At current growth rates China is expected to take the number one position by the middle of next year says the Forum.

The reports estimates the number of subscribers in China to rise to 111 million by the end of this year representing year-on-year growth of some 42 million users.

The Chinese market is certainly awakening says Graham Brown executive partner at Wireless World Forum.

The market far from being saturated – will only just touch nine per cent compared to 50-70 per cent across most of Western Europe.

The introduction of pre-pay lack of fixed-line deployment and massive infrastructure investment by both Chinese and foreign telecommunications companies are all factors conducive to the creation of one of the most important wireless markets in the world within three to five years says Brown.

What China represents is a huge opportunity for mobile data services.

Take SMS for example. In the UK we hit one billion messages last month. Now imagine the potential in a country which is 20 times the size adds Brown.

The Wireless World Forum aims to provide market intelligence for the wireless industry.

It runs a subscription-based membership service offering information for wireless Bluetooth SMS WAP iMode and 3G.

An inquest into the death of Angela Khanna (26) on December 23 last year ascertained she had dropped her phone on to the tracks at Turnham Green station.

Hammersmith Coroners Court heard that she died as a rescue team battled to free her from the weight of the District Line London Underground tube train.

Pathologist Barbara Borek gave the cause of death as severe chest injuries.

Driver John Floyd said he was approaching Turnham Green station at around 35mph. He said he was aware that someone was on the tracks and trying to climb back onto the platform.

I felt that possibly she had gone to retrieve her mobile phone of which part was nearby her and part was on the platform he told the Court.

Floyd slammed on his emergency brakes but the momentum of the train carried it forward and pinned the woman against the platform.

The emergency services were called but Miss Khanna lost consciousness as the train was lifted using air bags to release her body. She was taken to Charing Cross hospital but was pronounced dead on arrival.

The Court heard her Nokia 3210 was about a metre from her body but without its back cover and battery.

Station supervisor Alix Bushness said it looked like she had thrown the Nokia in front of her.

Reporting to fellow American One 2 One MD Harris Jones Richardson will have responsibility for all aspects of sales marketing and customer equipment.

Richardson moves into the spot vacated by commercial director Richard Shearer last year.

Joint administrator Andrew Hosking from HLB Kidsons told Mobile News:

We are very optimistic. A number of major parties are still demanding more information including square footage details for every shop from us but we believe this matter will be concluded by the end of the week.

Hosking confirmed he was looking at a number of options. Some parties are interested only in buying a few of the shops from 10 to 60. We continue to work towards our goal which is the disposal of the business as a going concern.

We have had offers from businesses working across a variety of industries which are interested in The Phone Peoples property portfolio but I would think the chain is likely to remain within the mobile phone industry.

Adds Hosking We have had a lot of good support from Orange One 2 One and Vodafone for which we are grateful. Landlords are continuing to support us the staff has been paid and we continue to trade. So its not a question of our being quietly optimistic we are very optimistic that there will be a sale of either all or a significant part of the companys property portfolio.

We are now looking at making an announcement in a matter of days rather than weeks.

Phone People went into administration last month after an equity-swap deal with Manchester service provider Yes Telecom collapsed.

Yes had tried to keep the company going for a month.

The Help At Hand campaign includes three different 20 television commercials again starring Hamish Clark of Monarch of the Glen TV series.

The commercials promote more services such as Vodafones new Text Directory Enquiry Service which texts numbers into a phones memory and the AA Vodafone Personal Roadwatch.

Gross service revenue for the fourth quarter was $1.1 million. Net revenue including royalty income from phone sales and less discounts and promotions was also $1.1 million. But Globalstar has suspended indefinitely principal and interest payments on all of its funded debt.

The suspension of these payments will reduce the companys payments by approximately $400 million for the year 2001 but has led to some debt default.

According to its fourth quarter financial figures Globalstar recorded a total of 2.6 million minutes of use including both mobile and fixed service.

In the final week of March the company recorded over 394000 minutes of use up 66 per cent over the highest traffic week in 2000. The estimated number of mobile and fixed subscribers at the end of 2000 was 30583. The mobile and fixed subscriber total as of March 18 2001 was 40009. Growth in minutes used is in most geographic areas that have inadequate or non-existent cellular network coverage such as Brazil Canada Russia and Australia.

Vertical industries such as transportation maritime and natural resource exploration represent significant opportunities for us in terms of high-subscriber high-usage customers and we are working with our service providers to redirect efforts and resources towards these potential customers said Tony Navarra president of Globalstar.

The early response we have seen to the introduction of data services has encouraged us to put more focus on this area as well. We also continue to see growing acceptance of our service.

Globalstar is owned by a consortium of telcos and equipment manufacturers including co-founders Loral Qualcomm Incorporated; Alenia; China Telecom; Hyundai and Vodafone Group.

This follows One 2 Ones launch in Northern Ireland last month.

There is just one tariff of 15p a minute for the first five minutes of use each day and 5p a minute after that. There is no line rental no monthly contract and free voicemail.

All calls from a Virgin Mobile phone located anywhere in the UK to any phone in the Republic of Ireland will be charged at a flat rate of 15p a minute at all times.

Virgin Mobiles range of phones and airtime vouchers will be available in both the Belfast and Derry Virgin Megastores and five Our Price stores in Newton Abbey Bangor Newry Craigavon and Belfast. Phones will also be on sale in selected Sainsburys Co-ops and ToysRUs. Virgin Mobiles pre-pay vouchers will be available from those stores as well as more than 80 Post Offices.

The promotion entitled everyone buying a mobile phone on any network in the run up to Christmas to a free Party Anthems CD. At the end of the CD customers learned whether or not they had won. Pouland bought the winning mobile phone and CD from the Arndale Centre store in Manchester.

The Carphone Warehouses new management team introduce themselves to shareholders. OK … were making that bit up. But for those of you who didnt join 4500 people at CPWs Hollywood-themed Ball on October 20 this is the kind of celluloid fantasy you missed.

For its European Trusted Brands Survey 2001 Readers Digest surveyed 17027 people in 18 European countries including Central and Eastern Europe.

Respondents were asked to name their most trusted brands in 18 sectors.

For the mobile phone category Nokia scored 37 per cent share of the UK vote. In joint second place were Orange and Motorola with 12 per cent each. Vodafone and Ericsson were joint third with 10 per cent each.

Around 85 per cent of respondents gave Nokia four or five out of five for quality.

Respondents were drawn from the Readers Digest database of 5.4 million Europeans. A total of 17027 questionnaires were returned with 1024 coming from the UK.

According to the survey the top eight brands in Europe were Nokia (mobile phones) sony (hi fi – and audio) Nivea (cosmetics and skincare) Canon (cameras) Colgate (toothpaste) IBM (computers) Ariel (soap powder) and LOreal (hair care).