This will be followed in the summer by a further three store openings completing phase four of Vodafones expansion programme in Scotland.

By July 2000 Vodafone will have one store or more in all of the main towns in Scotland including five in Glasgow three in Edinburgh and two in Dundee Stirling and Paisley ensuring that twice as many Scottish customers have direct access to Vodafone and the expert advice offered by staff.

WAP has been criticised and labelled an interim technology. WAP will develop into something greater than it is now said Tim Sheedy senior research analyst with IDCs European Wireless and Mobile Communications program.

But at the moment it is the only option available to deliver web or interactive content to mobile phones so it cannot be ignored or dismissed.

IDC expects SMS revenue to decline as improved data applications begin to offer similar services.

Operators will attempt to protect this important revenue stream and will introduce new pricing schemes to maintain SMS usage says Sheedy.

Domain Dynamics has licenced e-commerce internet company Earthport to enable users to access their Earthport account through a WAP phone using their voice as a security measure.

A Vodafone handset roaming on the Libertel network accessed WAP services from Vodafone Interactive which offers internet services including e-mail and personal customised news weather and sports information.

The Dutch mobile roamed onto the UK GPRS network to access Dutch WAP services (Libertel Open) and the intranet.

Vodafone Value Added & Data Services MD Richard Jarvis commented:

MP3 is a technology that allows CD quality music to be compressed into a file which is small enough to download easily from the internet to a PC. It can then be played on a computer with special software or a dedicated MP3 player.

The Virgin-branded Samsung SGH M100 combined mobile and MP3 player will retail at around 300 when it launches to the public later this summer.

It will be sold with the usual Virgin Mobile tariff package.

In-bound calls automatically pause the music until the user hangs-up at the end of their conversation. The MP3 mobile will be available from Virgin Mobile direct Virgin Megastores or over the internet

This mobile marks the beginning of a new period in music retailing and distribution and it is the epitome of modern mobile technology said Virgin Group head Sir Richard Branson.

Virgin has been at the forefront of the music industry. In the new media world we aim to continue that tradition. With the record companies and artists making moves to sell their music over the internet we see a great future for digital music download technology.

We have plans to let people buy music and have it downloaded straight to their phone in our stores. And in the future it will be possible to buy and download music over the air using the mobile network itself.

Virgin customers will be able to download up to an albums worth of music from the internet or from a CD onto their Virgin Mobile Samsung MP3 phone via their computer.

The Samsung phone comes with 32Mb of memory and software allowing customers to digitally store and file their private CD collection or web-sourced MP3 music then download it onto their MP3 phone. It takes approximately 30 seconds to transfer a three-minute track from PC to the phone.

The launch will be backed by a heavy advertising campaign targeting a core audience of 18-35 year olds.

The Licence for 3G services in Ireland will be offered by the end of February 2001. A decision has not yet been made on the competition format or the number of licences to be awarded. A total of 155 MHz of radio spectrum is available for 3G mobile services in Ireland.

Addressing the workshop the Irish telecoms regulator Etain Doyle said:

3G mobile brings together the two fastest growing market sectors mobile and the internet. It represents a major evolution in mobile communications bringing together the full power of the internet with high quality audio video and graphics to people on the move.

Rage the developer and publisher of computer games is to provide Orange with a range of interactive games which can be accessed and played through WAP-enabled mobile phones.

The first game to be made available to Oranges WAP subscribers will be a graphic and text based adventure.

Paul Finnegan who is the chief executive officer of Rage commented:

The explosive growth in internet gaming through fixed and wireless devices provides us with a huge number of opportunities on which we intend to capitalise.

To have the Rage brand associated with a company of Oranges stature is a great endorsement of our products and capabilities and we are looking forward to working with them to provide increasingly innovative and value added services to their subscribers.

Its a concept phone. But not as we know it. The good news is that demand from millions of school kids and fashion victims will surely drive it into production soon. Its single band (thats GSM900 … not the means of attachment to your wrist). But future models will be multi-band. It uses an earpiece or built-in microphone and speaker when watch is fully extended (ie held up to your ear). Future models will use a wireless Bluetooth headset. Theres also voice- activated dialling ring and vibrate and it can link to voice activated website for complete voice dialling The queue starts here.

This follows publication of the long-awaited Stewart Report into mobile phone safety which has cleared mobile phones of causing harm to health.

The key finding in the report is that the balance of evidence does not suggest mobile phone technologies put the health of the general population of the UK at risk

One 2 One and Orange rushed out statements welcoming the Stewart report.

Bill Best One 2 One network services director said:

The report is comprehensive and hard hitting. Yet we believe it to be fair and balanced. It was set up to address public concern and in our view it has done that very effectively. The report contains many recommendations for us Government and local government and we will play our part in addressing them continuing to take policy forward in response to public concern.

One 2 One marketing director Tim Yates added:

The health and safety of children is of paramount importance. In the spirit of a precautionary approach we will review the implications of the report in respect of our marketing strategies and information literature.

We recognise the need to find a balance between appropriate precautionary measures and the clear personal safety benefits for children referred to in the report which many parents find reassuring.

Orange stated:

There is no substantiated evidence to suggest a link between the use of mobile phones and long term public health risks but we acknowledge public concern on this issue.

Orange has always operated well within the stringent national guidelines set for radio networks in the UK by the NRPB.

We welcome the recommendation that transmitter sites should comply with guidelines for public exposure and we believe this will increase public confidence in the safety of transmitter sites.

Orange will press all its handset manufacturers and suppliers to comply with the recommendations made by the Expert Group.

We support the Expert Groups recommendation for clearer handset information in mobile phone retail outlets product literature and other marketing material.

The Federation of Communication Services also noted the recommendations regarding the prolonged use of mobile phones by children.

Due to major media focus on public apprehension regarding EMF and mobile phone usage the FCS believes that the IEGMP report will make a major contribution to allaying peoples fears regarding mobile phone usage clearly stating as it does that the overwhelming body of evidence indicates that low levels of EMF pose no threat to human health said Jacqui Brookes FCS Trade Association Manager.

The Federation of Electronics Industries: which represents the mobile phone industry on health issues said:

The health and safety of the public our customers and employees is and always will be of prime importance to the industry. We believe the report is comprehensive and balanced and we welcome it. The IEGMP was set up to address public concern and in our view it has done that very effectively. As such we believe its report stands as a significant document.

The industry recognises that the massive growth in the use of mobile phones and the associated increase in the number of base stations has been accompanied by public concern about their possible effect on human health. The industry will continue to address this public concern in a transparent and factual way.

The industry will continue to support scientific research internationally monitor developments in research around the world to ensure its activities take account of the latest scientific findings and continue to test its products for compliance with relevant standards and guidelines.

Specifically the industry in consultation with Government will financially support the research programme recommended by the report. The UKs network operators will locate as far as possible new base stations on sites that minimise their social impact on the local community whilst ensuring the publics expectation of good quality of service is met.

They will also support the development of new technology to help improve base station design and continue to share sites and masts where practicable. co-operate with Government.

The full text of the report is on http://www.iegmp.org.uk.

Founder Malcolm Bartlett has hired FoneRange marketing director Mickey Priman as Kondors new managing director.