TAG | Finally, ‘3’ Mobile to get 96% Aussie 3G coverage! - UPDATED |
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| by Alex Zaharov-Reutt | |
| Tuesday, 19 August 2008 | |
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Roaming charges update on page 2. This is good news for 3 Mobile customers who travel outside of the current 56% 3 Mobile 3G coverage still wanting to access broadband data, watch mobile TV and make video calls, in addition to the EDGE data and voice calls that 3 Mobile already provides outside its current 3G coverage areas. 3 Mobile says this development is “in addition to” its existing “infill site program” and will result in 96% coverage by the middle of 2009. It also helps 3 Mobile to much better compete with Optus and Vodafone who are also expanding their networks using 900MHz technology to offer 96% coverage by the end of 2008 and 98% coverage by the end of 2009, although all three telcos are still well behind Telstra’s current 99% coverage available today. 3 Mobile says its “new site build is commencing this year in areas of current high roaming for 3’s customers including Newcastle and the Central Coast in NSW and the Mornington Peninsula in Victoria” and that “around 50 sites will be complete by the end of the year.” Given that 3 Mobile says it operates a 2100MHz network and will only having roaming on “parts” of Telstra’s 850MHz network “by the second quarter of next year (2009)”, it would appear that 3 Mobile’s additional network build is happening with 2100MHz towers. So, what about roaming charges then? Well, we haven’t heard from Noel Hamill of 3 Mobile on this occasion, whom we always characterise as being of no known relation to Mark Hamill (Luke Skywalker) of Star Wars fame. We’ve long wished that were Hamill a relation, he could borrow a lightsaber to slice through 3 Mobile’s (presumably mostly Telstra imposed) $1.65 per megabyte data roaming charges when outside of 3 Mobile’s 3G network. So, what has 3 Mobile said – and not said – about changes to roaming charges? 3 Mobile has provided us with an update! Please read on to page 2. |
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