NZ Telecom's Mobile 3G Svc Aims To Outmaneuver Vodafone

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Tuesday 9 November 1:46 PM

NZ Telecom's Mobile 3G Svc Aims To Outmaneuver Vodafone

     By Shri Navaratnam
     Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES

WELLINGTON (Dow Jones)--Telecom Corp. (NZT) has fired the first salvo in New Zealand's third-generation mobile phone wars, launching its services ahead of schedule and in advance of rival Vodafone Group PLC (VOD.LN) as it aims to capture a sizable slice of the business market.

Telecom Monday unveiled its 3G mobile phone offering about a month ahead of its planned pre-Christmas launch, and said customers can expect other swish services over the next three months, such as video messaging, video streaming and push-to-talk services.

"The network upgrade will underpin a raft of next-generation mobile services Telecom is calling T3G and will ensure New Zealanders are right at the forefront of the global innovations in mobile communications," Kevin Kenrick, Telecom's general manager for mobile operations, said in a statement.

Telecom's 3G services will allow traveling business customers the ability to access their e-mail, download financial information and access the Internet through a laptop and handheld devices at high speed, said Kenrick.

Telecom will also make video messaging available over the next few weeks, which will allow customers to record, store and send short video clips to other 3G video capable mobile phones.

Push-to-talk, which allows customers using compatible devices to talk to one another with the push of a button, similar to a walkie talkie, will also begin trials next month.

Vodafone, the world's largest mobile services provider, has said it won't launch its own domestic 3G service until the middle of next year. It has already begun building its W-CDMA 3G mobile network in New Zealand and Australia after selecting Nokia Corp. (NOK) for the project in May.

In June, Telecom said it will offer 3G services in New Zealand's major cities by Christmas using its NZ$40 million investment in Evolution Data Optimized, or EV-DO, technology. EV-DO is a competing technology to the wide-band code division multiple access, or W-CDMA, network that Vodafone is currently building.

Telecom, which is aiming its 3G at the business market, will also launch the service for the consumer market in the middle of next year.

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