SI
SI
discoversearch

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor.  We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community.  If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.
Technology Stocks : Sonera (SNRA) : The next Nokia ? -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?


To: Gutterball who wrote (10)1/5/2000 1:14:00 PM
From: Gutterball  Respond to of 101
 
Tiscali in call centre venture with Sonera

MILAN, Jan 4 (Reuters) - Italian telecoms and free Internet pioneer Tiscali said on Tuesday it had signed an accord with Finnish telecoms group Sonera Corp to set up a 50-50 joint venture for a phone directory call centre .

Tiscali said in a statement that the new company Gilla SpA will be headquartered in Tiscali's home town of Cagliari in Sardinia.

The company will offer the public a directory enquiry service covering Italy and major foreign countries and will also offer a 'call completion' service.

The call centre service will be based on the interconnection agreement which Tiscali has with Telecom Italia .




To: Gutterball who wrote (10)1/5/2000 1:18:00 PM
From: Gutterball  Respond to of 101
 
Advanced Radio Telecom to Deploy Broadband Wireless Internet Protocol Networks in 10 Markets in 2000

BELLEVUE, Wash.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 5, 2000--Advanced Radio Telecom Corp. (ART) (Nasdaq:ARTT), the first broadband Internet Protocol service provider (IPSP), announced today that it will build high-speed, IP metropolitan area networks in 10 markets in 2000 including Boston, Dallas, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, Orange County, Calif., Phoenix, San Diego, Seattle, and Washington D.C.

ART offers 100Mbps Internet access service to businesses in San Jose, Calif., and plans to deploy its broadband wireless metropolitan area IP network to provide IP services to Internet service providers (ISP), interexchange carriers (IXC), on-site service providers (OSP) and application service providers (ASP).

''ART is the nation's first broadband IPSP to offer existing ISPs, OSPs and carriers a cost-effective, carrier-class, very high speed metropolitan area access solution,'' said Robert McCambridge, president and COO of ART. ''ART's pure-IP, broadband networks open up the bottleneck in the last mile by providing a 100 Mbps link between businesses' high speed LANs and the lightening-speed WANs that transverse the United States.''

''As our strategic partner, ART's broadband metropolitan area networks are part of Qwest's local broadband access strategy that allow us to extend our high-speed Internet network to the end user,'' said Augie Cruciotti, Qwest's senior vice president of Qwestlink. ''Using ART's local network, we plan to provide mid-size businesses with up to 100 Mbps of high-speed access to support the use of broadband applications and services.''

With plans to roll out a total of 40 markets over the next few years, ART plans to manage its national footprint from regional centers in Los Angeles (Western region), Washington D.C. (Northeastern region), Houston (Southern region), and its headquarters in Bellevue, Wash. (Northwestern region).

ART's metropolitan area broadband network features Ethernet routing and switching products supplied by Cisco Systems Inc., along with broadband wireless radios configured in a self-healing ring architecture. The rings link commercial office buildings together creating a fully redundant network capable of providing 200Mbps of total bandwidth on its bi-directional paths. As a Cisco Powered Network(TM) service provider, ART has worked very closely with Cisco, the worldwide leader in networking for the Internet, in designing and implementing this unprecedented network infrastructure. ART has selected Wireless Facilities Inc. (WFI) as its preferred vendor for outsourcing services in support of its network deployment.

Morgan Stanley Dean Witter Vice President of Equity Research, Peter Kennedy, said, ''ART, in our view, is operating in one of the fastest growing segments of the communications market -- providing broadband local connectivity. While less then 40 percent of the on-line business subscribers have broadband connectivity today, by 2002 we expect the number of on-line subscribers will more than double led by a surge in demand for high-speed access. For example, we estimate that by 2002 more than 70 percent of businesses will access the Internet through some form of broadband connectivity. Based on our forecasts, broadband access will nearly double from a $22B market in 1999 to a $42B market in 2002, and in our view fixed wireless should take a meaningful portion of this growth.''

About Advanced Radio Telecom

Advanced Radio Telecom Corp., headquartered in Bellevue, Wash., is a provider of local Internet Protocol (IP) services at speeds up to 100Mbps. ART currently owns and operates broadband wireless metropolitan area networks in San Jose, Seattle, Portland, and Phoenix. ART has a strategic relationship with Qwest Communications International Inc., which includes Qwest Private Line, ART Broadband Services, Co-marketing and Co-location agreements. ART investors include Qwest and a number of high tech investment funds including Oak Investment Partners, MeriTech Capital Partners, Accel Partners, Brentwood Venture Capital, Worldview Technology Partners, Columbia Capital, Advent International, GE Equity, KPN, Sonera, Bessemer Venture Capital, and Adams Capital Management. ART has a nationwide footprint of 38GHz spectrum licenses in the United States, and owns 26GHz and/or 38GHz spectrum licenses in the United Kingdom and several Scandinavian countries. For more information, please visit ART's web site at art-net.net.



To: Gutterball who wrote (10)1/13/2000 12:49:00 PM
From: Gutterball  Respond to of 101
 
Turkcell, Sonera and the Cukurova Group Establishing a Holding Company to own Operator Stakes and New Businesses

ISTANBUL, Turkey--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 13, 2000--Turkey's leading mobile phone operator Turkcell Iletisim Hizmetleri A.S., the Turkish Cukurova Group and Sonera Corporation will establish a holding company, Fintur Holding B.V.. Fintur Holding B.V. is established to develop and own Turkcell's stakes in GSM operators outside Turkey, and some companies that will be purchased from the Cukurova Group. The arrangement allows the business operations of these companies to be developed and financed independently.

The shareholders of Fintur are Turkcell, Cukurova Group and Sonera. The Cukurova Group is the largest and Sonera is the second largest shareholder of Turkcell Iletisim Hizmetleri A.S.

Fintur will purchase Turkcell's stakes in some of Turkcell subsidiaries operating in Turkey and abroad. The shareowners of Fintur expect the arrangement to be closed by the end of the first half of year 2000. The details of the companies and businesses transferred to Fintur will be disclosed at this point.

Combining the businesses will provide a basis for developing Turkcell's digital TV, mobile and other portal services, and mobile communications and Internet services for companies.

Turkcell is the leading GSM operator in Turkey and one of the largest operators in Europe. With more than 5.5 million postpaid and prepaid customers, Turkcell provides high-quality wireless telephone services throughout Turkey. Turkcell is awarded with ISO 9001 certificate for its quality management concept and service quality. Being the first ISO 9001 licensed GSM operators in Turkey, Turkcell also became the 9th (1) among 400 GSM operators around the world to receive such a certificate.

(1) : GSM Association Sources.

For more information please refer to our web page : www.turkcell.com.tr




To: Gutterball who wrote (10)1/13/2000 12:51:00 PM
From: Gutterball  Respond to of 101
 
Sonera SmartTrust sees listing this year

HELSINKI, Jan 12 (Reuters) - Finnish telecom operator Sonera aims to list its Sonera SmartTrust wireless data encryption business this year, the unit's head said on Wednesday.

''The intention is to move very quickly so that we can use our own stock for financing,'' Sonera SmartTrust President and Chief Executive Harri Vatanen told Reuters. ''It will happen in a year.''

He also said the unit had last year reached its targets and made several deals that would still be announced.

''This has set a very good start for this year,'' Vatanen said.

Commenting on a deal #reply-12560140 announced earlier in the day with five leading certification autority platform providers on developing secure wireless electronic commerce, he said it was a major boost to Sonera Smart Trust's ability to conquer market share.

The partners -- Baltimore Technologies (NasdaqNM:BALT - news) (quote from Yahoo! UK & Ireland: BLM.L), Entrust Technologies (NasdaqNM:ENTU - news), GTE (NYSE:GTE - news) company Cybertrust, iD2 Technologies and Verisign (NasdaqNM:VRSN - news) -- had installed electronic commerce Internet solutions around the world.

Their clients included banks, insurers and operators, to whom Sonera could now add secure wireless transaction offerings very quickly, he said.

''They have made 1,500 installations and the deals opens that market for us,'' Vatanen said.




To: Gutterball who wrote (10)1/13/2000 1:03:00 PM
From: Gutterball  Respond to of 101
 
Nextel Joins UK Spectrum Bidding Consortium

RESTON, Va., Jan. 12 /PRNewswire/ -- Nextel Communications, Inc. (Nasdaq: NXTL - news) announced today that it is an anchor participant in a bidding consortium in the United Kingdom to participate in the 3-G UMTS spectrum auction for broadband wireless licenses. The other consortium members include: Virgin Spectrum Limited, EMI, Sonera, and Vulcan Ventures, as well as other investors.

''This consortium has great resources,'' said Tim Donahue, Nextel's president and CEO. ''We are glad to be a part of a group with exceptional branding, operating experience and financial backing. The focus of this consortium, if successful, would include and complement Nextel's business to business strategy.''

The auctions are scheduled to begin in March with a final license award to be completed later this year.

Nextel Communications Inc., headquartered in Reston, Va. is a leading provider of fully integrated wireless communications and has built the largest guaranteed all-digital wireless network in the United States that covers thousands of communities across the United States. Nextel and Nextel Partners, Inc., currently serve 92 of the top 100 U.S. markets. The Nextel National Network offers a fully integrated wireless communications tool with digital cellular, text/numeric paging and Nextel Direct Connect® -- a digital two- way radio feature. In addition, through Nextel International Inc., Nextel has wireless operations and investments in Canada, Mexico, Argentina, Brazil, the Philippines, Peru, Japan and Shanghai, China. Please visit our web page at nextel.com.

SOURCE: Nextel Communications, Inc.




To: Gutterball who wrote (10)1/13/2000 1:10:00 PM
From: Gutterball  Read Replies (1) | Respond to of 101
 
CyberTrust Enables Finland's Nation-Wide Electronic Initiative

CyberTrust's Global CA Enables Over 4,000,000 Citizens with Electronic Credentials

NEEDHAM HEIGHTS, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 6, 2000--Certall, a consortium of Finnish organizations, has selected CyberTrust to deliver new electronic services that will enable Finnish citizens to conduct a wide variety of secure transactions over the Internet including bank and stock transactions. As a result, these types of transactions will be done more efficiently and cost effectively over the existing telecommunications infrastructure. Service is expected to be ready early next year.

''CyberTrust is the technology engine that will drive this project,'' said Jukka Koskinen, president of Certall. ''CyberTrust's Global Certification Authority (CA) product will allow us to issue digital certificates (electronic credentials) that will efficiently serve the growing needs of our citizens as well as enable us to enter the certificate management marketplace by securing electronic transactions for other organizations.''

With this new initiative, Finnish citizens will be able to conduct a wide variety of secure transactions streamlining many everyday activities. For example, Certall member Leonia Bank will allow customers to securely conduct bank transactions over its mobile network while other partner companies will enable customers to trade stock electronically and securely over the Internet using their mobile phones.

''We are looking forward to the implementation of CyberTrust's digital certificate technology,'' said Chairman of Certall's Board and CEO of Sonera SmartTrust Harri Vatanen. ''This agreement will not only allow us to operate more efficiently but allow us to save money by using the telecommunication services available through the Internet.''

''CyberTrust technology enables all of these secure services. Our goal is to be at the forefront of helping our customers to do more things and do them more efficiently and securely,'' said Peter Hussey, President of CyberTrust. ''Citizens of Finland will be able to electronically send and receive their most personal information with complete confidence and trust that it will remain confidential.''

Merita Nordbanken, one of the biggest banks in Skandinavia, Sonera, Leonia Bank, Tieto Enator, the Finland Post and Osuuspankki, jointly own Certall.

About CyberTrust

CyberTrust is a leading enabler of secure extranets and e-commerce for companies expanding their high-value customer relationships to the Web. CyberTrust's certificate-enabled extranet solutions support privilege-based user access, data confidentiality, audit trails and digitally signed, binding transactions. Through our global network of official partners, CyberTrust offers the industry's most complete suite of public key infrastructure-based products, outsourced service and consulting. CyberTrust is a GTE company headquartered in Needham Heights, Mass., with offices in London, England and Sapporo, Japan. You can learn more about CyberTrust at www.cybertrust.com.

About GTE

With 1998 revenues of more than $25 billion, GTE is a leading telecommunications provider with one of the industry's broadest arrays of products and services. In the United States, GTE provides local service in 28 states and wireless service in 17 states, as well as nationwide long-distance, directory, and internetworking services ranging from dial-up Internet access for residential and small-business consumers to Web-based applications for Fortune 500 companies. Outside the United States, the company serves customers on five continents.




To: Gutterball who wrote (10)1/20/2000 12:16:00 PM
From: Gutterball  Respond to of 101
 
INTERVIEW-Indian mobile Net firm attracts Sonera
By Y.P.Rajesh

BANGALORE, India, Jan 19 (Reuters) - The venture capital arm of Finnish telecom operator Sonera Corp (NasdaqNM:SNRA) has made a ''significant investment'' in Indian mobile Internet firm Gray Cell Applied Technologies Pvt Ltd, Gray Cell's chief executive said on Wednesday.

Gray Cell, which was founded in 1996, launched ''Unimobile'' last August, a software product that delivers text content from the Internet and e-mail to mobile phones as well as allows text transfer from one mobile phone to another through the Web.

''We have second-round funding coming from Sonera Telecom...We cannot talk about how much money they are investing but it is a significant percentage of our second round of funding,'' Vas Bhandarkar told Reuters in an interview.

Bhandarkar said Gray Cell also had investment commitments from Gilbert Global Equity Partners and Net Angels Fund, an investment fund in which he is involved.

''The total investment in the company after the second round will be about $6 million,'' Bhandarkar said in the southern Indian city where Gray Cell has its headquarters.

''The ownership of the company will be about 50 percent with the investors in the two rounds and the rest with the company's founder and employees.''

In June 1999, in its first round of fund-raising, Gray Cell received a total of $1.7 million from venture capital firms Walden and Draper and K.B. Chandrasekhar, co-founder of Exodus Communications (NasdaqNM:EXDS), a leader in data hosting.

Bhandarkar said that within the short span of time since it was launched, Unimobile had acquired ''tens of thousands'' of users in over 90 countries across the world.

He refused to give details of the exact number of consumers but said they were supported by over 250 mobile telecom operators.

"We have consumers in the UK, a larger following in Australia, in South Africa, Singapore and of course the U.S. and India, Bhandarkar said.

He said analysts estimated the number of mobile Internet users to currently be about 30 percent of 300 million mobile phone owners in the world--a number which is expected to touch a billion in a few years.

ACCESS TO SONERA'S BASE

Sonera, which has 2.3 million mobile phone users in Finland--more than twice that of India--would help Gray Cell understand Sonera's experience with its advanced Short Message Services (SMS) on mobile phones, Bhandarkar said.

''They have working relationships with other telecom operators in Europe which we hope to leverage. And the third clear advantage is to work with their mobile portal company called Sonera Zed,'' he said.

Bhandarkar said Unimobile's growth so far had been without any marketing effort but he now intended to build a marketing team and also establish partnerships with Internet portals, e-commerce companies, telecom manufacturers and telecom operators.

''We already have partnerships with Motorola Inc (NYSE:MOT), British Telecom (quote from Yahoo! UK & Ireland: BT.L), Hutchison Whampoa Ltd and SingTel , to name a few,'' he said.

SHARE OFFER IN 2001

Gray Cell, Bhandarkar said, would continue to raise funds as it needed substantial investments in the future and would look to make an initial public offering of shares in 2001, to trade on the Nasdaq market.

''It would probably be next year, obviously a U.S. IPO to list on the Nasdaq,'' he said.

''There is a certain cost associated with acquiring consumers and this product has a lot of vital appeal. What we want to do is leverage the appeal and build an online and offline marketing campaigns,'' he said.



To: Gutterball who wrote (10)1/20/2000 3:03:00 PM
From: Gutterball  Respond to of 101
 
Simplexity.com Launches Wireless Phone and Service Superstore

Customers Can Comparison Shop From Nearly 1,500 Service Plans and 100 Phones In the Top Metropolitan Areas Across the United States

RESTON, Va., Jan. 18 /PRNewswire/ -- Simplexity today launched an online marketplace offering customers the chance to compare all the wireless phones and service plans available to them and allowing them to complete their purchase online in minutes. Whether a customer is contemplating their first wireless purchase or wants to explore upgrading their current service, Simplexity brings clarity to the wireless shopping experience.

The site offers information on nearly 1,500 rate plans from 26 of the nation's leading wireless carriers, including AT&T Wireless, GTE Wireless and Sprint PCS. Phones from all the leading manufacturers are presented, including Ericsson, Motorola and Nokia.

Customers on the Simplexity.com site are able to learn about wireless products and services and to quickly sort through the myriad of options available to them. The neutral and unbiased format allows for easy comparison and the straightforward checkout process allows customers to complete their transactions entirely on the Web. Simplexity's wireless offering provides the most comprehensive information on phones and plans available online and makes that information usable my simplifying industry jargon and describing features using a standard vocabulary.

Simplexity.com offers full customer support via phone and email throughout the selection, order and provisioning process. Special needs that are not accommodated on the website can be handled through a customer-care team with extensive experience selling wireless phones and service.

BestBuy.com, Inc. has invested $4 million in Simplexity and has formed a comprehensive strategic alliance to offer a broad range of telecommunications services online, including wireless.

''Telecommunications is one of the fastest growing segments for Best Buy,'' said Scott Bauhofer, General Manager of BestBuy.com. ''Simplexity's technology and content will be incorporated into BestBuy.com to make it easy for our customers to choose the best services and plans for their needs. Their architecture has the potential to completely reshape today's complex telecommunications marketplace.''

Simplexity is strategically allied with key players in Internet commerce and wireless. Sonera, the leading Finnish telecommunications company and a pioneer in mobile communications is also an investor in the company. Sonera has investments in a number of service providers in the U.S., including Aerial and Powertel. Sonera will be a major stakeholder in Voicestream, when that company completes its mergers with Omnipoint and Aerial.

Simplexity's comprehensive content has already picked up support among some of the leading Internet comparison-shopping sites. CNET, epinions.com, and Inktomi receive data on phones and rate plans from Simplexity to help customers make an informed purchase choice.

About Simplexity, Inc.

Founded in 1998 and headquartered in Reston, VA, Simplexity is changing the way telecommunications are bought and sold. The Simplexity.com website, and Simplexity's unique and powerful Xact architecture, have attracted major telecommunications carriers and strategic partners. The company's mission is to help bring order to the complex and confusing telecommunications marketplace. Simplexity enables users to learn about and compare the thousands of options available to them and enables carriers to interact directly with the fastest growing but most fragmented segment of the telecom market. Simplexity's highly experienced management team comes from such leading internet, technology and telecommunications companies as @home, AT&T, Bell Atlantic, Cable & Wireless, Hewlett-Packard, Intel, MCI WorldCom, Network Solutions, Scient, Sun Microsystems, VeriFone and Vicinity. The Simplexity.com website meets the strict disclosure, choice and security requirements of TRUSTe, the leading online privacy seal program, and utilizes eCredit.com, Inc., the leading provider of on-line credit verification and related services.

For further information, please visit the Simplexity Web site at simplexity.com.

Simplexity, Simplexity.com, and Xact are trademarks of Simplexity, Inc.. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

SOURCE: Simplexity.com



To: Gutterball who wrote (10)1/28/2000 5:18:00 PM
From: Gutterball  Read Replies (1) | Respond to of 101
 
Canada's 724 Solutions makes stunning market debut

Dan's note: What this PR fails to mention is that Sonera also owns 18.1% of 724 Solutions. Sonera BOT 6.4 million shrs at $3.83/share, as did Citigroup. Based on today's close (ie, 71-13/16), Sonera's investment in 724 Solutions (initially $24.48 million) is now worth over $459 million. That's a $435 million increase on its balance sheet in just one day. No wonder Goldman Sachs added Sonera to its European Telecommunications Recommended List with an 80 euro price target. #reply-12713139.

SEC Form F-1/A
sec.gov

By Ian Karleff

TORONTO, Jan 28 (Reuters) - Canadian wireless software company 724 Solutions (NasdaqNM:SVNX) hit the street running on Friday with its shares opening on a when-issued basis at 75-1/4, up 169 percent from its initial public offering pricing of 26 on Nasdaq.

Some market watchers said 724 Solutions could end up as the most successful first day IPO in Canadian corporate history, with its offering price doubling from an initial $11 to $13 range.

''We always expected that our vision was going to be reflected by the markets like this, absolutely,'' 724's co-founder and president, Chris Erickson, told Reuters in a telephone interview.

The shares will trade officially on Nasdaq and the Toronto Stock Exchange on Monday.

Toronto-based 724 has developed technology for the banking industry that filters content to wireless devices, including telephones and personal digital assistants, as well as taking care of security and personalizing customer profiles.

It also allows banking customers to perform traditional banking functions -- trade and analyze stocks, obtain news, horoscopes and weather as well as making direct e-commerce purchases using a wireless device.

724 has licensed its technology to an impressive list of banks, who are also investors in the company -- Bank of Montreal (Toronto:BMO.TO) , Bank of America Corp. (NYSE:BAC) and Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C) -- with a combined equity stake of 44.4 percent.

Erickson said these three banks, plus Wells Fargo (NYSE:WFC), which is a major licensed user, represent about 152 million customers that could potentially use 724's technology.

724's revenue model is based on the number of users of its technology, plus revenues from consulting services, maintenance, installation and implementation, and increases in the number of banking licensees, Erickson said.

''Just based on the fact that our revenues are based on usage, things are looking good,'' Erickson said.

''It's not just a bunch of venture capitalists out there. It is already a technology that has made the sale to the banks,'' said David Menlow, president of IPOfinancial.com.

The offering of 6 million shares for gross proceeds of $156 million -- a 17 percent stake in the company -- plus a greenshoe option that could take the number to 6.9 million, was wildly oversubscribed.

Paul Allison, head of equity capital markets at Nesbitt Burns, said the offering was 25 to 30 times oversubscribed.

''It's rather unique the profile this company was able to achieve, which is obviously a reflection of its business model. It's quite remarkable,'' said Allison.

''Some people would say they have never seen something like this (in Canada),'' he added.

Seventy-five percent of the offering was distributed to U.S. and international investors, with the remainder sold to Canadian investors, confirmed Nesbitt's Allison, the lead underwriter in Canada.

Credit Suisse First Boston is the lead underwriter in the United States.

Duncan Stewart, a portfolio manager at Tera Capital Corp. in Toronto, described the offering as ''hotter than asbestos'', too hot to get a hold of.

Stewart said he was only able to obtain 2 percent of what he had requested from the underwriters.

Risk factors are numerous for 724 as outlined in its prospectus, with investors wondering if the banks who fostered the company's pre-IPO development will keep the technology to themselves - although none of them are in exclusive agreements.

''It is an assessment that the banks will have to make as far as whether they want to keep this for themselves or distribute this elsewhere,'' Menlow said.

724's Erickson said current relationships will not impede efforts to sign up other financial institutions.

''There is not going to be a problem at all,'' said Erickson, calling his creation ''a generic solution for banks, brokerages and other financial institutions on a global basis and have made sure we can roll this out to every single bank possible.''

So far, only Bank of Montreal has put 724's technology through its paces. The bank is in the midst of testing its wireless banking service, called VEEV, which it said on Thursday has garnered a great deal of customer interest.

Erickson said he is not at liberty to discuss other pilot projects, but said they will commence in the first quarter of 2000, with full-fledged rollouts expected in the latter part of the year.

($1=$1.43 Canadian)