Posts Tagged ‘telecoms’

Telefonica’s €350m telecoms deal with Deutsche Post

Wednesday, January 7th, 2009

I imagine that Deutsche Post’s CIO (or similar) sat back a little while ago and thought words to the effect of, “This really is a hassle. 84 different suppliers to manage my telecoms infrastructure. There’s gotta be a better way!”

And, well, it seems there is. Telefonica — otherwise known to you and I as ‘o2′ here in the United Kingdom (or more accurately, o2’s parent company) have signed a whopping €350m 5-year deal to manage Deutsche Post’s telecoms infrastructure.

We’re talking:

  • 100,000 LAN ports
  • 60,000 fixed voice devices (’telephones’)
  • 80,000 mobile connections — comprising 24,000 mobile handsets/smartphones

That’s 125,000 Deutsche Post staff across 2,400 office sites in 28 European countries.

Nice.

Just as you and I like the concept getting one unified bill from one single provider (who can take responsibility and bash heads together when needed), this looks like a rather sensible deal for Deutsche Post.  And a boom for Telefonica.

Good news. You can read more about the announcement here.

There are always plusses and minuses about these types of deals.  Sometimes it can work well — and it will certainly help to count that 350m Euro as direct revenue for Telefonica.  It’s all about the people, the policies and the procedures though.  Every success to both parties.

Look at how screwed up the telecoms industry is

Friday, September 19th, 2008

Here, then, is a good example of how screwed up the telecoms industry is, here in the UK.

I got a note through from PhonePayPlus about their ‘emergency investigation’ into the practices of a company by the name of PremTel Limited.

Here’s the PhonePayPlus overview:

The service is charged at up to 50 pence per minute from landlines, and potentially considerably more from mobile phones. It is brought to the attention of consumers when they receive an email apparently from ‘Laptops Online Inc’ announcing “Order Received, Order Confirmed, Payment Authorised, Goods Dispatched.” The email provides an itemised invoice for a laptop costing approximately £500. Complainants consistently say they have not ordered any products or services from this company. The email encourages recipients to contact the “UK office,” alternatively described as their “24/7 Tech Support” team, via a ‘070′ prefixed number. PhonepayPlus has received 31 complaints regarding this service.

I await the PhonePayPlus emergency adjudication with interest.

SME guide to buying telecoms now available

Wednesday, June 25th, 2008

If you run a small or medium-sized business in the UK and are confused about how to get the best deal on your telecoms then help is at hand. The snappily titled ‘What To Look Out For And What To Watch Out For: Hints And Tips Guide To SME Telecoms & Mobile Procurement’ has now been released by Utility Watch UK.

So if you’re confused about your mobile strategy, unsure of whether to use VoIP or just feel like you might be able to get a better deal from your provider then you can use this report to guide you through the difficulties and pitfalls.

You can get the report by emailing guide@utilitywatch.co.uk or by calling 0800 652 5100.

Motorola CEO hunt down to two?

Thursday, June 5th, 2008

Motorola’s struggling handset business could soon have a new head. According to a report in the Wall Street Journal quoting people familiar with the matter, negotiations are underway with two candidates and are currently at a sensitive stage.

Of the two potential CEOs, the WSJ names one as a ‘telecoms exec’ but gives no more details, the other, according to the paper, is HP exec Todd Bradley. Bradley currently heads up HP’s personal systems group, which looks after “personal computers, mobile devices, technical workstations, digital televisions, personal storage solutions and Internet services”.

Bradley’s also got some fascinating mobile history: he used to be the CEO of palmOne, taking over after palmSource was spun off. Apparently, Bradley could be just the man for the job but he told the WSJ this week: “I’m happy where I am, and I’m not planning to make any changes.” Fingers crossed for Motorola he’s just being coy.


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