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Technology Stocks : Vodafone-Airtouch (NYSE: VOD) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: MrGreenJeans who wrote (3097)	3/8/2001 8:35:23 AM
From: kech	Respond to of 3175

This article refers to two data services VOD is planning to implement. The slower GPRS version is going into rural areas. Then they mention a faster service for urban areas that is going in soon. Asian manufacturers make the handsets for this service. Anybody know if this service is 1xev? See below: New Networks Vodafone said it plans to build networks for faster cellular Internet services in heavily populated areas and use slower speed networks in less populated areas, to save costs. It didn't give details of the cost savings but expects to spend about 10 billion pounds ($14.6 billion) in the next four years on building networks in Europe. The slower speed networks that use General Packet Radio Services, or GPRS, let users trawl the Web for video and data at 10 times existing speeds compared with faster future services that run at 40 times existing speeds. ``Recognizing the cost of build out we will focus on dense, intensely populated areas,'' said Thomas Geitner, chief executive of Group Products and Services for Vodafone. ``In areas of less intense customer usage we will use GPRS.'' European phone companies are expected to offer the faster wireless services by next year. Vodafone said it's on track to offer the services by that time and will focus on rolling out slower services this year. ``It takes the pressure off opening services prematurely and destroying customer confidence,'' Gent said. He expects the GPRS services to be in use for up to five years. The company will offer customers 13 models of phones for the slower services. It will spend more than 2 billion pounds by March buying mobile handsets, so it can give them to customers at cheaper costs. Seventy percent the handsets it releases this year will have the ability to trawl the Web at the slower speeds. New Devices Vodafone also said it's working with Asian handset manufacturers to develop phones and other handheld wireless devices for the faster services. They include Japanese companies such as Mitsubishi Corp and Panasonic International Inc. Vodafone said the additional wireless capacity it bought for faster services will help it manage growth in its customer base. The company said it expects non-voice services to contribute between 25 percent to 41 percent of its total sales by 2004. ``In the next three to four years voice will remain the dominant mobile application,'' said Gent. ``Voice is the reason why 700 million people bought mobile phones and data stimulates further voice usage.'' Vodafone said its Internet joint venture with Vivendi SA of France, called Vizzavi, aims to have more than 2 million customers by the end of June this year. The Web-based service expects to break even before interest taxes and depreciation by the end of 2003. Vodafone also said it expects to see after-tax savings of 600 million pounds by 2004 as it takes advantage of its size when purchasing goods and services. Shares of the company fell 6 pence, or 2.9 percent, to 202.25p.