Vodafone to launch 3G on October 31

Stuart Corner
Monday, 17 October 2005 18:44

Your IT - Home IT

Vodafone Australia has announced that it will switch on its 3G network in Sydney, Melbourne, Canberra and major airports on Monday, October 31.

The network is being built and will be shared with Optus, which has been offering 3G services to selected Government customers in Canberra since July. It is also planning an October launch, but has not yet announced a firm date.

At launch Vodafone says its initial focus will be on content and data services: 'Vodafone live! with 3G' - its multimedia content service; and 'Vodafone Mobile Connect (VMC) with 3G' - a fast mobile data card for PC and Mac laptops, giving users data access at up to broadband speeds in 3G coverage areas.

This latter market is becoming very competitive with Personal Broadband and Telstra both offering services in major centres and with Unwired set to launch its card-based broadband services in Sydney early in 2006.

The company describes the launch of 'Vodafone Mobile Connect with 3G' as "an aggressive play to win over mobile workers and personal laptop users who want greater freedom and flexibility,."

It is to woo these users that Vodafone will have coverage at Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide airports at launch. The company plans to roll out mobile broadband services in Brisbane and the Gold Coast by March 2006. Vodafone's 3G services will be available in Perth and Adelaide by July 2006.

Vodafone live! with 3G is launching with six handsets, which all feature high-resolution digital cameras enabling picture messaging and video calling, high-definition screens for viewing music video clips, mobile TV mini episodes, news, sport and entertainment, and advanced audio features supporting music track downloads, storage and playback.

Vodafone says it has been given the green light to launch 3G by international parent, Vodafone Group, following "an extensive review of its network, handsets, data cards and overall customer experience". The review culminated in a series of internal and external user trials involving more than 500 people over the last three months.