Five new bundles will be released next month. Pay monthly customers can choose from daily net browsing for £1; monthly evening and weekend browsing for £5; or monthly anytime browsing for £8.

Pre-pay customers can choose from £1 daily browsing or £5 weekly browsing. Users will be subject to a 1GB maximum under Oranges fair usage policy.

Customers who do not purchase a bundle and are pay monthly customers will now be charged a maximum of £1.50 a day for mobile internet browsing whereas pre-pay customers will be charged £2.

Orange customers will also now have free access to their own personalised Orange World homepage as well as news headlines and favourites. They can also use the Orange Local service free from July to September.

Orange mobile and convergence vice-president Jean-Pascal Van Overbeke said: Our new pricing structure makes it easy for our customers to understand exactly what they are getting and for how long when they access mobile internet.

Turner will report directly to Fonesure CEO and founder Mark Gordon.

He will be in charge of 16 staff and be responsible for developing the companys insurance products and new offerings.

Turner has more than 15 years experience in the insurance sector and will be based at the companys headquarters in Westcliff-on-Sea.

He joins from insurance company Allianz Cornhill.

The managing directors role is newly created.

Former strategy and business development director Craig Tillotson will lead the consumer business unit and remain on the UK board.

Ian Shepherd former commercial operations director for Vodafones consumer business unit steps into Tillotsons shoes as strategy and business development director. Tim Yates returns to being chief marketing officer on the UK board after a stint as interim business consumer director.

Vodafone UK CEO Nick Read said the new appointments would strengthen the companys leadership position and deliver its Mobile Plus strategy to become a total communications provider.

The Lords Committee recently published an influential report on the EUs proposals to cap mobile phone roaming charges and concluded that a wholesale price cap of 30 euro cents per minute was necessary to protect customers and ensure small businesses were not impeded from doing business across the EU.

While the committee welcome the EU moves to introduce caps they are concerned that the introduction of retail caps will stifle competition and discourage innovation in the mobile phone market.

Chairman of the committee Lord Freeman believes the vote will lead to is a step in the right direction. He said:

People have been overcharged for using their phones abroad for too long now and it has become clear the market would not have resolved this issue alone. This vote should ensure we move towards a fairer system.

However we do have some areas of concern with todays vote as we feel averaged wholesale caps rather than retail price caps could have ensured customer savings while maintaining an element of competition in the market that would encourage innovation.

The two companies have signed a four-year contract to develop a raft of extra features for the successful PSP which has already shipped over 8 million in Europe and 24 million globally. The partnership will introduce wireless broadband communications and includes high quality handheld video calls voice calls and messaging services.

BT chief of Mobility and Convergence Steve Andrews believes the deal will benefit avid gamers. He said:

We are very excited by the opportunity to give customers a whole new communications experience connecting and seeing friends across the world through BTs technology.

President of Sony Computer Entertainment Europe David Reeves feels that the deal will open up multiple new avenues for hand held gaming consoles. He said:

It is very exciting for us to be partnering with BT on such a unique project. The opportunity to combine our market leading expertise with BTs knowledge in communications opens up many possibilities and we look forward to bringing many exciting communication functions to PSP fans.

Many monthly contract users are mismanaging their accounts by either failing to use all their inclusive minutes or unknowingly using services that are not inclusive in their contract.

Two thirds of monthly contract users receive an average of 257 peak and 257 off-peak free inclusive minutes as part of their deal each month but the average monthly contract payer still has over 100 minutes left unused at the end of their monthly billing period.

The average value of a cross network inclusive minute is £0.04p and when this total is extrapolated across the lost minutes of the entire nation the stark reality of £88 million in wasted minutes every month is revealed.

The pattern is the same when it comes to texts with an average of 73 unused texts per customer which totals £66 million of unused texts nationwide each month.

Monthly contract users are also paying on average £6.01 each month for services that are not inclusive in their contract. This figure tallies up to more than £70 per user during a 12-month period.

Mobile Phone expert for uSwitch.com Chris Frost believes that the research shows that many pay monthly users are signing up to packages without understanding if the tariff is right for their personal needs. He comments:

Not only are we failing to take full advantage of our free minutes and texts; on top of contract costs we are going on to pay a further £56 million collectively for non-inclusive texts and talk time.

Furthermore many mobile customers are unaware of the fact that they are actually paying for the free phone provided with their deal as part of their contract – they are effectively buying a phone on credit.

This indicates that many of us are getting it very wrong when it comes to choosing our deals.

Daventry-based accessories distributor Shebang has doubled its projected turnover for the year to £20 million in just over two months. />Shebang managing director Iain Humphrey said: Shebang is growing at pace. Just two months ago we were tracking at £10 million for the year. Our projected turnover for the year is now double that. />We are offering a good alternative to a very drab distribution sector at the moment. When everyone else in distribution is worried for their futures we are really buoyant. />Meanwhile Humphrey has signed London dealership Fonehouse up to the Sellfone 3G retail management system which works in conjunction with Shebang. It is the latest win for the firm which now has all the major independent dealerships signed to the system including JAG Get Connected and Intek. />Said Humphrey: Once we reached critical mass with Sellfone which was around 350 dealerships we quickly switched our focus to quality connections. />We are now refusing more applications than we are accepting. For us to accept Fonehouse on board shows the quality of the business that [Fonehouse managing director] Clive Bailey is writing within the M25.

Postgate will be responsible for coordinating public service presence across mobile platforms.

Director of BBC future media and technology Ashley Highfield said: Mobile is an increasingly important area for us and a key part of our multi-platform strategy. Matthew brings a wealth of knowledge to the role and will drive the BBCs success in this field.

Prior to joining the BBC as an executive producer in 2003 Postgate worked as an emerging channel strategist with blue chip organisations including Royal Mail Shell QinetiQ and BT.

Dealers hit out last week at Oranges new two-year consumer contracts and the trend among networks to push out the upgrade cycle and reduce dealers repeat business. />Orange launched 24-month consumer packages at the start of April. It said last week the value of the new tariffs for the consumer (see box out) will drive footfall. />But dealers are reluctant to push the longer-term contracts on the grounds consumers are forced to pay for handset upgrades during the term of the contract because the commission payment for signing them does not cover the cost of the handset at upgrade. />Dealers also claimed customers had already started to cancel their two-year contracts. Orange denied this however. />Paul Kopec managing director of Glasgow-based Telecom 3 said asking consumers to hold out for two years for a new handset was asking for trouble and would increase customer dissatisfaction with the networks. He admitted however that dealers are caught between a rock and a hard place forced to push the new contracts to remain competitive with their high street rivals. />Networks asking for trouble />Kopec warned that if the networks push two-year contracts to the point that commission payments on 18-month contracts which currently earn about £65 more than 12-month deals are reduced then dealers will have little choice but to back the new two-year deals. Everything is pound-driven after all he said. />He explained: Its a fashion conscious market. Sales are driven by handsets and new devices are launched every month. Customers on 18-month contracts have experienced all kinds of problems with handsets and networks do little in the way of service. Well have to wait and see if the service gets any better. People are accustomed to 12-month contracts thats just the culture. />Gary Bridger director of Yeovil-based Airwaves branded the new deals a complete waste of time and effort. He said the networks could force sales through the dealer community by cutting commission payments on shorter-term contracts. />Bridger said: Theyll cut the commission from 12 and 18-month contracts as leverage. I understand the logic for business customers but individuals will never sign it. Phones are not built to last two years. />John George managing director of southwest dealership chain JAG said: Im not impressed with 24-month contracts. People are tied for longer than the warranty on the phone. So many things change in two years. Well only start actively selling them if the commissions are more favourable. />Paul Leonard managing director of Essex-based Sprint Communications called the lack of a handset upgrade during the term of the deals the Achilles heel. Said Leonard: The upgrade path is critical. You could have a 36-month contract as long as there was an upgrade path. If customers can upgrade their handset at 12 months I dont see why they wouldnt sign a 24-month contract if it was better value. How long would network staff keep their handsets for? Not longer than 12 months I bet. />A lot of customers become disenchanted because the thing they see most is their handset and if its falling apart theyll end up leaving. />Leonard reckons O2s two-year business contracts hit the nail on the head by adding an upgrade at month 12. />Yes Telecom managing director Keith Curran argued the assumption two-year deals will drive down churn is misguided. He said: Networks think a long commitment is better but they have to be careful Â’Â’Â’ if they look after the customer the contract will look after itself. You could argue why have contracts at all? If a customer got gold star service they wouldnt want to go elsewhere. Two-year contracts just shift churn down the line. />How much commission did Orange give on a 12-month contract and how much will they give now? Their track record is they dont pay as much for a two-year contract as two one-year contracts back to back. />Adapt or die />But is there any point in resisting the inevitable? The market is changing and its adapt or die. The 12-month churn model wont exist much longer. The networks criteria for accepting customers back after 12 months have become more stringent said Fone Logistics marketing manager Julien Parven. />To cater to commitment-phobes and balance the two-year investments it is locking customers into Orange has also launched a SIM-only contract with the same value but allowing for monthly renewal. There are certainly people it will appeal to Â’Â’Â’ those not concerned about the latest fashion phone but about more value said an Orange spokesperson. />Will other networks follow suit? 3 said last week it has no immediate plans to ape Orange and launch two-year consumer contracts. But a spokesperson admitted: Two years ago 18-month contracts were rare and look at them now. Two-year contracts may not become the norm but its the way the market is going. />Virgin Mobile said the benefits of 24-month contracts to networks and retailers were clear but less so for consumers. Head of contract Tim Dowling said: We believe our target audience want to upgrade their handset well within a 24-month period. />Virgin Mobile has launched a SIM-only six-month contract exclusive to Carphone Warehouse with 150 cross-network minutes and 150 cross-network texts for £15 per month.

Oranges 2-year deals

Dolphin £35 Â’ allows 900 minutes and unlimited texts compared with the 600 minutes and unlimited texts offered by its 18-month counterpart.

Racoon £35 Â’ allows 1200 minutes 150 texts and unlimited landline calls. The 18-month deal offers 800 minutes 100 texts and unlimited landline calls.

Canary £40 Â’ offers 1400 minutes 450 texts and unlimited calls to other Orange users. The 18 month deal gives customers 950 minutes 300 texts and unlimited Orange calls.

Kent-based MoCo has appointed a corporate finance company to oversee the sale of founder Maurice Whelans 45 per cent share in the business. Whelan who turned 65 in October wants to retire from the industry. His brother Andrew Whelan 55 also owns 45 per cent of the business. Managing director Ian Robinson owns the remaining 10 per cent. Both want to drive the business forward with increased financial backing. Henley-based Harlequin Corporate Finance run by former Vodafone Retail finance director Ian Freeman has been engaged to facilitate the sale of Whelans share and has already approached Carphone Warehouse among others. Freeman refused to comment upon suitors but said: MoCo has a lot to offer. We are looking for a partner to take MoCo forward in the converged market place which opens it up [to a wider number of potential investors]. We are looking for a partner that can help the business build on the strong foundations established by Maurice. Carphone was unavailable for comment. MoCo which has both distribution and direct sales businesses would suit Carphones distribution portfolio. It would make sense for Carphone because MoCo is a business specialist and [Carphone indirect airtime distribution arm] Hugh Symons concentrates mainly on consumer connections said a source. Harlequin is also understood to have sounded out 20:20 backers Doughty Hanson and Anglia parent company Redstone Telecom. Dangaard/Brightpoint which is looking for entry into the UK via acquisition is also considered to be a possibility although Harlequin is yet to approach it. However sources claimed last week that two foreign companies had been approached. The guide price for Whelans 45 per cent share would be around 2 million suggested sources. It is understood however that MoCo would consider a substantial bid for 100 per cent of its shares.

MoCo managing director Ian Robinson said: Ideally we want somebody that will help take the business to the next level. Along with Fone Logistics and EBS we are the only independent distributor left in the market. With the growth we are experiencing at the moment we want to look for investors with the right expertise to help take it forward. MoCo said it signed more than 60000 connections and upgrades in 2006 of which more than 60 per cent were to business customers.