Category: SingTel
TELCOs – BT
Pay-TV cross-carriage to start in August
FROM Aug 1, pay-TV operators here will have to offer their exclusive content to subscribers of competing operators.
The Media Development Authority’s (MDA) mandate, announced in March last year, will apply to any exclusive content that operators have acquired on or after March 12, 2010.
The newly-gazetted regulation means pay-TV operators must be able to make available this content within five days of request from the consumer, even if they belong to competitors.
This applies to ‘qualified content’, as spelled out by MDA in its Media Market Conduct Code. One of the definitions covers content acquired on an exclusive basis, not to that created by the TV provider. It also does not apply to content delivered over the Internet or mobile platforms
The qualified content shared must be cross-carried unmodified, and at the same price, terms and conditions as offered to a provider’s own subscribers.
Cross-carriage is aimed at eliminating the need for two pay-TV set-top boxes, reducing hassle for consumers as well as the costs involved in providing the requisite hardware for operators.
MDA announced the cross- carriage mandate in March last year after a fierce battle between StarHub and SingTel over the exclusive rights to broadcast the Barclays Premier League (BPL). SingTel was rumoured to have paid a king’s ransom of $300 million for the privilege, which subsequently saw its smaller subscriber base balloon 60 per cent as new users jumped on to watch the BPL.
After a two-month industry consultation, which drew wide- spread protests from content suppliers here, MDA decided to press on with its ruling, stating that cross-carriage would do away with anti-competition and stimulate service differentiation.
An MDA spokesman also pointed out that during the consultation, it found that exclusively acquired content was one of the most relied-on methods to populate service offerings by dominant providers.
The regulator decided, however, to delay implementation of cross-carriage by nine months to give the industry time to adjust to the new legislation.
MDA claims that since the introduction of the ruling, the pay-TV market has grown ‘significantly’, with retailers introducing 20 new channels, as well as new services brought to consumers.
MDA plans to review the ruling every three years, or as the industry requires.
One argument against cross- carriage came from the Cable and Satellite Broadcasting Association of Asia (Casbaa), which said such a practice would artificially suppress content prices and cause foreign media investments in the country to dry up.
SingTel – BT
SingTel lines up $3.7b of borrowings
Facilities in S’pore and Australia meant for general purpose and refinancing
SINGAPORE Telecommunications has arranged new borrowings of about $3.7 billion for general corporate purposes and to refinance existing facilities.
In a statement yesterday, the telco said that the new loans comprise S$2.16 billion in Singapore and A$1.2 billion (S$1.57 billion) in Australia.
Asked for details of the new credit facilities, a SingTel spokeswoman said they are for general corporate purposes and to replace some of its bank facilities.
‘These are revolving credit facilities. The interest rate will be determined based on the agreed margin and the base rate at point of drawdown. We do not disclose borrowing margin as this is private and confidential between us and the banking group.’
According to SingTel’s latest annual report, it has total unsecured borrowings made up of bonds and loans of S$7.2 billion.
The new borrowings SingTel has signed in Singapore are for a three-year S$2.16 billion committed revolving credit facility with 12 banks.
The list comprises Australia and New Zealand Banking Group, Bank of America, Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, Citibank, Deutsche Bank, DBS Bank, The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation, Mizuho Corporate Bank, Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation, Standard Chartered Bank, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation and United Overseas Bank. This facility is guaranteed by SingTel.
In Australia, wholly owned Optus Finance Pty Ltd signed a three-year A$1.2 billion committed revolving facility agreement also with 12 banks.
The 12 there are Australia and New Zealand Banking Group, Bank of America, Barclays Bank, Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, BNP Paribas, Citibank, Sydney Branch, Commonwealth Bank of Australia, The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation, Sydney Branch, JP Morgan Chase Bank, Mizuho Corporate Bank, Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation and Westpac Banking Corporation.
This facility is guaranteed by Optus and some of its subsidiaries.
SingTel – BT
Optus reaches A$800m pact with NBN Co
Switch to Australia’s upcoming high-speed fibre-optic network
SINGAPORE Telecommunications unit Optus has reached an A$800 million (S$1.1 billion) pact with the Australian authorities to phase out its current Internet infrastructure and switch over to the country’s upcoming high-speed fibre-optic network.
The agreement with state-owned National Broadband Network Company (NBN Co) will see Optus progressively move its hybrid fibre coaxial (HFC) customers over to NBN Co’s new digital superhighway from 2014.
Optus will receive the A$800 million payment in tranches as its customers make the switch, Optus said in a statement yesterday. Optus based its estimate of the total value ‘on a post tax net present value basis’.
NBN Co has been appointed by the Australian government to equip the entire country with ultra-fast broadband connections.
Under its NBN plan, 93 per cent of Australian homes will be wired up with new fibre-optic links, while the remaining 7 per cent is to be connected wirelessly.
According to the Optus statement, the migration over to the NBN is expected to take up to four years.
Optus will continue to offer broadband services via its HFC infrastructure – which relies on a combination of fibre-optics and slower copper wiring to provide broadband and pay-TV access – until the new network is completed and all its subscribers have been migrated.
The move affects only the firm’s fixed-line residential and small business customers.
In tandem with the migration, it will gradually decommission parts of the HFC network that are not used to support its mobile services and enterprise clients, the operator added.
‘This agreement represents a fair deal for Optus. We intend to use the NBN to turbo-charge competition and to deliver the full potential of a 21st century digital life to customers,’ said Optus chief Paul O’Sullivan.
An A$11 billion agreement was also struck between NBN Co and Optus rival Telstra.
Under the contract, the country’s largest fixed-line operator will grant NBN Co access to its copper-based infrastructure for at least 35 years to help with the deployment of its new digital highway.
In addition, Telstra has agreed to progressively switch off its copper-based network and move its services over to the NBN.
SingTel – BT
Optus reaches A$800m pact with NBN Co
Switch to Australia’s upcoming high-speed fibre-optic network
SINGAPORE Telecommunications unit Optus has reached an A$800 million (S$1.1 billion) pact with the Australian authorities to phase out its current Internet infrastructure and switch over to the country’s upcoming high-speed fibre-optic network.
The agreement with state-owned National Broadband Network Company (NBN Co) will see Optus progressively move its hybrid fibre coaxial (HFC) customers over to NBN Co’s new digital superhighway from 2014.
Optus will receive the A$800 million payment in tranches as its customers make the switch, Optus said in a statement yesterday. Optus based its estimate of the total value ‘on a post tax net present value basis’.
NBN Co has been appointed by the Australian government to equip the entire country with ultra-fast broadband connections.
Under its NBN plan, 93 per cent of Australian homes will be wired up with new fibre-optic links, while the remaining 7 per cent is to be connected wirelessly.
According to the Optus statement, the migration over to the NBN is expected to take up to four years.
Optus will continue to offer broadband services via its HFC infrastructure – which relies on a combination of fibre-optics and slower copper wiring to provide broadband and pay-TV access – until the new network is completed and all its subscribers have been migrated.
The move affects only the firm’s fixed-line residential and small business customers.
In tandem with the migration, it will gradually decommission parts of the HFC network that are not used to support its mobile services and enterprise clients, the operator added.
‘This agreement represents a fair deal for Optus. We intend to use the NBN to turbo-charge competition and to deliver the full potential of a 21st century digital life to customers,’ said Optus chief Paul O’Sullivan.
An A$11 billion agreement was also struck between NBN Co and Optus rival Telstra.
Under the contract, the country’s largest fixed-line operator will grant NBN Co access to its copper-based infrastructure for at least 35 years to help with the deployment of its new digital highway.
In addition, Telstra has agreed to progressively switch off its copper-based network and move its services over to the NBN.
SingTel – BT
SingTel paints a clearer picture of download speeds
Telco will now publish a speed range for its broadband plans
SINGAPORE Telecommunications has set a new precedent by becoming the first local operator to give consumers a clearer indication of the download speeds they can realistically expect when they sign up for a mobile broadband service.
Until now, telcos have been marketing Internet access based on theoretical top speeds that are unattainable outside controlled laboratory conditions.
This practice, coupled with the issue of network congestion that resulted from the explosive growth in mobile broadband usage in recent years, has led a string of complaints from consumers that they are not getting what they are paying for.
Instead of sticking to the prevailing custom, SingTel will now publish a so-called ‘typical speed range’ that customers are likely to experience during their daily use.
This will first be applied to subscribers of its three dedicated mobile broadband plans who are now surfing on the go by connecting a token-like modem to their laptops.
SingTel says those on its 3.6Mbps (megabit per second) service can expect a typical speed range of 0.8 Mbps to 2.1Mbps. Subscribers of its higher-end 7.2 Mbps and 21Mbps plans on the other hand, should mostly expect download speeds of 1.4 Mbps to 3.7Mbps, and 1.7Mbps to 4.8Mbps respectively.
‘We are confident we can deliver this range of speeds 80 per cent of the time,’ said SingTel’s executive vice-president of consumer business Yuen Kuan Moon.
A customer’s mobile surfing speed is affected by a number of factors including the site he is visiting, the hardware specifications of the computer, and the applications that are being used.
Such variables make it difficult for telcos to pinpoint the average download speed for each user with accuracy, he explained.
A speed range offers a more realistic gauge and it is also the easiest way of explaining service quality to customers, Mr Yuen told reporters at a media briefing yesterday.
By becoming more transparent, SingTel is also hoping to convince more customers to opt for its higher- end mobile broadband plans.
Without such clarity, most have now opted for the most basic 3.6Mbps offering as they are worried they may not get more bang for their buck, Mr Yuen said.
As an added incentive, SingTel has also introduced a special ‘priority-pass’ feature to give its 7.2 Mbps and 21 Mbps subscribers dedicated fast lanes so that they can consistently enjoy a speedier and more reliable connection.
Customers who are already subscribing to these two plans will automatically enjoy the new perk at no additional cost.
The monthly subscription fee of SingTel’s three mobile broadband plans will remain unchanged at $29.90, $40, and $59.90.
Earlier this year, the Republic’s telecommunications regulator announced its plan to make it compulsory for telcos to provide consumers with more realistic download speeds.
The Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore has sought public feedback on the parameters for measuring typical Internet speeds and the plan is expected to be ready by early next year.