The health and safety of our customers is paramount. Promoting the safe and responsible use of GSM equipment by customers and operators is fundamental to our core aims and objectives in the future.

We are supporting independent and objective research under the auspices of independent internationally respected bodies such as the World Health Organisation.

We will continue to promote the safe and courteous use of GSM equipment by customers as well as responsible integration of GSM equipment into the environment. We are also coordinating the supply of information concerning health and safety matters with and between the Associations members.

Stocks is currently general manager for Legal and Regulatory Affairs with MTN. His involvement in the Association has included work on a number of Ad-Hoc Committees and membership of the Legal and Regulatory Working Group.

He has been secretary deputy chairman and chairman of the Central and Southern African Interest Group and deputy chairman of the Association for 1998/1999.

Stocks said that under his chairmanship.spearheading the Association would continue to develop the GSM standard as the best technology option and leading system for evolved Second and Third Generation services.

The GSM Association will continue to specify and drive our members needs with regard to both current Second and Third Generation standardisation development regulation and spectrum allocation Stocks announced.

He said that the Association will step up its role in leading the world-wide promotion of GSMs roaming capabilities.

Key to this is the push to enable development of tri-band phones and their free movement around the world. We also aim to continually extend and improve the range of roaming features and services opening up new and emerging GSM markets as we go. The introduction of the Voluntary Certification Scheme for GSM handsets ensuring high technical quality levels will be a major factor for continued customer confidence and GSM success.

High on the Associations agenda is also the promotion and universal adoption of the GSM world standard the TAP3 standard for the transfer of billing information for early 3rd Generation services; such as General Packet Switched Radio.

The Association is also taking a leading role in the technical accomplishment of inter-standard roaming and the elimination of fraud within the GSM roaming environment.

Stocks also states that a wide range of communications methods are vital to ensuring effective operational and promotional communications.

Among these will be the ongoing development and modification of internal member communications via the internet.

We also see the maintenance of regular and direct dialogue with a broad range of relevant external organisations to further the aims of the Association and its objectives as a vital ingredient he said. As of course is communicating effectively with our public.

The announcement in 1998 to establish an Associate Membership Category for suppliers is considered essential for the success of the Associations mission and objectives. The Association is already talking with a broad range of manufacturers and suppliers to bring this about in the short term.

The establishment of Associate Membership crystalizes much of the joint effort through cooperation between suppliers and our members that has existed at working group level for some time. The formalisation of this category will create a more dynamic environment for on going evolution from Second to Third Generation GSM services to the ultimate benefit of our customers.

The exchange and sharing of network operator experiences of GSM data and text services is also an area on which the Association is focused. The recent formation of a Data Task Force is designed to push the development of data standards to promote interoperability and better customer experience in the non-voice GSM world and to promote data roaming.

New Wave will be in charge of delivering around 20000 phones a month. The company will also store SIM cards and be responsible for assembling the boxed units ready for sale.

The organisation will use electronic serial number scanning to provide an audit trail for each phone including details of which customer has got each card and phone

Before winning the contract from Samsung New Wave Logistics had to pass stringent security checks by Vodafone.

This new operation involves a great deal more than straightforward storage and distribution. With such small but high value product security is paramount said Samsung logistics manager Kevin Grubb.

New Wave Logistics also distributes other Samsung products such as fixed phones fax machines computer monitors printers TVs and domestic appliances to around 800 outlets.

The stipulation is being made on an Oftel consultation document which contains Oftels proposals that if Vodafone BTCellnet Orange or One 2 One want to bid for a third generation licence they must accept a condition which would allow users of a new network to roam onto their own system.

The right to roam will be limited to the time it takes for the new entrant to build its network and will only be granted after the new entrant has already built much of its own network.

There will be a fifth network operator. However until they have their own network up and running they will be at a disadvantage. That is why the Government has decided they should have the right to use an existing network said Oftel director general David Edmonds.

This is because of the growing convergence of telecoms and computers and the rising number of joint venture partnerships (such as the Symbian Group binding leading handset manufacturers with Psion).

As the number of PCs installed both at home and in the office rises it will spur growth on the market for wireless handheld devices says Frost & Sullivan.

The real struggle in todays marketplace mainly involving the three giants 3Com Microsoft and Symbian is for the dominant operating system rather than hardware market share the consultancy adds.

The merger of Vodafone with AirTouch will create the worlds largest mobile comms company operating through 23 countries with more than 29 million customers.

Vodafone has also received clearance from the European Commission for the merger and has promised to sell its interest German network E-Plus. This is because Air Touch already has a share in rival German operator D2.

Vodafone has emerged as the UKs most-loved company during the first quarter of this year according to the latest PressWatch survey of corporate reputations.

PressWatch is an independent media analysis service that monitors and scores media comment on companies in the UK national press.

The Newbury network came top of the league beating the Prudential Tesco Dixons and BT in the top five places.

For the same period last year Vodafone was in 1443rd place.

Orange was another climber finishing third in the telecoms sector and 16th in the main PressWatch table (See White Lines).

Irish network operator Eircell has also launched a web site selling its Ready To Go pre-pay package off the internet.

The Scottish Telecom site will sell a range of pre-pay phones top-up vouchers pagers and accessories.

It uses an on-line soap opera format based around the diaries of six young fictional characters.

A number of mobile phone retailers already sell their products on the web but we wanted to take the traditional approach one step further and offer a lifestyle solution to our internet marketing said Scottish Telecom internet services director David Furniss.

We want to give our on-line brand some personality while also building brand loyalty.

Visitors can determine plot lines and character developments and can write to the actors.

The battery which comes foil wrapped can be kept in reserve by the user for emergency use.

A look and do addition to the Orange web site will allow customers secure access to their account and the ability to view and pay their bills change tariffs and set diverts send text messages and edit their on-line phone books which can then be transmitted to their phone. Future services will allow customers to download bill information to financial software packages for desktop analysis and top-up their pre-pay.

The cellular market in Europe is maturing rapidly said Giulia Rancati Research Manager for European Wireless and Mobile Communications research.

The increasing shift of voice traffic from fixed networks to cellular networks along with increased revenues generated by data services and value-added services is one of the main reasons behind the growth of the market value.

IDC forecasts that around two per cent of the total GSM subscriber base is currently using data services and this percentage will increase to 12 per cent by the end of the forecast period. The convergence of mobile communication with internet service and the launch of high speed data services such as GPRS in the most developed GSM markets will be the main drivers behind market growth in 2001.

The growth of GSM in all markets of the world continues to rise at a remarkable pace. This is clearly reflected in the latest figures from North America where growth continues to be driven by customer confidence in the superiority of GSM said Michael Stocks new chairman of the GSM Association.

Seventeen GSM network operators in North America now offer commercial services in approximately 3500 cities in 45 U.S. states the District of Columbia and four Canadian provinces.

In the United States seven of the top 10 PCS carriers provide GSM service.

Commercial GSM service soon will be available in the top 10 wireless markets with eight markets already in service. GSM coverage now reaches 176 million of the people in North America – covering more than 52 percent of the Canadian population and nearly 62 percent of the United States population.

GSM networks have installed more than 11500 cell sites.

In comparison it took the entire USA cellular industry 10 years to reach that mark.

The global GSM customer total for early end April 1999 is more than 160 million – equal to 45 percent of the entire world wireless market or 65 percent of the global digital market.

The GSM Association today represents the interests of 347 GSM satellite and network operators regulators and administrative bodies from 133 countries and areas of the world.