John,
<< Unless all European phones were dual band, then many phones of one GSM company wouldn't work as one moved to other areas within Europe >>
The majority of GSM phones in Europe operate in 900 MHz Spectrum. Exceptions are Orange and one2one (the first PCN carriers which launched in new spectrum in 1994) in the UK and a few others launched more recently, I think, elsewhere.
Interesting Bloomberg article on same general topic is clipped below. "Business clients" obviously key.
BRITISH TELECOM AND AT&T PLAN MOBILE ALLIANCE TO TARGET BUSINESS CLIENTS
quote.bloomberg.com
By Marybeth Berger and Kate Norton - Technology News Sun, 19 Sep 1999 London, Sept. 16 (Bloomberg)
British Telecommunications Plc, the U.K.'s largest phone company, and AT&T Corp., the top U.S. wireless company, said they will form an alliance of their cellular operations to target more lucrative business clients.
The two aim to lure customers in the fastest-growing phone market by offering products and services geared toward international travelers, such as global billing and phones that function on different mobile networks worldwide.
BT and AT&T are betting the partnership will enable them to better compete against Vodafone AirTouch Plc, the world's largest wireless company, in the business market -- which spends more on mobile services than consumers. New technology has companies racing to provide phones that can access the Internet and corporate networks from anywhere in the world without wires. ''Mobile communications is very much the future,'' said Nigel Hawkins, an analyst with Williams de Broe. ''It's fair to say that Vodafone AirTouch, which is in the pole position, had to expect that some of the big beasts in the telecoms jungle would try and emulate them over the next couple of years.''
BT shares rose 33 pence, or 3.7 percent, to 922 pence in London, while the company's American depositary receipts, each of which represents 10 ordinary shares, rose 5 1/4 to 153. AT&T shares rose 1 to 45 1/2.
Together, BT and AT&T's mobile operations serve 41 million customers in 17 countries and have annual sales of $12 billion. The new alliance, called Advance, won't be a separate company.
More than 226 million customers use cell phones worldwide, and the number is growing 52 percent a year, according to Deloitte Research.
Europeans are leading wireless use, partly because the continent shares a single transmitting standard, allowing callers to use their phone in any nation when traveling. In Finland, for example, there are more subscribers to wireless phones than to traditional fixed-line phones and many other European countries aren't far behind.
A New Generation
Network operators in the U.S. and Europe use different standards, making most phones useless for travelers when they cross the Atlantic. As technology and phone products advance, however, phones will be able to function globally.
Manufacturers are now making so-called dual-band and tri- band phones that can be used on different standards. Countries and companies around the world also are trying to rally around a new generation of phone service that would function on the same standard, allowing global phone use.
To benefit from that single standard -- already in trial in many countries, but not due for commercial use for a few years -- mobile-phone companies are scrambling to unite to offer global services, making them more attractive than local or national companies. AT&T and BT are betting that by joining forces now, they'll be ahead of the competition for business clients. ''You can only begin to imagine what's going on in this industry,'' said Michael Raude, a fund manager at Gruber Haring Raude & Partners in Switzerland. ''I bought AT&T last week.''
Internet Access
A new application due by the end of this year, which will allow cell-phone users to access the Internet, will further boost mobile growth, executives predict.
Larry Ellison, chief executive of Oracle Corp., expects the application will be so popular that more people will be accessing the Internet through mobile phones than computers in a few of years. ''There are a million and one interesting applications for the mobile phone,'' he said at a presentation in Amsterdam this week. Oracle plans to add Internet applications to new mobile phones from Nokia Qyj, the world's largest cell phone maker.
For business, the new application will allow employees to access corporate networks on the go.
BT and AT&T are still awaiting final approval from U.S. regulators for their $10 billion joint venture to offer voice, data, and Internet services to multinational corporations, announced in July 1998.
For the Advance alliance, regulatory approval isn't necessary, said Andy Green, BT's group director of strategy and development. The two companies aren't considering merging their mobile-phone operations, he said. ''We don't think that's necessary,'' Green said. ''We think we can deliver the customer growth and the value growth and the revenue growth we're looking for with an alliance.''
- Eric - |
