Zain yesterday launched high speed data access across its One Network platform, allowing its travelling customers across the Middle East and East Africa to use 3G services without paying additional roaming surcharges.

The service has been initially launched separately within the Middle East and East Africa networks with cross-continent connectivity planned for later this year. Both prepaid and postpaid subscribers will be able to access Internet, email, MMS and BlackBerry services at local rates when crossing geographic borders.

Zain said it is the first mobile operator in the world to introduce cross-border local, GRX-based data access, which offers faster speeds and more cost effective rates than traditional Internet roaming.

“The benefits and synergies of having one brand are taking shape as we deliver and fulfil our promise to be first, daring and different,” stated Saad Al Barrak, Zain Group CEO.

It is anticipated that Kuwait will join the Middle East One Network with 3G access by the end of this month, with the rest of the operator’s African subsidiaries served by One Network gaining access to high-speed roaming over the course of this year.

The CEO of Canadian telecoms vendor Nortel has confirmed the company is in talks with several potential buyers over selling its divisions, as the company posted a US$507 million loss for the first quarter of this year.

“Decisions have not been taken and we continue to evaluate our restructuring alternatives. To provide maximum flexibility we are also taking the appropriate steps to complete the move to standalone businesses,” chief executive Mike Zafirovski added.

The company filed for bankruptcy protection in January and in April the vendor was granted an extension until July 30 to work out a recovery plan. It is currently undergoing a process to conclude the transition of its Carrier Networks, Metro Ethernet Networks, Enterprise Solutions and its LG-Nortel joint venture business units, a process that commenced in 2008.

According to news reports, Nortel declined a US$850 million offer by Nokia Siemens Networks in March for a large share of the carrier networks unit. Last week, reports suggested that enterprise communications firm Avaya was negotiating an agreement for Nortel’s enterprise unit, however, the two companies failed to close a deal.

The Toronto-headed company’s first quarter loss of US$507 million increased by 267 per cent year-on-year, up from a loss of U$138 million during the first quarter of 2008. Revenues decreased by 37 per cent year-on-year to US$1.73 billion, largely impacted by currency fluctuations. The company’s cash balance rose to US$2.48 billion compared to US$2.4 billion in December last year.

“We accomplished our initial objectives of maintaining our customer commitments and strengthening our operational performance. Network performance and customer service levels are at multi-year highs and customers are expressing their support of Nortel,” added Zafirovski.

Expresso Telecom, the international investment arm of Sudanese operator Sudatel, has kept a low profile as it has gone about acquiring greenfield and operational CDMA operators in West Africa in the past few years. As the company prepares for significant investment into its subsidiaries and for a shareholder restructuring programme, chief financial officer and acting CEO Emad Sukker shares with Michelle Mills how the company intends to grow organically, while extending its geographical footprint

Dubai-based Expresso Telecom focuses on operating CDMA mobile networks across West Africa, having acquired Intercellular in Nigeria and Kasapa in Ghana, as well as new licences in Mauritania and Senegal. Chief financial officer and acting CEO Emad Sukker says the company is trying to distinguish itself in the realm of CDMA technology, which Sudatel also uses for its mobile network in Sudan.

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Zain and STC’s Viva have become the latest operators to launch mobile remittance schemes when they announced the introduction of banking solutions in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda; and Kuwait respectively last month. They join a growing number of operators forging a path to integrate mobile remittance schemes into a core part of their customer acquisition and retention strategy. Gavin Krugel, the director of the GSM Association’s (GSMA) mobile money transfer (MMT) initiative, explains how the organisation intends to streamline the rollout of such schemes across the globe while ensuring interoperability between transfer systems

The GSMA is looking for additional providers of international remittance to complement its existing partnership with Western Union. It is hoped this will allow more cross-border transfers through the interconnection of mobile remittance systems between different operators in different countries, and increase the number of ways in which individuals can send or receive money. Last December Western Union teamed up with Safaricom’s hugely successful M-Pesa programme to allow customers in the UK to transfer cash to M-Pesa users in Kenya. Gavin Krugel says that it is imperative that systems become interoperable, and this is a key area the GSMA is promoting.

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Pakistan, the world’s sixth most populous country, has been an alluring market for foreign telecoms players, with all but one of the six operators hailing from outside the country’s borders. However the high rate of churn, diminishing ARPUs amid a price war, and increasing demands from regulatory powers mean the mobile market is not as profitable as it once was. Michelle Mills considers the factors that are placing pressure on operator margins, and reviews the prospects for 3G

The circumstances surrounding the postponement of Pakistan’s 3G auction remain murky; with the Pakistan Telecommunications Authority (PTA) originally planning a process to be completed by the end of 2008, yet no such event has yet occurred. The PTA has not issued an official statement as to why the auction has not taken place or when one might do, suggesting the process is on hold indefinitely, due to the global economic crisis lowering the potential sale price that can be achieved, as well as the risk of limited interest from bidders.

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