Hugh Symons asked to Carphone ball

The Carphone Warehouse has opened the doors of its big Christmas bash to Hugh Symons dealers.

Hugh Symons? top dealers on its Unity dealer scheme have been invited to Carphone?s fancy-dress Christmas ball which is usually for Carphone employees only. The balls has an Asian theme this year and dealers have been asked to get in costume ? sumo wrestlers geisha girls and samurai warriors ? for the event.

Hugh Symons business manager Bob Sweetlove said: It is the least we can do to offer them the chance to come to one of the biggest nights of the mobile calendar. This is yet another example of Hugh Symons delivering exclusive benefits to the best independent dealers in the UK.

3 offers full-fat Internet

From next month 3 users in the UK will be able to use their mobile phones to make unlimited VoIP calls watch television and access their home PCs.

3 parent company Hutchison Whampoa launched a new mobile Internet service last week called the X-Series with internet brands Sling Media Orb and Google. The X-Series also builds on global deals with Skype Yahoo! and Microsoft.

The X-Series will be priced at a flat rate subject to fair usage on top of users regular airtime subscriptions. The basic package will cost around 10 with a higher bandwidth package of around 15 for those who opt in to the Sling and Orb services. Pricing will be confirmed ahead of launch.

X-Series customers will be able to make and receive unlimited Skype calls with Skype PC users around the world and to any other Skype 3 mobile customer. Skype to Skype calls will be free.

Customers that purchase a Slingbox which plugs into the back of a television will be able to watch their home television from their mobiles including all terrestrial Freeview cable and satellite channels. They will also be able to record pause and playback live television shows. 3 did not provide a price for the Slingbox hardware.

Users can also access all types of content stored on their PC at home on their mobile through the new Orb interface.

Access fees include unlimited Skype chat and search services There will initially be an additional access fee for customers who opt in to higher-bandwidth services like Sling and Orb.

The services will be compatible with the Nokia N73 and the Sony Ericsson W950i at launch.

Hutchison Whampoa managing director Canning Fok said: This is the Internet as it was meant to be and what people have been waiting for. Mobile broadband is the natural next step for mobile services extending the full power of the Internet to mobile handsets. By partnering with the leaders of the Internet and the leading handset makers the X-Series from 3 will give everyone access to more of what they want when they want it and however much of it they want all free when they use it.

The X-Series will launch in 3 s other markets early next year.

Fone Logistics stops connecting Voda early

From midnight on November 24 dealers will no longer be able to connect customers to Vodafone via Fone Logistics.

In practice Fone Logistics is able to connect upgrade and port Vodafone customers until February 8 when the 90-day notice period handed it by Vodafone ends. But it is unable to offer commissions packages to dealers to back up business and has therefore pulled the plug ahead of time.

Fone Logistics has told dealers that it will process and pay dealers commissions on Vodafone connections until November 24. It also stated that it will deal with existing Vodafone service queries and that it will accept unused SIMs back from dealers for a full credit.

Fone Logistics has connected Vodafone airtime contracts since 1998.

Sony and former Philips Unit to co-operate in mobile payments development

NXP Semiconductors has signed a memorandum of understanding with Sony to begin a contactless smartcard venture. According to press agency reports the company formerly known as Philips Semiconductors said the aim of the venture is to create a universal integrated circuit platform for mobile phones to enable functions such as mobile ticketing and payment.
The joint venture hopes to bring a product to market by mid 2007.

T-Mobile unveils third Sidekick

T-Mobile launches its latest Sidekick handset to the channel next month.

The Sidekick 3 which has been endorsed in the US by celebrities Paris Hilton and Hilary Duff launches some time in December and is exclusive to T-Mobile. Price will depend on tariffs.

The Sidekick 3 is the latest in T-Mobiles Web n Walk range and includes a QWERT keyboard a 1.3 megapixel camera 64MB of internal memory and an external MiniSD card slot.

T-Mobile UK marketing director Phil Chapman said: The Sidekick brand has been hugely successful in the US and T-Mobile is delighted to be the first and only company to offer the Sidekick 3 in the UK.

T-Mobile said that so far the Sidekick 3 has no UK celebrity endorsements.

HMRC in huge Virgini VAT swoop

Four men were sentenced to a total of 57 years in jail at Canterbury Crown Court last week for a 10 million carousel fraud.

HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) paid Virgini registered in Scotland VAT repayments of 7 million between July 2003 and October 2003 based on the purchase of mobile phones that Virgini claimed it exported to Kiev in the Ukraine. It submitted false VAT returns during the period for a total of 10 million.

Virgini director Durgesh Mehta 51 was jailed last week for 33 years in total. He was sentenced to 10 years imprisonment on one count of cheating the public revenue 15 years imprisonment on three counts of money laundering and eight years imprisonment for conspiracy to transfer criminal property under the Proceeds of Crime Act. All five sentences are to run concurrently.

Gerald Readon from Kent and Matthew Sharman from Essex were alleged to have laundered funds derived from the 10 million VAT fraud through a business bank account of an offshore company controlled by Gerald Readon called Gazelle Corporation.

HMRC investigators from Dover uncovered the fraud in November 2003 when they seized just under a million pounds in cash being delivered to Gerald Reardon and Matthew Sharman.

Readon 55 and Sharman 43 were jailed last week for eight years each for conspiracy to transfer criminal property.

Fraudulent Virgini money was also laundered through the accounts of Fone Connection and Hatherley Enterprises controlled by Peter Ratcliffe from Surrey.

Ratcliffe 54 was also jailed for eight years under the Proceeds of Crime Act for conspiracy to transfer criminal property.

3 lines up lookers for Christmas

3 has announced the launch of six handsets for the run up to Christmas.

The additions boost 3s handset range to 30 and include the Sony Ericsson W950i and K610i the Nokia 6288 the Motorola V3xx the Chocolate U830 and U310 from LG.

The W950i Walkman phone is the cream of the crop with the ability to store 4000 songs. It also features music recognition software and one-touch walkman activation.

For the fashion conscious the first choice is more likely to be the Chocolate U830 3G available in luxurious piano black or the 17mm slim Sony Ericsson.

3UK sales director Marc Allera said: There is something for everyone in 3s sack this Christmas.

Avenir looks for diamond geezers

Avenir Telecom has joined forces with Vodafone to launch its Diamond Dinner incentive to reward its highest performing dealers.

The top two dealers who exceed their sales targets for Vodafone tariffs will each take home a diamond worth 5000 from the black tie dinner event.

Avenir and Vodafone will invite the top ten dealers to the dinner to be held at a luxury hotel in February of next year. The successful dealers will also be rewarded with overnight accommodation a champagne reception a three-course dinner and drinks.

Tanny Price MD at Avenir said: Through our progressive and long-term relationship with Vodafone we are able to offer a fantastic range of packages that are attractive to SMEs and small businesses.

It is a great way to encourage our dealers who are focusing on B2B connections and to celebrate alongside those who really excel in their achievements says Rob Sandford head of indirect business at Vodafone.

Vodafone announces broadband offering

Vodafone will launch a new premium broadband service on 8th January 2007 for customers on its consumer contracts.

Vodafone at Home will cost 25 per month and will include line rental free landline calls and unlimited broadband.

However the terms and conditions reveal that the service is only available to customers on Vodafone consumer contracts for 25 per month the price is based on an18 month broadband contract separate to the consumer?s mobile contract and unlimited broadband is subject to fair usage.

It is also offering customers half price Vodafone Mobile Connect USB Modem so they can connect to its 3G broadband network from their laptop whilst on the move.

Tim Yates Director of Vodafone UKs Consumer Business Unit said: Vodafone at home will provide nationwide broadband coverage from day one as well as offering the flexibility and convenience of going wireless at home and being able to access the Internet on laptops when out of the home.

The service will only available to Vodafone consumer contract customers.

Andy Bord Head of Convergence at Vodafone UK said: We are only offering it to customers on consumer contracts at the moment to ensure that we can keep up with demand we expect it to be a really popular service we are committed to getting the customer service spot on with free 24 hour UK based call centre to support customers.

Shebang goes up against Vanilla

Daventry-based Shebang Distribution has launched a new web fulfilment service called Sellfone Web 3G to the dealer channel.

The service an Internet version of its Sellfone 3G EPOS system includes three fulfilment solutions.
Total Web offers dealers a fully-managed web sales service much like The Carphone Warehouses Vanilla service and Dextras Actiweb. All stock credit checks and product dispatches are managed by Shebang while the customer controls the offers on the site.

Shebang managing director Iain Humphrey said the new service differs from other solutions on the market because it manages all aspects of the sales process and offers dealers full network commissions for contract connections.

Shebang has also launched Your Web which lets dealers connect customers through the networks directly or through other distributors and to source their own stock.

The third solution Data Web lets dealers insert a data link on their web sites to any Shebang product line.
Shebang has signed big distribution contracts in recent weeks. JAG Communications has handed stock dispatch duties for all its 84 stores to Shebang. It has also struck a deal with retailer John Lewis to sell accessories in its department stores.