Update on GSMA Activities & Material Decisions of Key Working Groups of GSMA Since October 2006 MEHBOOB CHOWDHURY

Chairman GSM Asia Pacific (GSMAP)

October 2006

GSMA Announces Shortlist for the First Asia Mobile Innovation Awards



Asia Mobile Innovation Awards

is a competition for young, small and start up companies across Asia that are developing technologies, applications and compelling content for the fast moving mobile space   The six short-listed companies have been selected from more than 70 entries Each category has three nominations:    

Category 1 Innovative Mobile Application or Content

GSTL (India) for Geneva NDIS - a disaster information dissemination system N2N Consulting for M-Bit Network - supports mobile media applications Microimage Ltd for localized messaging and content browsing    

Category 2 Innovative Technology Development

Open-Plug for ELIPS - claims to be the first open software framework designed for mobile phones Radius ED for Global 1 Number - a simple universal short code that lets mobile users access information from anywhere in the world Dialog-UOM Lab & Microimage for GSM Devices for Early Warning (DEWN)

October 2006

GSMA's Hubbing Program to Streamline Global Delivery of SMS Messages

 Exchanging text messages across the world's 700 GSM networks will become a reality following the successful completion of the second phase of the GSM Association's trials of a

hub-based interoperability structure.

    First unveiled in February 2006 The new hub-based structure will deliver major efficiencies to mobile operators by removing the need of bilateral inter-working agreements Operators will only have to connect once to a hub to reach all the other networks connected to that hub The second phase of the hubbing trial began in early September and involved 26 operators in more than 20 countries, spanning four continents

“ We are confident that the system will deliver significant commercial and technical benefits for the operator community, and improved service levels for their customers.

” Alex Sinclair Chief Technology Officer, GSMA

October 2006

Instant Messages to Travel Across Asian Mobile Networks

 Mobile operators in Asia plan to enable their customers to exchange instant messages (IM) with friends across different networks as part of the global

personal IM campaign

run by the GSM Association    Operators in Malaysia, Singapore and India are planning to launch or develop the interoperable IM services in 2007 These IM services will be based on a technical and commercial framework designed by the GSMA to maximize ease-of-use, interoperability and reliability To help operators quickly roll out IM services, the GSMA has developed managed services guidelines

“ By enabling a rapid-fire text-based dialogue, soon to be enriched with pictures, music and even video, IM is further extending the array of communications options open to mobile phone users.

” Rob Conway Chief Executive Officer, GSMA

October 2006

Mobile Broadband to Become a Standard Feature in Notebook Computers



High-speed mobile broadband connectivity

initiative powered by HSDPA - will soon become a standard feature of notebook PCs following the publication of guidelines, developed by a GSM Association-led    The initiative prescribes a common approach for PC manufacturers to

fully integrate 3G functionality

in their product ranges.

  The comprehensive guidelines cover the essential elements of 3G integration from the functionality and features to security aspects, compliance and testing These detailed guidelines also address the issue of the physical location of the 3G modem and the SIM that will enable automatic connection to global mobile networks.

At the 3GSM World Congress earlier in 2006, the GSMA and Intel announced an initiative to facilitate and drive the adoption of the GSM family of technologies in notebooks.

The implementation of the guidelines will bring the full power of the GSM family of technologies to notebook users, including GSM, GPRS, EDGE, W-CDMA and HSDPA.

October 2006

Bangladeshi Operator, GSMA and Entrepreneurs Team up to Bring Villages Online

  GrameenPhone (GP) rolled out

Community Information Centers

across rural Bangladesh, letting 20 million people use the Internet for the first time.

Following a successful pilot conducted with the

GSM Association's Development Fund

, GP teamed up with local entrepreneurs to set up approximately 500 centers in communities throughout the country by 2006.

  Each center contains personal computers connected to GrameenPhone's existing GSM/EDGE mobile network.

 The centers are located in each upazilla, or sub-district, of Bangladesh so that they are each within reach of up to 15 villages containing up to 40,000 people.

Through the Development Fund, GSMA is encouraging other operators to follow GP's lead and rollout similar services offering shared access to the Internet   The computers in the 16 centers in the pilot are used by an average of 30 people a day, who pay a small fee to access email or Web pages.

The centers are used for a wide variety of business and personal purposes, from accessing health and agricultural information to using government services to video conferencing with relatives overseas

October 2006

Mobile Phones Could Become Key Weapon in War on HIV/AIDS and Avian Flu

 The GSM Association's Development Fund and Voxiva, Inc. have joined forces to develop

a mobile phone application

HIV/AIDS, Avian Flu and other diseases that will make it much easier for health authorities and governments to track and manage the spread of    Health workers in the field can use the mobile phone software to submit critical data to central health authorities in real-time The system also supports

two-way communications

, allowing health workers in the field to receive quicker feedback on laboratory results, treatment guidelines or possible quarantine requirements.

The GSMA and Voxiva are running pilot projects in Rwanda, which has a high incidence of HIV/AIDS, and in Indonesia where Avian Flu is a major threat.

“ This technology is revolutionizing how data is captured in the field.

” Dr. Louis Munyakazi Director General Rwanda National Institute of Statistics (NISR)

November 2006

Sundance Institute Announces Pilot with GSMA, to Create Short Films “ Cell phones are fast becoming the 'fourth screen' medium, after television, cinema and computers.

” Robert Redford President and Founder, Sundance Institute

 Sundance Institute, a champion for independent filmmakers for over 25 years, joined forces with the GSM Association to create the Sundance Film Festival:

Global Short Film Project

worldwide.

, a groundbreaking pilot project that will showcase and extend the reach of the independent short film genre to mobile users    This pilot project is believed to be the first to commission high caliber independent filmmakers to create original stories specifically for the mobile environment.

The project presents creative challenges to the filmmakers who will be working with a limited budget, time and resources to make a 3-5 minute film for a small mobile screen Six independent filmmakers would create five short films, crafted exclusively for mobile distribution

November 2006

GSMA Study Revealed Strong Global Demand for MMS and Mobile Email



Multimedia messaging (MMS) has become a popular service

among mobile phone users worldwide and mobile email may have even greater potential, according to a major survey commissioned by the GSM Association and surveyed by Circle Research among the consumers in Europe, North America and Asia   More than 40% consumers surveyed regarded MMS as an indispensable service, while 38% see mobile email in the same light.

 Mobile email has become an increasingly popular service among business people, in particular.

 MMS has been gaining in popularity as handset displays have improved and mobile operators have signed interoperability agreements enabling the exchange of messages across networks The survey uncovered some significant regional differences. North American respondents ranked mobile email as the service they most prefer, while, in Europe and Asia, text-messaging scored highest, followed by mobile email and MMS

December 2006

GSMA called on Standards Bodies to Follow ETSI's Lead on IPR

 The GSM Association called on standards bodies to follow the lead of ETSI (European Telecommunications Standards Institute) and take steps to improve the

transparency around intellectual property rights (IPR)

related to new technology standards

“ As the underlying technologies in mobile telecommunications become more intricate, excessive cumulative license fees for the use of intellectual property will slow, or even prevent, the adoption of new technologies among the operators. The changes announced by ETSI will reduce that danger.

” Alex Sinclair Chief Technology Officer, GSMA

   Following input from the GSMA and other stakeholders, ETSI is making several changes to its policy and procedures to reduce the uncertainty surrounding intellectual property rights (IPR).

ETSI is improving the transparency of patents declared by IPR holders to ETSI as being essential to a standard and is streamlining the declaration process.

ETSI is introducing safeguards that will enable IPR holders to voluntarily declare the terms and conditions attached to their IPR ahead of the standardization of a new technology

January 2007

GSM Association Announced 2007 Global Mobile Awards Nominations

 Now in its 12th year, the Global Mobile Awards program continues to grow with the industry that it represents. Each year the number of submissions increases, and this year was no exception,

with a remarkable 20 per cent more entries than 2006.

  Each entry has been evaluated by the independent judging panel of globally based wireless analysts, journalists, academics and subject experts – all industry professionals with in-depth knowledge of the mobile industry and its applications and influences on today’s world.

The Award winners would be announced at the world’s largest mobile industry event, the 3GSM World Congress in Barcelona

“ The standard and support for these Awards continues to rise, once again exceeding our expectations and reflecting the ability of the mobile and entertainment industries to not only impress but to genuinely surprise.

” Rob Conway Chief Executive Officer, GSMA

January 2007

Bollywood Movies Go Mobile With GSMA, Roamware & Hungama Mobile Initiative “ We are very excited by Roamware and Hungama Mobiles' commitment to bring the spectacle of Bollywood to mobile phones.

” Craig Ehrlich Chairman, GSM Association

 Bollywood is going mobile in a big way. Roamware and Hungama Mobile, have joined forces with the GSM Association (GSMA) to announce the launch of a

'Mobile Bollywood Initiative'

to create short movies tailored for mobile devices, taking the world's largest film industry onto mobile devices   GSMA, Hungama Mobile and Roamware have teamed up with leading Bollywood film maker, Sanjay Gupta, to premiere three Bollywood short movies for the mobile medium.

Bollywood today is the world's largest movie industry, producing more than 1,000 movies a year with an audience of more than 2 billion viewers across 127 countries

February 2007

ITU and GSMA Join Forces to Boost Mobile Access in Developing Countries

 ITU and the GSM Association agreed to strengthen cooperation towards improved access to mobile phone services aimed especially at

bridging the digital divide

in least developed and developing countries.

“ I am very pleased to announce this agreement with the GSM Association and I look forward to the collaboration in developing wireless access to connect the unconnected.

” Hamadoun Touré Secretary General, ITU

  A Memorandum of Understanding was concluded focusing on fostering the development of information and communication technology (ICT) infrastructure in least developed and developing countries.

ITU and the GSM Association will focus on three specific issues:  Supporting Developing Market Projects for low cost access to ICT in underserved areas   Industry & Government Cooperation Global industry benchmarking

February 2007

GSMA Honors Indian Government for Achievements in Mobile Communications

  GSMA presented its Government Leadership Award 2007 to India for exceptional achievement in the field of mobile communications policy.

India has been selected because of its

success in establishing a framework of policies and regulations

, which have enabled and stimulated the growth of mobile telecommunications over the past three years.

 The Indian Government's policies have not only helped revive, but also stimulate the country's mobile industry. The Government has transformed the policy and regulatory environment by:  Relaxing rules on foreign direct investment (FDI)        Reducing the access deficit charges payable by mobile operators to the fixed line incumbents Liberalizing the domestic and international long distance markets Facilitating the sharing of network infrastructure Simplifying and speeding the planning procedures for new cell sites Increasing the amount of commercially available spectrum and Securing spectrum for 3G in the IMT-2000 core band Stimulating telecommunications equipment manufacturing

“ Without a doubt, the digital divide in India is narrower today than ever and this is due in great part to the foresight and vision of the Indian government.

” Rob Conway Chief Executive Officer, GSMA

February 2007

Phones For Health

 Phones for Health is a cutting-edge $10 million public-private partnership working in close collaboration to use the widespread and increasing mobile phone coverage in the developing world

to strengthen health systems

    The Phones for Health partners are - the GSMA’s Development Fund, the U.S. President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, Accenture Development Partnerships, Motorola, MTN and Voxiva Phones for Health will allow health workers in the field to use a standard Motorola handset equipped with a downloadable application to enter health data.

  Once entered, the data is transferred via a packet based mobile connection (GPRS) into a central database.

If GPRS isn't available, the software can use a SMS data channel to transmit the information.

Data is mapped and analyzed by the system, and is immediately available to health authorities at multiple levels via the web.

The system also supports SMS alerting and other tools for communication with field staff.

“ The Phone-for-Health Partnership is at once an acknowledgement of the strength and depth of mobile communications in emerging markets, as well as the push to use technology to help solve the serious health problems prevalent across the globe.

” Phuthuma Nhleko MTN Group President and CEO

February 2007

GSM Association Announced 2007 Global Mobile Awards Winners

 The 12th Annual GSM Association

Global Mobile Awards

were announced at a spectacular event that showcased the best of the mobile world.

  The two-phase evaluation and judging process were carried out by some of focus on the mobile industry the most distinguished, independent journalists, analysts and academics that The evaluation proved that the bar is being raised ever higher in terms of competition and differentiation.

“ Innovation is the life blood of any industry, and even more so for mobile. Thus we must continue to identify, support and recognize the mobile innovators.

” Rob Conway Chief Executive Officer, GSMA

February 2007

GSMA Chairman's Award 2007 Presented to Dr. Mohamed Ibrahim “ This is a man who is in many ways the founding father of African mobile communications, a visionary wireless technician and mobile businessman, whose commitment to both the industry and the continent has helped the world to hear Africa's voice.

” Craig Ehrlich Chairman, GSM Association

 The GSMA Chairman's Award was presented to

Dr Mohamed 'Mo' Ibrahim

, a remarkably successful mobile entrepreneur, a pioneer of technical achievement and a driving force in the industry's efforts to connect the unconnected of Africa.

     Dr Ibrahim is the founder and chairman of Celtel International, which operates in 15 African countries.

He is a technical innovator who joined the industry 22 years ago at the launch of the world's first mobile network.

With more than 60% growth per year, Celtel today has more than 17 million users, and is licensed to serve more than one half of the continent's population.

In October 2006, the Mo Ibrahim Foundation was launched, with backing from world leaders including Nelson Mandela, Kofi Annan, Bill Clinton and Tony Blair.

The Foundation is a radical new initiative to promote and recognize good governance and leadership in Africa

February 2007

GSMA Study Shows Lowering Mobile Taxes Boosts Usage and Fuels Growth

 Usage of mobile communications is a powerful economic growth engine, which governments can fuel by lowering taxes on mobile services and handsets, according to a new study undertaken by Deloitte for the GSM Association.

“ The impact that mobile phones have on the developing world is as revolutionary as roads, railways and ports, increasing social cohesion and releasing the entrepreneurial spirit that stimulates trade and creates jobs.

” Leonard Waverman Professor, London Business School

   In a developing country, an increase of 10 percentage points in mobile penetration will lift that country's annual economic growth rate by 1.2 percentage points Despite the evident economic and social benefits of mobile communications, 16 of the 101 countries analyzed in the study tax mobile services or handsets as if they are luxury goods rather than a vital means of communications In many cases, cutting taxes on mobile services will lead to an increase in overall tax revenues in the medium term because of the positive impact on the economy

March 2007

CSDC & GSMA Team Up To Boost Telecoms Training In Bangladesh

  Chittagong Skills Development Centre (CSDC) and the Development Fund of the GSMA, have formed a partnership to promote telecom skills development in Bangladesh.

CSDC's members include the mobile operators Aktel and GrameenPhone and equipment vendors Alcatel-Lucent, Ericsson, Huawei, Siemens and ZTE.

   The Development Fund and the CSDC signed an Agreement to develop the technical and marketing competencies of Bangladesh's rapidly growing telecom workforce.

The CSDC and the GSMA will work together to adapt and deploy international telecommunications training, best practices and knowledge to produce a highly skilled, Bangladeshi workforce, able to keep pace with the rapid market growth, as well as technology and product innovation.

The Agreement will also help develop a local pool of skilled trainers, equipped with the necessary teaching and learning methodologies to develop and deliver programs to the expanding workforce

“ Our long-term objective is to cultivate an indigenous knowledge requirements.

base ” that enhances employment opportunities and meets the telecoms sector's skill Ben Soppitt Director, GSMA’s Development Fund

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