Bakcell Company, the first mobile operator of Azerbaijan has presented a new ‘Meloton’ service to its subscribers. Any Bakcell subscriber can take advantage of this service beginning from 28 November 2008.

Using the ‘Meloton’ service Bakcell subscribers can choose and install melodies and phrases which will play instead of standard long tones in phone tubes of calling subscribers.

To order the ‘Meloton’ service it is necessary to send USSD request having dialed in the phone *123* Meloton code#yes. The subscribers can also send SMS with Meloton code on number 6970. After a short time subscriber will receive SMS confirming order of the melody or phrase.

The cost of 1 Meloton for Klass subscribers is 1 AZN including VAT, and for Cin Kart subscribers – 250 contours. Using time of the melody or phrase makes 30 days. Bakcell subscribers can get additional information about ‘Meloton’ service from the site www.meloton.az.

Hungarian Telephone and Cable Corp.’s board has approved a corporate reorganization to change HTCC’s place of incorporation from Delaware to Denmark.

The company said it believes that reorganizing as a Danish corporation will allow the company to take advantage of financial and other business opportunities that are not available under its current corporate structure as a Delaware corporation.

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Russian MNO Sky Link has started building business units at the regional operating companies as part of a plan to create a single federal operator.

In accordance with the decision of the Board of Directors of Sky Link 20 October 2008, now forms a business unit of Sky Link Regions. To that end, 28 regional companies, which are 100 percent ownered by JSC Sky Link, will be combined into one company.

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A Polish court has paved the way for the long-delayed sale of TDC’s 19.6 percent stake in Poland’s second largest mobile firm, Polkomtel, by lifting an injunction that had halted the deal.

Last month British wireless group Vodafone, which also owns 19.6 percent of Polkomtel, agreed to buy a further 4.8 percent from TDC for EUR 176 million (USD 220 million). This deal resolved a legal challenge Vodafone made previously against TDC’s original plan to sell its stake, announced in 2006, when it agreed to sell its entire stake to Polkomtel’s Polish shareholders - PKN Orlen, KGHM, PGE and Weglokoks - for EUR 650.5 million.

From 6 November Belarussian mobile operator Velcom will be offering GPRS-roaming over Israel’s Cellcom network. The connection is granted automatically to subscribers with International roaming or SMS-roaming and also GPRS and / or MMS. Velcom now offers GPRS-roaming on 90 networks in 48 countries.

Cellcom is the largest mobile operator by subscriber numbers in Israel with some 3.2 million subscribers in 3Q 2008. It competes with Orange and Pelephone with 2.9 and 2.7 million subscribers respectively. In 4th place is MIRS with an estimated subscriber base of around 400,000:

African subscriber figures courtesy of Africa & Middle East Telecoms-Week, another publication from Blycroft.

Cisco announced that the Serbian investment and real estate development group Mali Kolektiv has chosen the Cisco Connected Real Estate platform for its latest development project. Opened in October 2008, the intelligent building known simply as B2 is aspiring to become both a unique real estate development and a Belgrade landmark.

B2 is a 24,728-square-meter complex that combines a shopping mall, offices, residential and business apartments, and four levels of underground parking. Owing to the building’s location in the heart of the city, Mali Kolektiv’s objective was to create a world-class living and working environment in a smart building that can be operated in a cost- and energy-efficient way with high levels of physical security.

“We wanted to offer tenants luxury accommodations, world-class entertainment and communications services, environmental flexibility, as well as customized levels of building and personal security. We knew that the key to achieving these ambitions was utilizing information and communications technology. When preparing the project, we evaluated proposals from the world’s leading information technology companies, but no other vendor could match the vision and technology of Cisco Connected Real Estate,” said Dragan Prastalo, Mali Kolektiv’s chief operating officer.

At the heart of Cisco’s approach is a service-oriented network architecture designed to reduce costs and complexity by replacing disparate systems with one simplified, flexible and scalable Internet Protocol (IP) network.

“A modern building typically has around 30 discrete subsystems, including lighting, power, video surveillance, telephone, Internet, intercom, heating and ventilation. In contrast to traditional buildings, where each system requires its own network using proprietary protocols, in B2 virtually all systems run over the converged IP network,” Prastalo added.

Mali Kolektiv estimates that, thanks to the converged network, it can reduce capital costs by 20-25 percent. Mali Kolektiv also expects a 30 percent reduction in total operating costs, and a 40 percent reduction in energy consumption.

“With the B2 project, Mali Kolektiv has redefined property development in Serbia,” said Can Habib, Cisco’s manager of real estate advisory services in Central and Eastern Europe. “The integrated digital network infrastructure can streamline operational processes such as energy, comfort, life and safety management while delivering additional services to improve user experience and reduce operational expenses. This has resulted in the development of a fully networked residential and commercial facility that provides cause for attracting higher rents, potential for increased tenant retention, offers fantastic services and is more environmentally friendly.”

Slovenian state-owned fund Slovenije Odskodninska Druzba (SOD) yesterday published a tender for the sale of a 10 percent stake in national incumbent telco Telekom Slovenije. It is offering for sale a total of 635,548 shares in Telekom and bidders may offer to buy at least 3 percent of the firm’s capital (196,064 shares) or the entire stake. The non-binding tender, designed to verify the interest of potential bidders, is open until 3 December. Any bids received will expire on 2 February 2009.

The Republic of Slovenia directly owns a 52.53 percent stake in Telekom Slovenije, but taking into account SOD and another state fund Kapitalska Druzba (KAD) the telco is 74.14 percent publicly owned, with 10.46 percent held by domestic individual shareholders, and the remaining 15.4 percent distributed between other domestic and foreign entities.

Hungarian telco Magyar Telekom, which tabled a bid for its Slovenian counterpart in 2007, told Hungarian news website Portfolio.hu that it remains interested in acquiring a stake in Telekom Slovenije, but did not confirm or deny whether it actually plans to take part in the new tender. “We continue to be seriously interested in this opportunity and if a decision is made on a concrete step we will make an announcement,” said Magyar’s communications department.

Orange Poland, the mobile network operator owned by fixed-line incumbent the TP Group, has launched a fixed-line service of its own based on a wholesale line rental agreement with its parent. However, rival telcos are reportedly considering complaining to the telecoms regulator UKE, accusing Orange of receiving preferential terms.

Grzegorz Grabowski, Director for Regulative Strategy at Netia, said:

“In our opinion TP SA is conducting anti-competitive policies with the use of Orange brand. TP SA is raising retail prices and plans to increase wholesale prices for its competitors and acquire clients via the Orange brand. The problem is that, in our opinion, it might concern offering prices on the verge or even below costs.”

TP SA press officer Mariusz Loch responded that Orange was not receiving preferential treatment.

The Hungarian telecoms regulator National Communications Authority (NHH) yesterday extended the deadline for submitting bids in a tender to allow new mobile operators to enter the local market, reports Portfolio.hu, the new deadline has been pushed back by eight days to 28 November.

The NHH is hoping two or more new mobile operators could enter the Hungarian market and be awarded frequency use authorisations for a period 15 years. It said a dozen companies have purchased the tender documentations so far, although it stopped short of giving names.

The regulator is looking to place five licences for wireless services in the 26GHz band in a bid to drive broadband access across the country. “This range could play a crucial role in the development of the internal infrastructure of mobile operators and other market players as well as large corporations for example; furthermore, it could contribute to expanding current levels of wireless broadband internet coverage in Hungary,” the NHH has said.

Russian MNO Mobile Telesystems (MTS) reported that its third quarter net profit fell 21.3 percent to USD 515.6 million from USD 654.7 million a year ago, caused mostly by the weakening of the ruble against the dollar making its foreign debt more expensive.

The operator has cut capital spending plans for the remainder of the year to USD 2 billion from an earlier estimate of USD 2.5 billion. In the three months to 30 September 2008 revenue rose 27 percent to USD 2.81 billion and operating income before depreciation and amortisation (OIBDA) rose 23.7 percent year-on-year to USD 1.45 billion.

The group has operations in Russia, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Armenia and Belarus and saw overall subscriber figures increase by almost 600,000 in the quarter to take the total to 87.57 million. In Russia MTS added 500,000 new customers, to reach a total of 61.88 million as of 30 September. The quarter saw the launch of additional 3G networks in Novosibirsk, Norilsk and Vladivostok in September 2008, and the launch of a 3G test zone in Uzbekistan in October.