Telstra Readies for 3G

Australia : Telstra today announced its 3GSM network and customer service platforms were now operational in six mainland capital cities and that it would commence an internal trial in July to ensure customers received high standards of service when Telstra's 3GSM services are launched.

The trial, involving employees from across the company, will enable Telstra to fine-tune a variety of customer services prior to launch including voice calling, video calling and new content applications.

Telstra Wireless and Mobility Managing Director, Ms Holly Kramer, said testing of the joint 3GSM radio network in Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Perth and Canberra had already ensured full service operation between Telstra's 3GSM and 2GSM networks.

She said being operationally ready on 1 July 2005 was an important milestone.

"We committed to being network ready by July 2005 and we have delivered an operating 3GSM network, integrated with our own customer support platforms, in world's best practice time," Ms Kramer said.

"Having a stable and optimised network is a significant benefit for Telstra as we now enter the final phase of 3GSM launch preparations.

"Our 3GSM trial will ensure we have a highly reliable service, with features and content that competitors will struggle to match. We believe that with the right preparation, Telstra will be the premium provider of 3G services in Australia."

Telstra will use the trial to develop an even greater insight into the customer's 3GSM user experience and gain detailed feedback on how services will operate between different networks and on coverage expectations.

A targeted list of trialists has been selected to represent different market segments and will test Telstra's 3GSM service in a variety of settings including the home and workplace.

Ms Kramer said that many benefits existed in sharing a well-established 3GSM radio network, continuing Telstra's long history of providing extensive coverage, which was the hallmark of our first and second generation networks.

"More than 40 3GSM base stations have been built in Canberra to provide even more widespread 3GSM coverage. The Canberra base stations complement the more than 2000 base stations already deployed in the five other capital cities as part of the network sharing agreement," Ms Kramer said.

"Telstra will increase its 3GSM coverage footprint in other centres over time and in line with customer demand.

"We will soon be in a position to offer customers a full suite of 3G services following the successful introduction of our Telstra Mobile Broadband service on 1xRTT EVDO technology, which was launched last year. It is currently available in selected metropolitan and major regional areas."

Telstra's 3GSM internal trial commences on Monday, 4 July 2005.