-contact methods: telephone call with a service representative and/or automated response system (ARS); at a retail wireless store; and online Internet connection. Within each contact method, processing issues such as problem resolution efficiency and hold-time duration are also measured.The study finds that 59 percent of wireless customers contact their provider within a 12 month period—the highest level since measurement began in 2000. Since that time, the average incidence rate has steadily climbed. In 2005, the incidence rate reached 54 percent—up from 47 percent in 2000. A key factor contributing to the increase in contact frequency is not only the rise of new wireless services and products that are available, but also the complexity of using those products. As customers capture still pictures or video, download ring tones, play MP3 files, and even watch TV clips on their wireless phones, they are increasingly likely to call their provider for support. This puts pressure on the provider’s customer care centers and service representatives to not only handle the increase in customer inquiries, but to also understand the issue or problem and attempt to get the inquiry resolved in a timely manner.

“As more wireless companies encourage customers to try new services, this trend will continue to rise,� said Kirk Parsons, senior director of wireless services at J.D. Power and Associates. “The downside is that carriers run the risk of decreasing customer satisfaction and losing customers to other carriers. Since future switching levels are 50 percent higher among customers who need to contact their carrier to get the inquiry resolved than those who do not, the challenge for wireless providers is to provide contact channels that can offer an informative and efficient experience for their customers.�

T-Mobile and Verizon Wireless rank highest in a tie among the five largest wireless service providers in creating a positive experience for customers who contact their provider for service or assistance. Both providers perform particularly well across all factors, especially in the areas of customer service representatives, hold times and resolving inquiries with one contact. ALLTEL follows T-Mobile and Verizon Wireless in the rankings.

The study also finds several key wireless customer care patterns:

* The average number of contacts to resolve an inquiry by phone is 1.76—a decrease from 1.94 from Volume 1 of the study, which was released in January.
* Among customers who contact their provider, 74 percent do so by telephone and 22 percent do so through their provider’s retail store. E-mail/Internet contacts account for just 4 percent of customer contacts.
* The average initial reported hold time on calls to the customer service department is 3.59 minutes—an increase from 3.44 minutes in 2005. In comparison, it takes an average of more than 8 minutes before speaking to a representative at one of the provider’s retail stores.
* Nearly one-half of customers (45%) contact their provider with a service inquiry that is billing related, and 51 percent of these contacts can be attributed to incorrect charges. An additional 31 percent of all customer care inquiries are call-quality related.

The 2006 Wireless Customer Care Performance Study-Volume 2 is based on responses from more than 11,430 wireless customers who contacted customer care within the past year. The results are from the past two reporting waves, conducted in January and March 2006. The 2007 Volume 1 report will be issued in January 2007.

About J.D. Power and Associates

Headquartered in Westlake Village, Calif., J.D. Power and Associates is an ISO 9001-registered global marketing information services firm operating in key business sectors including market research, forecasting, consulting, training and customer satisfaction. The firm’s quality and satisfaction measurements are based on responses from millions of consumers annually. J.D. Power and Associates is a business unit of The McGraw-Hill Companies.

About The McGraw-Hill Companies

Founded in 1888, The McGraw-Hill Companies is a leading global information services provider meeting worldwide needs in the financial services, education and business information markets through leading brands such as Standard & Poor’s, McGraw-Hill Education, BusinessWeek and J.D. Power and Associates. The Corporation has more than 290 offices in 38 countries. Sales in 2005 were $6.0 billion. Additional information is available at http://www.mcgraw-hill.com .

Nokia, Motorola and Sony Ericsson Set Record Highs as Global Mobile Phone Shipments Reach 235 Million Units in Q2 2006

Boston, MA - July 20, 2006 -- Global mobile phone shipments grew a healthy 26 percent year-over-year, to reach 235 million units in Q2 2006, according to the latest research from Strategy Analytics. Nokia and Motorola dominated sales and accounted for a record 55 percent combined share during the quarter, as described in the newly published Q2 2006 Global Handset Market Share Update report.

Neil Mawston, Associate Director of the Wireless Device Strategies (WDS) service at Strategy Analytics said, "Motorola has recorded an average 52% annual growth over the last four quarters, while Nokia has averaged 32%. If Motorola can continue this breakneck pace - a stretch, but not totally inconceivable given the strength of their core designs - it would overtake Nokia in the first half of 2007. The stars would need to align for Motorola on additional new products, 3G, and component supply, but this should be a strong warning for Nokia which should feel pressure to more rapidly improve both entry- and mid-tier product offerings in terms of both designs and numbers."Chris Ambrosio, Director of the Wireless Device Strategies (WDS) service, added, "Sony Ericsson is another vendor who has achieved both balanced product design and brand relevance with its Walkman products, resulting in record highs for the joint venture in shipments, revenues and profits. The important story for Sony Ericsson is the notable improvements in getting new products out and into channel on time - and profitably. If Sony Ericsson can continue in this area, where it has struggled in the past, the Walkman and Cybershot brands from Sony have legs to provide strong growth well into 1H 2007."

Other findings from Strategy Analytics' Q2 2006 Global Handset Market Share Update include:

* Sony Ericsson jumped back into fourth position for the first time in 2 years, as demand surged for its Walkman music phones;
* The market share gap between Motorola (22%) and Samsung (11%) opened to its widest point since 1999, as Samsung continued to miss out on the boom in emerging GSM markets.

Source: Strategy Analytics

Mobile 365 Powers SMS Service for Skype

Enables Skype Users to Send SMS Messages to Mobile Phones Around the World

London, 26.07.2006 - Mobile 365, the global leader in mobile messaging and data services, today announced that is has been chosen to provide SMS services to SkypeTM.

With the addition of SMS messaging via Mobile 365's global delivery network, Skype users can keep in touch by sending SMS messages to mobile subscribers anywhere in the world. Mobile 365 is at the forefront of mobile interoperability messaging and the distribution of premium content and value-added services and is the exclusive partner for Skype in China."Skype chose to work with Mobile 365 not only because of its unrivalled global SMS reach, but also because of its ability to access difficult, but highly important markets such as China and India," said Michael Jackson, Director, Paid Products, Skype. "As a global partner, Mobile 365 offers both service reliability and availability, using multiple routes to each destination, enabling us to deliver messages with speed, quality, and ultimately, cost effectively."

With this new service, Skype users can send an SMS to a mobile phone directly from their keyboard. The service is quick and simple to use, and features a straightforward pricing plan; users pay using their existing Skype Credit. For example, a Skype user can now contact a friend who is offline, via a mobile message, and arrange a Skype call, thus extending Skype's reach beyond the PC.

When a Skype user sends a message, Skype distributes the message via Mobile 365's global inter-operator network to over 60 countries across the world. Mobile 365 accommodates high traffic volumes via its upgraded platform, which recently benefited from a $15 million investment, further enabling the network to reliably deliver messages into over 180 countries worldwide.

Gino Picasso, CEO of Mobile 365 comments, "Skype is leading the way in global communications and we are delighted to have been chosen as a strategic partner in their quest to revolutionize the way consumers utilize SMS. Skype needed a global partner that is able to provide connectivity into rapidly growing regions including China and India."

As Mobile 365 is the only international aggregator with a local presence and premium connectivity into China and India (with over 500 million, and growing, mobile subscribers combined) it is well placed to help Skype deploy value-added services to its users, via Premium SMS, thus opening new revenue streams in such lucrative emerging markets. Picasso said, "We expect to build upon our SMS delivery and expand our product offerings with Skype for the global marketplace."

Skype is available to download at www.skype.com.
About Mobile 365

Delivering two billion messages per month, Mobile 365 leads the world in the global delivery and settlement of mobile messaging and data services, including SMS, MMS, and WAP. With reach to more than 500 mobile operators around the world, Mobile 365 is at the forefront of mobile interoperability messaging and the distribution of premium content and value-added services. Headquartered outside of Washington, D.C., Mobile 365 has offices in Beijing, Guangzhou, Hamburg, Hong Kong, Johannesburg, Kuala Lumpur, London, Madrid, Mexico City, Milan, New Delhi, Paris, San Francisco, Shanghai, Singapore, Sydney, and Taipei. Major operator customers include Verizon Wireless, Vodafone, Cingular Wireless, T-Mobile, Telcel, Telefonica, O2, China Mobile, China Unicom, Hutchison, and Airtel. Major brand customers include Volvo, Sony Pictures, MSN, Citibank, Siemens, Ogilvy, Yahoo!, and Dunkin' Donuts. For more information, visit: www.mobile365.com.
About Skype

Skype is the world's fastest-growing Internet communication offering, allowing people everywhere to make unlimited voice and video communication for free between the users of Skype software. Skype is available in 27 languages and is used in almost every country around the world. Skype generates revenue through its premium offerings such as making and receiving calls to and from landline and mobile phones, as well as voicemail and call forwarding. Skype also has relationships with a growing network of hardware and software providers. Skype is an eBay company (NASDAQ: EBAY). To learn more visit skype.com.

Skype is not a replacement for your ordinary telephone and cannot be used for emergency calling.

Source: Mobile 365

Mobile 365 Connects Largest Israeli Operator to all U.S. Mobile Subscribers

Cellcom Subscribers Can Send SMS Across the U.S., Regardless of Operator

Chantilly, VA, 24.07.2006 - Mobile 365, the global leader in mobile messaging and data services, continues to grow the Personal Messaging business following the signing of an agreement with Cellcom Israel. Delivering more than two billion messages monthly, Mobile 365 leads the world in the global delivery and settlement of mobile messaging and data services, including SMS, MMS, and WAP.

Cellcom, the leading mobile operator in Israel, has more than 2.5 million subscribers, all of whom can now exchange text messages with mobile subscribers from all U.S. operators. Connections to other regions around the world will follow."We are very pleased to expand this global SMS service capability to our subscribers," said Adi Cohen, VP Marketing, Cellcom. "Mobile 365 solves the complexities of interoperability by providing a single point of contact for our messaging connectivity."

"Mobile 365 has established an unrivaled global footprint of direct connections with operators via an IP and SS7 network, reaching more than 500 mobile operators around the world," said Greg Dunn, Vice President Americas, Mobile 365. "We are committed to leveraging our relationships and best practices across geographic regions. As our market is built on mobility, we see these strategic efforts as an integral part of growing our international customer base."

Mobile 365 is attending the CTIA Wireless Show (Booth #714) from 11-14 September, 2006 in Los Angeles. Attending from Mobile 365 will be: Gino Picasso, CEO; Greg Dunn, Vice President of the Americas; William Dudley, Senior Director of Product Management; and Michael Kurtzman, Managing Director, Content Services.

To arrange a press briefing, please contact Sara Parker at sparker@sheahedges.com or 703.287.7820.
About Mobile 365

Delivering two billion messages per month, Mobile 365 leads the world in the global delivery and settlement of mobile messaging and data services, including SMS, MMS, and WAP. With reach to more than 500 mobile operators around the world, Mobile 365 is at the forefront of mobile interoperability messaging and the distribution of premium content and value-added services. Headquartered outside of Washington, D.C., Mobile 365 has offices in Beijing, Guangzhou, Hamburg, Hong Kong, Johannesburg, Kuala Lumpur, London, Madrid, Mexico City, Milan, New Delhi, Paris, San Francisco, Shanghai, Singapore, Sydney, and Taipei. Major operator customers include Verizon Wireless, Vodafone, Cingular Wireless, T-Mobile, Telcel, Telefonica, O2, China Mobile, China Unicom, Hutchison, and Airtel. Major brand customers include Volvo, Sony Pictures, MSN, Citibank, Siemens, Ogilvy, Yahoo!, and Dunkin' Donuts. For more information, visit: www.mobile365.com.
About Cellcom

Cellcom, Israel's largest and leading cellular telecommunications company, joined the Israeli telecommunications market in 1994 as the nation's second cellular operator. Its entry into what was a monopolistic market at that time revolutionized Israel's telecommunication industry. In April 2006, Cellcom became the ?rst cellular operator to be granted (through its subsidiary) a local exchange carrier (LEC) license, enabling provision of ?xed-line telephone services in addition to the data transmission and communication services that Cellcom had already been providing for several years. Today Cellcom has over 3,500 employees and provides services to over 2.5 million subscribers.

Source: Mobile 365

Mobile 365 Announces 40% Increase in U.S. MMS Traffic Growth From Q1 to Q2, 2006

MMS Growth Continues, Market Looks Strong for Remainder of Calendar Year

Chantilly, VA, 19.07.2006 - Mobile 365, the global leader in mobile messaging and data services, today announced that their U.S. Multimedia Message Service (MMS) traffic increased 40% from Q1, 2006 to Q2, 2006. Total U.S. MMS Mobile Originated (MO) traffic for the second quarter was 52,071,114 MO messages; total traffic for the first quarter was 34,405,598 MO messages. MMS mobile content includes video, photos, audio, and rich text such as wallpaper, ringtones, games, and applications.

Since launching inter-operator MMS in 2005, Mobile 365 has delivered more than 132,000,000 MMS messages in the U.S. The average month-over-month MMS growth for 2006 is 12%. In terms of MMS traffic, the United States is the global frontrunner, based on quarterly statistics released by operators and as published by Informa Telecoms & Media. When combined with SMS, Mobile 365 delivers more than two billion messages a month in the personal messaging space."The success of Mobile 365's inter-operator MMS traffic can be seen as a positive barometer for overall U.S. MMS uptake," said Greg Dunn, Vice President, Americas, Mobile 365. "Despite a slight historical downturn in overall messaging during the summer months, our June MMS traffic grew, indicating organic growth that shows that subscribers are continuing to use MMS messaging as part of their everyday lives."

"Mobile 365 continues to experience tremendous MMS growth," said Gino Picasso, CEO of Mobile 365. "With the high adoption rate of MMS-capable handsets by U.S. consumers, we will continue to see explosive MMS traffic growth and the rise of new MMS-focused applications and services."

Mobile 365 has nearly 300 direct personal messaging connections to operators worldwide, with reach to over 500 mobile operators and more than 120 premium operator SMS links. Mobile 365 has five global data centers located in Sterling, VA; Chicago, IL; Paris; Beijing; and Singapore.

Mobile 365 is attending the CTIA Wireless Show (Booth #714) from 11-14 September, 2006 in Los Angeles. Attending from Mobile 365 will be: Gino Picasso, CEO; Greg Dunn, Vice President of the Americas; William Dudley, Senior Director of Product Management; and Michael Kurtzman, Managing Director, Content Services.

To arrange a press briefing, please contact Sara Parker at sparker@sheahedges.com or 703.287.7820.
About Mobile 365

Delivering two billion messages per month, Mobile 365 leads the world in the global delivery and settlement of mobile messaging and data services, including SMS, MMS, and WAP. With reach to more than 500 mobile operators around the world, Mobile 365 is at the forefront of mobile interoperability messaging and the distribution of premium content and value-added services. Headquartered outside of Washington, D.C., Mobile 365 has offices in Beijing, Guangzhou, Hamburg, Hong Kong, Johannesburg, Kuala Lumpur, London, Madrid, Mexico City, Milan, New Delhi, Paris, San Francisco, Shanghai, Singapore, Sydney, and Taipei. Major operator customers include Verizon Wireless, Vodafone, Cingular Wireless, T-Mobile, Telcel, Telefonica, O2, China Mobile, China Unicom, Hutchison, and Airtel. Major brand customers include Volvo, Sony Pictures, MSN, Citibank, Siemens, Ogilvy, Yahoo!, and Dunkin' Donuts. For more information, visit: www.mobile365.com

Source: Mobile 365