Tag Archives: 3 UK
Strange time to help consumers switch UK networks
Rating: 3 UK tells us that their not afraid of competition
Just eight days before EE (formerly Everything Everywhere) becomes the sole supplier of an LTE based mobile 4G network, arch rival Three (3UK) has come out in favour of making it easier for UK consumers to switch mobile network supplier. Let us give you an example. GoMobile News has Orange as one of its fixed broadband suppliers. Orange made us an offer we couldn’t refuse to become our landline provider instead of BT. Did we have to handle the paperwork/phone calls to make this happen? Of course not. But if we try to migrate to 3UK from Orange as our cellular subscriber we have to obtain the relevant PUK code ourselves and go through a long wait for the switch to happen. 3UK wants an end to this ridiculous situation. Continue reading
Posted in 3, 4G, Everything Everywhere, LTE
Tagged 3 UK, Dave Dyson, Ernest Doku, uSwitch
Leave a comment
European Commission clears UK m-commerce joint venture
Rating: Everything Everywhere, O2 & Vodafone vow to push ahead
The European Commission has today [September 5th 2012] announced that the mobile commerce joint venture (JV) between Everything Everywhere {Orange plus T-Mobile), Telefonica UK (O2) and Vodafone UK has received unconditional clearance. That only leaves 3 UK on the outside, anyway. However, the triumvirate say, “The shareholders remain committed to making the JV services open to all – including all operators.” So the door is obviously open for 3 UK. In the meantime the three UK mobile operators have put out a joint statement which we have reproduced below. Continue reading
Posted in 3, Everything Everywhere, Vodafone, m-commerce, o2, orange, t-mobile, telefonica
Tagged 3 UK, European Commission, everything everywhere, o2, telefonica, Vodafone
Leave a comment
Samsung selected by 3 UK for LTE RAN & core infrastructure deployment
Samsung signs first major European network supply contract
Press release
August 24th 2012. Samsung Electronics, an advanced network solution provider, has been selected to provide LTE Radio Access Network (RAN) and 3G/LTE core infrastructure solutions to Three, the UK’s leading mobile internet operator. The deployment marks Samsung’s first commercial mobile network roll-out in Europe. To provide an innovative and market-leading mobile data service, Three UK, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hutchison Whampoa Limited, is focusing on the development of its LTE network in the United Kingdom using Samsung’s innovative LTE RAN and Core solutions. Continue reading
3 UK to acquires 1800 MHz spectrum from Everything Everywhere
Rating: Wild speculation about using it for 4G/LTE
3 UK has formally announced its agreement to acquire two 15 MHz chunks of Everything Everywhere’s 1800 MHz spectrum. Dave Dyson, CEO with 3 UK, commented, “Acquiring this spectrum will more than double the capacity available to customers on our network.” However, the mobile operator will definitely not be able to utilise this bandwidth immediately. A few things have got to happen first. Ofcom needs to give official approval (which it almost certainly will). The EU’s Competition Commission will also have to give the go ahead. That’s also extremely likely because it asked Everything Everywhere to divest itself of some of its spectrum as part of the agreement to allow T-Mobile and Orange to create Everything Everywhere in the first place. The third obstacle to getting its hands on this spectrum for 3 is that Everything Everywhere needs to stop using it. It doesn’t have to do so until September 2013. Continue reading
Posted in 3, 4G, Everything Everywhere, LTE, ZTE
Tagged 1800 MHz, 3 UK, Dave Dyson, EU, everything everywhere, ofcom
Leave a comment
Mobile operators face revenue dilemma with OTT services
Rating: $182 billion loss in 2012-2016 versus $30 billion revenue gain
Mobile operators are between a rock and a hard place when it comes to facing the challenge represented by OTT (Over The Top) services over the coming years. A significant number of mobile operators realise that OTT services carried over the mobile internet from service providers such as Skype, Viber and WhatsApp will eat into their voice and SMS/text revenus. This is one of the findings from research sponsored by mobile interaction service provider, tyntec and carried out by MobileSquared. It concluded, however, if operators made a move now to co-operate with OTT suppliers there are revenues to be earned from a truly integrated service. Continue reading
Samba launches UK’s first free ad-funded mobile broadband service
Press release
July 4th 2012. Samba Mobile – a new service which offers free on the go broadband for laptops, netbooks and iPads – has launched in the UK. Based on a simple value exchange model, users watch a few high-quality video advertisements to earn free credit. A partnership with the award winning Three UK network means Samba offers the best connection possible and coverage across all of the UK.
Watching just 2.5 minutes of ads per day – that’s less than the average ad break on commercial television – earns enough data to cover the average consumer’s monthly broadband consumption of 517MB data per month. Customers choose which ads they want to watch and when they want to watch them. A battery icon shows how much credit there is. Continue reading
4G LTE situation in UK gets even more complex
Rating: Rivals could acquire 1800 MHz spectrum from Everything Everywhere
GoMobile News has been chatting with a delightful spokeswoman from Everything Everywhere (formerly T-Mobile & Orange) over a previous story we wrote – Everything Everywhere upsets the whole UK 4G applecart. She was politely pointing out a technical mistake we’d made in that item. Specifically this sentence – “And apparently the operator has already proved this point by undertaking a trial in Cornwall.” Actually the trial undertaken in rural Cornwall did actually use 800MHz spectrum. It seems that a trial of 4G/LTE technology over 1800 MHz spectrum won’t actually take place until next month [April 2012]. You can read the full Everything Everywhere announcement here. What tickles GoMobile News is that technically the 800 MHz spectrum was used for 1G networks but not in Britain – in North America. Continue reading
Posted in 3, Everything Everywhere, Featured, LTE, orange, t-mobile
Tagged 1800 MHz, 3 UK, 4G, 800 MHz, everything everywhere, LTE, orange, t-mobile
Leave a comment
3 UK to pre-install eBay app on Android smartphones
Rating: Follow items without worrying about the data bill
UK mobile operator, 3 UK, has struck a deal with eBay to embed its popular online shopping app on around 700,000 Android handsets. Smartphones with the latest version of the Android software will be in stores with the app pre-installed from this Spring. “The deal with eBay is part of 3 UK’s efforts to allow people to experience the benefits of the internet wherever they are,” commented Neil Andrews, head of media sales and content services. Continue reading
What’s the deal with micro SIMs in the UK?
Rating: We could get voice to work on three out of the four we tried
We’ve got a beautiful bit of kit on loan in the shape of the latest RAZR Android smartphone from Motorola. Unfortunately, this US-based company (now owned by Google) may be attempting to push the boundaries too far with this handset’s technology. [...]
Posted in 3, Mobile Devices, Mobile Operators, Motorola, orange
Tagged 3 UK, micro SIM, Motorola, orange, Razr, USIM
Leave a comment
The UK just isn’t ready for the micro SIM
Rating: GoMo couldn’t get one for love nor money
GoMo News was over the moon to receive a beautiful bit of kit to review – the latest Razr from Motorola which these days is a Android 2.3.5 (Gingerbread device). There’s only one big snag with this particular handset – it employs the very latest micro SIM card. When you’ve got an ultra-slim device like the Razr, saving a bit of space by using a micro SIM instead of the traditional SIM makes a great deal of sense. The downside is that you have to try to source such a SIM in a retail market environment which is totally unprepared for such an eventuality. Continue reading
Posted in 3, Featured, Mobile Devices, Vodafone, android, orange
Tagged 3 UK, android, carphone warehouse, DEFY, gingerbread, micro SIM, Motorola, orange, Razr, Vodafone
Leave a comment
Data roaming for rugby fans Visiting NZ slashed by 3 UK
Rating: Get yourself a Nokia N9 while you’re there?
We knew that 3 UK was into its real ales. Now we know that the guys there are rugby fans, too. That’s because the UK operator has decided to slash the cost of ‘data roaming’ whilst in New Zealand to watch the 2011 rugby World Cup. The company claims that the charges to roam half way around the world on data will be brought into line with European charges for the period between September 9th and October 31st [2001]. 3 UK is prepared to offer a discount of nearly 80 per cent on New Zealand roaming costs. “Despite being on the other side of the world, by getting the data price for roaming in New Zealand down to the same rate as roaming in Europe, Three’s customers can continue to stay connected and share their experience of rugby’s biggest tournament,” commented Thomas Malleschitz, 3 UK’s marketing director. While you’re there you might want to try purchasing a Nokia N9. Continue reading
Posted in 3, Featured, Meego, Mobile Operators, mobile news, nokia
Tagged 3 UK, meego, N9, new zealand, nokia, rugby, Thomas Malleschitz, Vuvuzela, world cup
1 Comment
Some handsets still missing from UK shelves
Rating: HP’s Pre 3 and Huawei’s Blaze for starters
The gaps between product announcements and actual shipping dates are becoming very frustrating for mobile phone enthusiasts in the UK. Currently, there is a great deal of buzz surrounding HP‘s Pre 3 handset because it uses the latest version (3) of Palm’s old OS – namely webOS. However, if you try to buy a Pre 3 on the Orange network, for example, you can’t do so at present. You’ll have to try one of the online handset sales stores. Much the same applies to the new Android handset from Huawei – the Blaze. Lots of stores list it but none seem to have a price or availability. Unless you’re in India where the Blaze seems to have a price tag of around 12,000 rupees (about £160). Huawei seems to be copying its arch rival, ZTE, and is hoping to start selling handsets in the UK under its own brand. The Chinese manufacturer certainly seems to have picked the right person to set the operation up – Mark Mitchinson. Continue reading
3 UK gets into bed with the Nokia Ovi store
Rating: You need a Symbian ^3 phone, like the X7, to benefit though
Now that Vodafone has partnered with Google’s Android Market (see our previous story here), it seems that 3UK has followed suit. But not with Google – it’s gone with Nokia and the Ovi apps store. However, it seems that only those with the very latest Symbian ^3 handsets such as the Nokia C7, Nokia E7 and Nokia N8 will be able to access the special ‘Three Likes’ page. Plus the Nokia X7, of course, because that particular handset is available now exclusively in the UK through 3. The handset features a built-in app that integrates fully with a new version of the Ovi Store that appeared this week [July 2011]. The move shows that Nokia’s Ovi store is far from dead as its rivals like to paint it. Continue reading
Posted in 3, App stores, Featured, Mobile Operators, Ovi, nokia
Tagged 3 UK, billing, Charlotte Spencer, nokia, Operator, Ovi, Symbian ^3, X7
3 Comments
Froyo’s built-in 3G Mobile hotspot to the rescue
Rating: Wi-Fi tethering provides Net access from the wilds of Esher
There’s little point in obtaining a news scoop if you can’t publish it immediately on your own news site/blog. GoMo News found itself in a tight spot today whilst covering a mobile cloud event in the wilds of Esher (see here). The venue’s router had decided not to play ball, so we were facing a total lack of internet access. Which is exactly what a mobile broadband dongle is intended to compensate for. The catch is that not one of our dongles presently wants to work. Fortunately, lateral thinking prevailed and we were able to access our site using the built-in Wi-fi hotspot facility which Android 2.2 (Froyo) provides as standard. Here’s how we did it. Continue reading
Posted in 3, Mobile Broadband, Mobile Devices, Motorola, android
Tagged 3 UK, DEFY, E220, Huawei, K3565, MF627, Mobile Broadband, Motorola, tethering, ZTE
3 Comments
Skype puts video calling into Facebook
Rating: Massive manoeuvrings on Facebook vs Google front
The dust hasn’t quite settled yet but it appears that Skype has made it possible to video chat with friends right from Facebook itself. The situation is complicated because of the technicalities surrounding exactly who owns whom, but this move is obviously a major swipe at Google. It’s a showdown between ‘social’ and ‘search’. Google has always enjoyed the prime Net location slot as surfers try to find stuff. But if you already know who you want to talk to and can now even video chat with them, why bother to search? Particularly since you follow other people’s recommendations within your social network (which is where Facebook is obviously winning). Why not just ask for recommendations? Continue reading
Posted in 3, Facebook, Microsoft, Mobile Messaging, google
Tagged 3 UK, Facebook, Fred Huet, google, Greenwich Consulting, im, skype
Leave a comment
