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BRIEFING - ASIA TELECOMMUNICATIONS - APRIL 3, 2009
[April 03, 2009]

BRIEFING - ASIA TELECOMMUNICATIONS - APRIL 3, 2009


Apr 03, 2009 (AsiaPulse via COMTEX) -- An executive briefing on the telecommunications industry for April 3, 2009, prepared by Asia Pulse (http:/ www.asiapulse.com), the real-time, asia-based wire with exclusive news, commercial intelligence and business opportunities.



VIETNAMESE HI-TECH PRODUCTS STILL SELLING WELL HANOI - Despite concerns earlier this year that Vietnam's consumption of luxury products would sharply decline in the economic downturn, industry insiders have said consumer demand for hi-tech luxury products has remained robust.

Representative from the electronics retailer Pico Plaza, Ngo Thanh Dat, said the firms sales turnover has surged after Tet (Lunar New Year), especially during the weekends when turnover is three times higher than weekdays.


INDIA TELECOM TRIBUNAL STAYS BSNL'S NOTICE TO VODAFONE ESSAR NEW DELHI - Giving some relief to mobile phone service provider Vodafone Essar, India's telecom tribunal TDSAT today stayed a notice issued by the government-controlled BSNL to disconnect the latter from its network.

Admitting a petition from Vodafone Essar Gujarat Ltd, the Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) stayed the disconnection notice issued by BSNL on March 5 following a dispute over an amount of Rs 3.54 crore (US$703,362.60) and for allegedly wrongly routing international calls.

THE MOBILESTORE TO LAUNCH PRIVATE LABEL HANDSETS IN INDIA NEW DELHI - Essar group firm The MobileStore said it plans to launch mobile handsets under a private label across India.

The handset, packed with the latest features such as camera and bluetooth, will be launched under a new brand name, The MobileStore said in a statement Thursday.

AFGHAN GOVT SPENT US$169 MLN ON COMMUNICATIONS INDUSTRY IN 2008 KABUL - Afghan Minister of Information Technology and Communication Amirzai Sangin Thursday said 525 new communication towers were installed and US$169 million dollars invested in telecommunications last year with public-private partnerships.

Speaking at a press conference in Kabul City on Thursday, Sangin presented the annual report of his ministry.

INDIAN PANEL SHORTLISTS CANDIDATES FOR TOP POST IN TELECOM WATCHDOG NEW DELHI - The screening committee set up to finalise the appointment of the chairman of Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) is understood to have shortlisted four candidates, including Finance Secretary Arun Ramanathan and Consumer Affairs Secretary Yashwant Bhave, today.

The panel headed by Cabinet Secretary K M Chandrasekhar, which met on April 1 to hold an interview to select a prospective chairman, had earlier shortlisted 10 applicants for the post.

FOUR TELECOM BUSINESSES WIN 3G LICENCES IN VIETNAM HANOI - Four Vietnamese telecom enterprises have outstripped other rivals to win licences for providing third-generation (3g) mobile phone service.

They include military-run Viettel, MobiFone and Vinaphone both run by the Vietnam Post and Telecommunications Group (VNPT), and a consortium between EVN Telecom and Hanoi Telecom.

JAPANESE TELCOS COME TOGETHER AT FORUM TO PROMOTE NEXT-GEN PHS TOKYO - The XGP Forum was officially established Thursday to promote the worldwide introduction of the next-generation PHS (personal handyphone system) service for mobile high-speed wireless communications.

The new service, called XGP, can handle data transmission rates of more than 20 megabits per second, which is a quantum leap above the 800kpbs offered by the existing PHS technology.

Unlike cell phone services, the XGP service is based on a network of numerous micro cells. The advantages include fewer interruptions due to signal noise and faster communication speeds.

NEC WINS ANOTHER VIETNAM ORDER FOR PASOLINK COMMUNICATIONS SYSTEM TOKYO - NEC Corp. (TSE:6701) on Thursday announced that it has received an order from a wireless carrier in Vietnam for its small, point-to-point digital microwave communications system Pasolink Neo.

GTEL-Mobile Joint Stock Co. has placed an order for approximately 1,000 units of the Pasolink Neo system.

CAMBODIA-LAOS FIBRE CABLE OPERATIONAL SOON PHNOM PENH - A fibre optic cable station linking Cambodia and Laos is expected to become operational in two weeks, Director of Cambodian Telecom Company (TelCam) Lao Saroeun said on April 2.

TelCam is awaiting approval from its Lao partner, the Lao Telecom Company, he added.

OVER 2 MLN TURKISH SUBCRIBERS SWITCH GSM OPERATORS IN 5 MONTHS ANKARA - More than 2 million mobile phone users in Turkey have switched their GSM operators since number portability launched in November 2008 in the country.

Nearly 2.5 million subscribers have appealed to transfer their numbers to another operator as 390 thousand of them were rejected to use the application.

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