The network is offering a single flat-rate charge for both voice calls (15p on-net and 35p cross-net) and messaging (10p per SMS 30p per MMS and 50p per video message).

Access to Orange World Extra costs 1 per megabyte of data while TV subscription costs 10 for up to 20 hours usage per month.

Oranges TRY preview service also applies to pre-pay services for a limited period.

Orange is offering seven pre-pay 3G handsets. The Nokia 6680 is available at 269.99; Nokia 6630 at 159.99; Sony Ericsson K600i at 189.99; Samsung Z500 at 239.99; Samsung Z107 at 99.99; Sanyo S750i at 99.99 and Sanyo S750 at 79.99.

It produces and packages streaming news and entertainment content for the major 3G mobile phone operators – 3 O2 and Vodafone – and for the MobiTV channel on Orange.

ITN Multimedia fought off international competition to take first place. Other finalists in the category included Bharti Airtel Turkcell Ringback and ntl On Demand.

The judges commendation said: News is a logical content for 3G and ITN has surely worked out how to deliver it. ITN has not stuck to the television formula of accessible journalism but has extended its brand into entertainment news business news and youth-focused bulletins.

Nicholas Wheeler managing director of ITN Multimedia said: This justifies the commitment ITN has shown to pioneering the new medium. We have a fantastic team of hard-working resourceful journalists who have genuinely created something fresh and new.

This is going to be a great 12 months for 3G.

The company released a pre-close statement last week that revised previous forecasts on service revenue growth.

Underlying service revenue growth for the half-year was around 11 per cent. As a result O2 said it expected to see a rise in UK service revenue growth of between six per cent and nine per cent for the full year.

The network put the growth down to tighter control on customer churn coupled with strong customer acquisition. In a statement O2 said that it had managed a net increase in customers of 400000. Around 45 per cent of those new customers are contract subscribers.

O2 chief executive Peter Erskine commented: O2 UK continues to perform well in a highly competitive market with our active base growing to more than 15 million customers. The customer retention programmes put in place at the start of the year are continuing to deliver improving churn metrics.

However for all the earnings gains earnings before interest tax depreciation and amortisation will remain flat compared to the same period last year on a like-for-like basis.

The company said that capital expenditure for the year had increased by 100 million to 15 billion. However this increase will be primarily sunk into Airwave O2s emergency services network.

More details of first-half trading will be announced by the network next month.

Fans of the band can dial 62003 from any 3G mobile handset to access the portal which contains video clips of their latest single Push The Button and video mail greetings from the band. According to Voxsurf Islands technology partner in the campaign it is the first music label to offer this service to fans.

Content is accessed by making a video call through the shortcode. Users are then presented with a menu of video mail recordings and video clips.

Sugababes are the first act to set up this new marketing channel putting interactive personal content in the palm of their fans hands said Island Records new media manager Glenn Cooper.

A Warrant for Execution of Judgment has been ordered against the company. Clark White Publications has also issued a County Court summons against Otter Telecom another of Barkers companies also for non-payment of advertising bills.

Celltalk chairman Derek Joseph told shareholders at an AGM last week that the company fell short of sales targets during the first four months of the financial year and expected to report losses for the six months to September 30.

Celltalk refused to comment this week on its results or its cost-cutting plans.

Joseph put the companys poor performance down to the late running of a cost-saving IT project the cost of setting up a call centre in South Africa and a shortfall in sales.

Joseph said: These issues are being addressed and significant reductions in the UK cost base are being implemented. We hope that these factors will achieve a better trading position for the second half of the year although the company expects to report substantial losses for the full year.

Celltalk went into administration in 2001. It escaped a Company Voluntary Arrangement by paying creditors 350000 and then made a profit of 632000 in the first half of 2004.

Dealers will be awarded points redeemable as prizes for each new connection on any network. The promotion runs available across all five networks. Some networks are considering awarding points for upgrades as well as new connections.

We will still award dealers with CDs and DVDs. So even smaller dealers can take part and get rewards. Everyones a winner. We are still negotiating some of the prizes though. We want exclusive prizes like designer jewellery from companies like Cartier and Tag Heuer and top-end home entertainment equipment from the likes of Bose and Bang & Olufsen.

The total cost of the scheme across the quarter is estimated at between 70000 and 90000 depending on the volume of connections and the focus of the networks.

Orange is jettisoning its wise man and returning to its original 1994 The Futures Bright slogan for a new 13 million ad campaign.

The network is attempting to reverse a fall-off in consumer loyalty. The new campaign which airs on September 19. Head of brand and advertising Kristof Fahy said:We hope that the campaign will re-ignite the optimism that people feel for the Orange brand. British consumers now care less about their mobile operator than their margarine brand. We need to restate Oranges optimistic view of the future.

The two ads are adapted from true stories and are set respectively in New York and Rio de Janeiro. The New York advert tells of a citywide blackout. The Rio advert is about a street cleaner whose reputation for spontaneous dancing is spread via MMS and made him a star. Orange insisted that it was not simply revisiting past glories.

See Comment p18

Dutch operator KPN confirmed last week that it held discussions with Deutsche Telekom about the joint-acquisition of O2. The deal originally mooted by Deutsche Telekom would have seen it acquire a controlling stake in O2 UK and Ireland while KPN took charge of O2 Germany. However both companies said that preliminary talks had been abandoned.

An O2 spokesman said: At no point have they contacted O2 or our advisers. (CEO) Peter Erskine went on record as saying that O2 has held no discussions with any other company since the talks with KPN in February 2004.

We believe we have a credible organic growth structure that will deliver more value to the shareholders. There is still plenty of growth within O2.

Reports in the press had claimed that a takeover offer of 14 billion which valued O2 at 160p per share was discussed by Deutsche Telekom and KPN.

See Business Watch page 14

Haddow will take up a new role as business development director for Harlow-based games console and software distribution company Gem Distribution.

I am leaving after five-and-a-half wonderful years he said. The reason is quite simply down to my personal ambitions and my family. Nokia is a fantastic company to work for but I was doing an awful lot of travel as part of my job.

Ive been in the role for a year-and-a-half but with two young children I felt the time was right to find something UK-based. At the same time it was important for me to find something challenging and my new role will certainly be that.

Haddow joined Nokia in 2000 as business development manager. He was then promoted to head of product marketing. A further step up the corporate ladder saw him promoted to his current position.

But Haddow said that even in his new role he will still have ties with Nokia. Gem is one of the UK hardware and games software distributors for the Nokia N-Gage so Ill still be keeping in touch with some of my old colleagues.

Haddow is working out his notice until September 9.

Hoyle quit in June after fours years with the network. After 10 weeks gardening leave he was able to take up his new position at LG earlier this month.

Id already heard about LG the clincher was John Barton coming on board. Hes someone with a great reputation in the industry and I was keen to work with him he said.

Hoyle who has also spent stints working for Orange DVH Distribution and TCL added: The key attraction to joining LG is that it is the last manufacturer to make real inroads in the UK. My role will be to build up the portfolio within O2 and build up the sales that we have.

Barton said that Hoyles joining was a real coup. We are obviously pleased to have Chris joining the team. He brings with him a wealth of experience gained on the operator side with both T-Mobile and Orange and a full understanding of the competitive nature of the handset business. He will prove to be a real asset to the expanding LG Mobile team.