Wednesday, February 29, 2012

Vodafone proposes share among telcos for 4G in Europe

Whereas in Brazil threaten telcos charge higher prices for Internet access - especially by the necessary investments to ensure the quality standards set by Anatel and are not interested in investing in infrastructure sharing, since, today,only the antenna is made of a cooperative - the planet's largest mobile operator by revenue proposed rival to share the costs of the expansion of infrastructure.

The chairman of British Vodafone, Vittorio Colao revealed at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, ​​which suggested the competitors in Germany, Spain and Italy a share of the estimated 30 billion euros ($ 75 billion) to build networks ofsuper-fast in Europe.

According to Vittorio Colao, these new networks are required to meet the seemingly insatiable demand for higher speeds in the connections, even at a time when consumers are not willing to pay much to have this service.

"So far we have not succeeded in convincing them that this is a good idea, but we are very interested. If times are hard and not enough money, we must go for co-investment and co-invested infrastructure terms open, "said the chairman of Vodafone.



Although great European operators have signed agreements to share in recent years, the executive said that the suggestion to divide the deployment of fixedseemed a very big step for competitors consulted.

Colao estimated to be 30 billion euros needed for the construction of new LTE networks in Europe - but they allow operators to charge higher prices to customers.The reduction of revenue, especially with the drop in interconnection rates, the biggest complaint was the first day of MWC.

Co-investment agreements are underway in France. But in Italy and Spain, whereVodafone purchased capacity in the fixed networks of utilities, companies at the moment, focused more heavily on debt payments.

With Europe in the center of the current state of international financial crisis, the telecommunications industry also suffers. A Moody's report, for example,downgraded the status of European telcos, which appear with negative outlook for 2012. There will be a drop in revenue and the industry must shrink 2%.

Smartphones: The time of the explosion of low cost terminals

To be accessible to consumers in developing countries, the price of smartphonesto drop below $ 100 - and this can happen with massive orders for cheaperhandsets by mobile operators.

Directed by the hundreds (they are nearly 800) of telcos members of the GSM Association, the message of the President of Airtel, India's largest operator, SunilBharti Mittal, was given the second day of Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, which takes place this week.

"Today we have phones ranging from U.S. $ 18 and $ 20 [~ U.S. $ 35]. Finally we got ultra low cost handsets, which greatly expanded the market. I hope that theGSMA do something similar in the area of ​​smartphones, "said Mittal.

He believes that operators can encourage this movement with orders of 100 millionsmartphones to be sold for less than $ 100 (£ 170).

For Mittal, the service offering wireless access is the only practical solution formost people in countries like India and Bangladesh, or Africa. "We offer very inexpensive smartphones," he insisted. The question put forward by the president of Mitel is very close to the Brazilian reality. Today, for example, the 3G cellular - mostly smarpthones-account for less than 20% of active terminals of the base.

Advice was set against quality regulation by Anatel

The PricewaterhouseCoopers International, announced today (28) by Anatel as "Entity for Measuring Quality" of Brazilian broadband - with technical support from the British SamKnows - was against the Rules of the Quality Management ofMultimedia Communication Service (SCM-RGQ ) created by the regulatory agency. So we now have to comply to the letter, to ensure quality service to theconsumer.

The confusion began when the Anatel put in January this year for public consultation the "Application for Cancellation filed by TNL PCS S / A (Hi), some devices of the Regulations for the Management of Quality of Service for Multimedia Communications (RGQ-SCM) and Quality Management of Personal Mobile Service (SMP-RGQ). "The purpose of the regulatory agency was to gather suggestions on possible market changes to the text.

On February 1 this year, the representative of PricewaterhouseCoopersInternational Limited, Anderson Carlos Santos Ramires, the considerationspresented in this international consultancy, which were contrary to the adoption of the regulation of SCM.



"Good Regulatory Practices"

According to PricewaterhouseCoopers' use of regulatory measures should beadopted when there is a specific issue whose resolution can not be achieved through market mechanisms. "

While I believe the adoption of a regulation is "legitimate and effective tool" to provide the information necessary to Anatel for the good performance of its functions, the consultancy supports the thesis that the agency should have taken into account "the size, level of maturity and structure of the market. "Withoutstudying this problem, the consultant believes that the Anatel could exceed "in charge", the benefit that would seek to give consumers "from a regulatory standpoint."

PwC reported that in August 2011at the request of SindiTelebrasil - entity thatdefends the interests of telephone companies - an international study conductedin 10 countries and assessed the level of existing regulation to measure the quality of broadband. This study was conducted in the United StatesSouth Korea, Germany, UK, Australia, New Zealand, Spain, Chile, India and ItalyIt tookinto account that these 10 countries represent 40% of todal subscribersworldwide service. Queswtões sought to answer the following:

(i) the understanding of the approach adopted by the Regulators for the Quality ofBroadband Services;

(ii) the understanding of the parameters used in the measurement and transparency of the results of the Quality of Broadband,

(iii) understanding of the penalties adopted;

(iv) consumer perceptionsand

(v) the effectiveness of the approach adopted.



"The study showed that none of the 10 countries evaluated and implemented aspecific regulation, mainly determined quality goals for Broadband to be followed.Instead, the measures have been used by regulatory agencies to increasetransparency for consumers in relation the quality and price offered by the publication of comparative information on the services between the carriers, "saidPwC, against precisely the regulation to force companies to meet quality targets in broadband.

According to the consultancythe measures adopted by these countries are goingin the direction of establishing "variations in service quality", so that consumers can make their own choicesthereby creating competitive pressure that forces the providers to improve their performance .

PwC also found that there are still countries where there is "no evidence ofintervention" in them and that consumer protection agencies are responsible formeasuring and disseminating results on the quality of services provided by operators.



"Thuswe can not establish a clear and direct relationship between the level of regulation, its effectiveness and impact on competition and on the improvement of the quality standards of broadband from the adoption of regulations specific quality goals in countries analyzedin these marketsonly India has implemented the mandatory disclosure of service performance and do not represent specific regulation of the same levels of quality, "concluded the consultancy.

Anatel closed the public consultation of the application of TNL / PCS (Oithe last day of February 1without having released yet on whether or not the request forannulment of the regulation of quality of broadband that she herself created, basedthe arguments of the utility companies and forwarded suggestions.

This question and more a decision today, to choose PricewaterhouseCoopers as "entity to measure Quality," suggest that the regulatory body is totally lost with respect to routes that will take over the supervision of the services provided by operators in the future Brazilian broadband .

Tuesday, February 28, 2012

Brazil innovates to bring 4G to 450 Mhz

Bringing broadband to rural and suburban areas across Brazil is a challenge that the technology developed at CPqD is about to expire. To do this, is betting on a new wireless network solution based on fourth-generation LTE (Long Term Evolution) in the range of 450 MHz
Tested successfully on the premises of CPqD, Campinas, this solution was presented on Friday, 24/02, the Minister of Communications, Paul Bernardo, and should be available from the end of 2012. 4G at 450 MHz will be presented at CeBIT 2012 event which takes place 06-10 March in Hannover, Germany.
"LTE is the most advanced technology currently in the area of ​​wireless broadband," says Helio Graciosa, President of the contributing authors - that since 2010, working on the development of 4G mobile networks, a project supported by FUNTTEL (Fund the Technological Development of Telecommunications), Ministry of Communications.
"And the LTE in 450 MHz frequency is a modern solution that offers a number of advantages over current technologies of third generation (3G) for the expansion of broadband in rural and remote areas of the country," he adds. Among them, Graciosa highlights the greater coverage, higher data rates (up to 25 Mbps and 12.5 Mbps on the download upload), lower latency, better performance and all-IP architecture.
The solution CPqD LTE in 450 MHz band is being developed from the standardization of 3GPP (3rd Generation Partnership Project), adapted to that frequency range. It consists of several products: antennas, radio frequency devices, split eNodeB and network management system.
All will be available from late 2012 through the WxBR, a Brazilian company for which the CPqD will transfer the technology of product - and that will be responsible for its industrialization and commercialization in the global market.
In the next stages of the project, CPqD also become available technologies LTE gateways to interface with Wi-Fi, external eNodeB, and LTE mobile devices, which give subscribers direct access to the network.

Market to telcos: Open your networks and review data plans


With the mobility acting as an engine of world economy, many business segments in the area seek to harness this potential. And the demands on mobile operators tend to only grow. "The telcos need to review their service plans and also complicated ways to sell their devices," said the CEO of Best Buy, Brian Dunn, and eBay, John Donahoe, during the Mobile World Congress event that brings together the technology sector throughout this week in Barcelona, ​​Spain.


The executives - who bet their businesses in an age of connectivity - have gone beyond: said the policy of selling tablets, operators are creating a new digital dividend - by creating special policies for data access. The debate about telecom strategy came at a panel on mobile payment.


And while admitting that the model is growing, the CEOs of Best Buy and eBay have made it clear that the market could be much greater if the telecom ecosystem were not so closed and concentrated. "Carriers need to offer plans that are less limiting. Consumers do not think in megabytes," said Brian Dunn, Best Buy's. The tablets, which are becoming the order of the PC world, served as an example.


"Today, consumers pay for a premium service connection with devices and prepared to run on certain infrastructure. This creates a new digital dividend. The telcos need to open their networks to promote the reduction of prices in the ecosystem. Locked devices prevent the costs fall, "Dunn argued further.


Donahoe, eBay, went further. "The closed ecosystem will not last forever," he contended. "People (users) know how to circumvent these rules. Networks need to be as open as possible. And who do it first, will be among the leaders," he added. To get an idea of ​​the advancement of business mobility, oo eBay expects to earn in 2012, 8 billion in sales volume of mobile retailing, and its electronic payment system expects to process $ 7 billion in online payment volume. In 2011, trade online mobile eBay generated $ 5 billion in retail sales, and the mobile PayPal processed $ 4 billion in payment.

Oi: Rules of the auction 4G yet to become very clear

The president of Oi, Francisco Valim, commemorates the adoption of corporate restructuring, which led to the creation of the Oi SA restructuring will generate gainsof around $ 100 million per year in operating synergies and simplifications. "It wasa landmark. Long it had been dragging," he maintained. Investment and recovery of market share, especially in mobile telephony and pay TV, ensured that the executive are strategic priorities.

"We are an incumbent in fixed telephony, mobile business but we were the lastoperator to enter the business and we already have, for example, 20% of the market of São Paulo, the largest in the country. We have much to do, especially in the region of Brazil Telecom, built by us, but we are attacking this market, as well as on pay TV, where we have 3% market share. we come not to be outdone by any other in competitiveness, "he said Valim, held a teleconference on Monday , 27/02,to explain to the press, the corporate restructuring of Oi.



Asked about the auction of 4G - whether or not to participate Oi - Valim, which is at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, ​​took a similar posture to that of rival TIMpresident Luca LucianiAs president of the Oi, the rules that are in the market arefor public consultationAre not yet definitive.

"We gave our contribution to public consultation and we will await the final rulesI have no doubt that the 4G is the futurebut what will be our participation in the auction this track is still subject to the rules will be published," he said. And about his presence in BarcelonaValim said"Brazil is fashionable. Everyone talks aboutinvestments in the country here." The amount to be contributed in the country in 2012 should be known in mid-April, when the Oi does the Investor Day.

On Monday27/02Oi shareholders approved the proposed reorganization of the company, which provides for the merger of shares of Telemar Norte Leste(Telemar), and the merger of Coari and Tele Norte Leste Participacoes (TNE) byBrazil Telecom SASA renamed Oi With the decisionthere will be only onecompany listed on stock exchanges in Brazil (BMF & BOVESPAand abroad(New York Stock Exchange - NYSE).



The reorganization was considered a 'landmark' by Francisco Valim"We finisheda step that had dragged on for too long," celebrated. Oi Asked if he would go toNew MarketValim preferred to leave the matter for further ahead.

According to the chief financial officer Oi, Alex Zornigwill be issued 395,585,453new ordinary shares and 798,480,405 preferred shares of the new Oi SA, passing the company's subscribed capital, fully paidto R $ 6,816,467,847.01divided into599,008,629 common shares and 1,198,077,775 preferred shares, all nominativeand without par value.

The shares of TelemarBrasil Telecom and TNL will continue to trade under thecode TMAR3TMAR5TMAR6TNLP3, TNLP4and BRTO3 BRTO4, respectively,at least until the end of the withdrawal and determination of the right of withdrawalwhen Oi group companies disclose a statement to the market with the result of thedetermination of the right of withdrawal and the date of commencement of tradingof the common and preferred shares of Oi SA codes and OIBR3 OIBR4Is predicted that this period lasts about 30 days.