Welcome to This Week, the only easy to read FREE weekly summary of the top news stories on wireless communications in Australia and New Zealand. This Week is updated daily with stories drawn from the popular press, regulatory bodies, vendors and operators. To receive a free copy of This Week delivered to your mailbox each Friday, please REGISTER here. You can also visit our archive where you can see stories posted since mid-2003. Our search engine is an easy way to locate a specific topic. For those that want to know more, click through hyperlinks are embedded in each story enabling you to view the source information. Note some of these links may require you to subscribe to the publication that provides the source material.

Australia

Telstra walks out of union talks

18 July, 2008

TELSTRA is set for a protracted battle with unions after breaking off enterprise bargaining negotiations because of what it described as demands for an "unlawful side deal".

Optus claims iPhone sales win

17 July, 2008

Australia's second biggest telco Optus today claimed to have captured the bulk of new sales for Apple's 3G iPhone by offering better value deals than its competitors.

Council owns up to Optus' QLD IP blackout

17 July, 2008

Gold Coast City Council has today been revealed as the culprit behind this week's Optus outage after excavations in a Queensland state water project severed an interstate fibre cable.

BigPond music for iPhone?

15 July, 2008

TELSTRA may try to create a vehicle for competition with Apple's iTunes music download business on the 3G iPhone.

ACCC expands Telstra surveillance

15 July, 2008

AUSTRALIA'S competition watchdog has expanded its surveillance of Telstra, saying it will supervise the telco's treatment of rivals trying to install high-speed broadband equipment in exchanges owned by the former government-owned monopoly.

Hotspots help with 3G mobile bills

15 July, 2008

A NICE thing about the 3G iPhone is that it connects to the internet via WiFi hotspots as well as the third-generation mobile phone networks of Optus, Telstra and Vodafone.

iPhone not so multimedia friendly

15 July, 2008

Most of the TV, movie and other multimedia content offered by Optus, Vodafone and Telstra over their 3G networks is not available on the iPhone..

Pope sends first text message

15 July, 2008

The Pope will send his first SMS today to thousands of World Youth Day pilgrims who have signed up to receive divine direction via technology.

Optus loses the Sunshine State

15 July, 2008

Optus customers in Queensland are stranded in a communications desert with a cable break at the Gold Coast wreaking havoc.

New Zealand

Telecom gives up big CBA contract

17 July, 2008

Telecom's business Gen-i is not tendering for another contract with Australian bank CBA after eight years' work, to concentrate on smaller clients with a trans-Tasman focus.

iPhone 3G sells out in New Zealand

17 July, 2008

Vodafone has sold out its first shipment of the new iPhone 3G Controversial pricing plans for the phone, which went on sale in New Zealand before other countries at midnight last Thursday, did not put off thousands who paid up to $1129 to be among the first to get their hands on the desirable device.

Telecom to build new Wellington base

16 July, 2008

Telecom is building a new environmentally-friendly base in central Wellington. The company has committed to 19,000sq m of space in a new inner city office block which is to be built in Willis St, near its intersection with Lambton Quay.

Telstra back in the retail game

14 July, 2008

TelstraClear is making a foray back into the retail market with a new advertising campaign aimed outside its stronghold of Wellington and Christchurch.

Plus SMS directors to be paid in shares

14 July, 2008

NZAX-listed mobile content company Plus SMS Holdings said today its board of directors would be paid entirely in PLS shares for their services.

TR's Latest

Forsk Announces the Atoll LTE Module

TeleResources long time technology partner Forsk has announced that it has completed the first version of the Atoll LTE module.

This new module is the result of a strong R&D program in 4G technologies which Forsk is conducting with strategic partners including Alcatel-Lucent, Huawei, Motorola, and Nortel Networks.

For more details Click Here

Upcoming Events

Advertising and Marketing Summit

21-22 July 2008
Sydney

The 7th annual summit in this highly successful series of events continues to examine the challenges of Australia’s evolving advertising & marketing landscape.

Join the leading minds who will share their authoritative predictions in vibrant discussion and leading insight in addition to the celebration of exemplary practice, giving you the insights to unlock excellence.

Get the advantage and avoid the rhetoric to the questions you have not considered and the answers you need to have.

For details and registration, please visit: www.acevents.com.au

South East Asia Com

23-24 July 2008
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Harnessing The Opportunity Of Regional Scale By Developing Partnerships And Deploying Strong Value Propositions In Each South East Asian Countries.

SE AsiaCom is the number 1 meeting place for the communications value chain in the region. It gathers thought leaders and purchasing decision makers from across SE Asia and the wider international community to learn, network and to do business

Untapping The Opportunities Of Key South East Asia Markets Including:
Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam, Brunei, East Timor, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines and Singapore

For details and registration, please visit: www.comworldseries.com

17th Annual Wireless & Mobile Comms Conference

23-25 July 2008
Melbourne

Raise the security, reliability and responsiveness of your mobile communications to enable your team to make quick, smart decisions and ensure officer and public safety. IWCE in Association with 17th Wireless & Mobile Comms Conference is your unrivalled means of accessing the latest knowledge and meeting the leading professionals within the integrated communications sector.

If you are responsible for planning and implementing your organisation's wireless and mobile communications technology then note 23-25 July in your diary.

By attending the Conference you can learn from practical case studies presented by peers plus draw upon the expertise of international industry practitioners to help solve your wireless and mobile communications issues.

For details and registration, please visit: www.iir.com.au

Submarine Network World

18 - 20 August 2008
Singapore

The amazing race (Submarine Network edition) - Final Destination Australia. In this final segment, key cable owners and operators in Australia and the surrounding regions share with us their perspectives on ‘Impact of increasing competition and the entrance of new players into the market’, ‘Perth to Singapore’ cable project, ‘Project Runway’ and more!

For details and registration, please visit: www.terrapinn.com or email email karin.lee@terrapinn.com

14th India Telecoms International Summit

23 - 25 September 2008
New Delhi, India

Supported and endorsed by the Ministry of Communications & Information Technology, it’s a must-attend summit addressing the strategic, financial and technical challenges facing India’s operators. Delegates will hear:

• What are the latest updates on spectrum availability and allocation?
• What incentives and subsidies are available for operators and technology providers?
• What are the current licensing issues affecting key players?
• What market opportunities exist for new entrants?