Everything about Telenor totally explained
Telenor () is the incumbent
telecommunications company in
Norway, with headquarters located at
Fornebu, close to
Oslo. Today, Telenor is mostly an international
wireless carrier with operations in
Scandinavia,
Eastern Europe and
Asia. It is
currently ranked as the seventh largest carrier in the world, with 143 million subscribers. In addition, it has extensive broadband and TV distribution operations in four
Nordic Countries.
History
Telegrafverket
Telenor started off in 1855 as a state-operated
monopoly, named
Telegrafverket as a provider of
telegraph services. The first ideas for a telegraph were launched within the
Royal Norwegian Navy in 1848, but by 1852 the plans were public and in 1852 the
Parliament of Norway decided on a plan for constructing the telegraph throughout the country. Televerket started by building from
Christiania (now Oslo) to Sweden (Norway was at that time in a
union with Sweden) as well as between Christiania and
Drammen. By 1857 the telegraph had reached
Bergen via
Sørlandet and by 1871 it had reached
Kirkenes. Cable connections were opened to
Denmark in 1867 and to
Great Britain in 1869. The telegraph was most important for the
merchant marine who now could use the electric telegraph to instantly communicate between different locations, and get a whole new advantage within
logistics.
Technology
The first telephone service in Norway was offered in 1878 between
Arendal and
Tvedestrand, while the first international telephone service between Christiania and
Stockholm is offered in 1893. The first automation of a telephone system in introduced in 1920, finished in 1985. In 1946 the first
Telex service is offered, in 1976
satellite telephone connections to
oil platforms in the
North Sea were installed and in 1980 the first steps to
digitalise the telephone network starts.
Televerket opened its first
manual mobile telephone system in 1966, being replaced with the automatic
NMT system in 1981 and the enhanced NMT-900 in 1986. Norway was the first country in
Europe to get an automatic mobile telephone system. The
digital GSM system was taken into use in 1993; the GSM standard developed in Norway by the
Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), but no mobile phone manufacturers emerged in the country. The
third generation of mobile technology with
UMTS system began full operation 2004. The
Opera web browser was created in 1994 by
Jon Stephenson von Tetzchner and
Geir Ivarsøy during their tenure at Telenor.
Opera Software was established in 1995 after the pair went on to continue development of their browser.
Deregulation and internationalisation
The corporation changed its name to
Televerket in 1969. In 1994, the then Norwegian Telecom was established as a
public corporation. The authorities wanted to deregulate the telecom sector in Norway, and sector by sector was deregulated between 1994 to 1998. An attempt to merge Telenor with its counterpart in
Sweden,
Telia, failed in 1999, while both still were owned by their respective governments. On
December 4 2000 the company was partially
privatised and listed on
Oslo Stock Exchange and
NASDAQ. The privatisation gave the company
NOK 15,6 billion in new
capital, the
Government of Norway owning 77.7% of the company after the privatisation. By 2006 the governments ownership has been reduced to 53%.
In the second half of the 1990s, Telenor became involved in mobile operations in a number of countries:
Russia (1994),
Bangladesh,
Greece,
Ireland,
Germany and
Austria (1997),
Ukraine (1998),
Malaysia (1999),
Denmark and
Thailand (2000),
Hungary (2002),
Montenegro (2004),
Pakistan (2004),
Slovakia,
Czech Republic,
Serbia (2006). Operations in Greece, Ireland and Germany were sold in 1999/2000 and profits were re-invested in the emerging markets. In October 2005 Telenor acquired
Vodafone Sweden, changing the name to Telenor in April 2006. On
31 July 2006, Telenor acquired 100 per cent share of mobile operator
Mobi 63, one of two mobile operations existing in that moment in Serbia for
Euro 1.513 billion.
Operations
Telenor offers a full range of telecommunication services in Norway, including mobile and fixed telephony as well as Internet access and content. Telenor still dominates the market place in Norway. However, competition has at times been intense in the mobile market and
ADSL market, but Telenor remains the largest company in both sectors.
Telenor holds a prominent position in the
Scandinavian Broadband and TV market, both with regard to the number of subscribers and to the extent of coverage. The
TV distribution is branded
Canal Digital.
Telenor used to provide a range of services related to satellite communication, including
voice,
television and
data before its
Telenor Satellite Services devision was purchased by
Vizada in 2007.
Telenor Maritime Radio is responsible for the infrastructure for maritime radio communication in Norway, and also includes five manned coast radio stations whose primary purpose is to monitor the maritime radio traffic (over for example
VHF and
MF bands) and to assist marine vessels in distress.
Telenor Cinclus develops and sells products related to
Automatic Meter Reading and other technologies related to machine to machine communication.
Telenor Research and Innovation (Telenor R&I, prior to September 1st 2006 known as Telenor R&D) is Norway's largest research establishment within
Information and Communications Technology (ICT). Telenor R&I has research facilities in
Fornebu,
Trondheim and
Tromsø.
Telenor also owns 51,8% of
EDB Business Partner that offers a wide range of IT-services. The company is listed on
Oslo Stock Exchange.
Telenor has sold a number of divisions after its privatisation, including
Bravida, the former installation division and
Findexa, now part of
Eniro that's responsible for
telephone directorys.
Mobile
At year-end 2005, Telenor held controlling interests in mobile operations in
Norway,
Denmark,
Sweden,
Ukraine,
Hungary,
Montenegro,
Thailand,
Malaysia,
Bangladesh and
Pakistan. Telenor also holds minority interests in mobile operations in
Russia, having recently sold a minority share in
Austria.
In accordance with Telenor's strategy of consolidating its position in international mobile by obtaining control of selected international mobile operations, and in order to maximize the benefit of cross-border synergies and increase overall profitability, Telenor also made new acquisitions in 2005.
In October 2006, Telenor entered into an agreement with
Vodafone Group for the acquisition of subsidiary
Vodafone Sweden for a consideration of NOK 8,170 million, including assumption of debt.
Effective from
26 October 2005, Telenor increased its economic stake in Total Access Communication (
DTAC) in Thailand to 56.9 per cent. Following further transactions based on mandatory tender offers, Telenor's economic stake was raised to 69.3 per cent by year-end 2005.
Telenor's mobile commitments in Asia and Eastern and Central Europe are becoming increasingly important and to ensure optimal follow-up, Telenor has appointed dedicated Executive Vice Presidents for these regions. Telenor has also strengthened the co-ordination of operational and human resources across all the countries in which the group has operations through the appointment of two new Executive Vice Presidents to the Group Executive Management.
During 2005, Telenor successfully extracted a number of cross-border synergies across the group. Common technologies for optimal spectrum and network utilisation have been successfully implemented at each of the group's operations, and Telenor maintains its focus on adopting new technologies to improve service quality and reduce costs.
In order to harmonise the group's customer orientation across all markets, Telenor has developed a common segmentation model that enables more effective targeting, while also providing greater insight into the global markets. Telenor has developed a framework that provides affiliates with a proven concept of developing target segmented offerings and optimised go-to-market strategies.
Revenues from voice services include traffic charges, interconnection fees, and roaming charges. All of Telenor's mobile operations derive the greatest share of their total revenues from voice services, and Telenor continues to focus on developing new products, services and initiatives to increase Telenor's customer base and encourage higher usage.
Fixed-line
In
Norway, Telenor provides communications solutions on a retail basis to both residential and business customers. Offers include analogue (
PSTN) and digital (
ISDN) fixed-line telephony, as well as broadband voice services over Internet Protocol (
VoIP), Internet access via
PSTN/ISDN and digital subscriber lines (
xDSL), value-added services and leased lines. Norway now has one of the highest numbers of DSL lines per capita, currently at over 80% of households and steadily growing.
Through the acquisitions of
Bredbandsbolaget and
Cybercity, made in July 2005 for NOK 4.5 billion and NOK 1.3 billion, respectively, Telenor has gained a strong position in the fast-growing broadband markets in
Sweden and
Denmark. Bredbandsbolaget is Sweden's second largest provider of broadband services, offering full
triple-play with high-speed Internet, VoIP and Internet Protocol (IP) television services on an all-IP fibre and xDSL network.
Cybercity is Denmark's third largest broadband supplier, providing xDSL-based Internet access and voice services to both residential and business customers.
On
8 February 2006, Telenor increased its shareholding in the Swedish residential voice and broadband provider
Glocalnet AB by 13.5 per cent, for a consideration of SEK 136 million (NOK 118 million), to secure a 50.1 per cent ownership interest. The acquisition triggered a mandatory offer for all outstanding shares in
Glocalnet AB. This offer is valid until
21 April 2006. As at
28 March 2006, Telenor holds a 96.6 per cent ownership interest in Glocalnet.
In the fourth quarter of 2005, Telenor disposed of its operations in the
Czech Republic and
Slovakia with a loss of NOK 63 million.
Telenor holds a 20.3 per cent ownership interest in the listed Russian fixed-line operator
Golden Telecom.
Broadcast
Telenor also operates the national terrestrial broadcast network in
Norway,
Norkring. It is also part owner of the company that will build the new digital terrestrial network,
Norges Televisjon and the content provider
RiksTV. Telenor is also the leading provider of satellite broadcasting services in the Nordic region, utilising three
geostationary satellites. Telenor's key objective is to further strengthen Broadcast's position in the Nordic region.
On
2008-02-11 the THOR 5 satellite was launched into geostationary orbit by a
Proton rocket. The launch was provided by
International Launch Services using a
launch vehicle built by
Khrunichev Space Center. Cato Halsaa, CEO of Telenor Satellite Broadcasting, said the launch, "Demonstrates our commitment to the satellite industry and our firm belief that satellites will continue to play an important role as a distribution platform for TV entertainment."
Telenor Broadcast provides TV distribution services to more than three million households and businesses in the Nordic region, offering basic tier, "minipay" and premium pay-TV services to subscribers with Direct To Home (
DTH) satellite dishes. In
Norway and
Sweden, Telenor also offers basic tier TV services, pay-TV and Internet services to cable TV subscribers, and in
Denmark, the same services are marketed through a cable network;
OE Kabel TV, acquired in November 2005. In
Finland, Telenor offers premium pay-TV services to subscribers with access to digital terrestrial television (
DTT). Telenor also offers TV services through privately owned satellite master antenna TV networks (
SMATV), which serve multiple dwellings such as housing associations and antenna unions.
Telenor's wholly owned subsidiary
Canal Digital is the leading TV content distributor in the Nordic region, offering a wide range of national and international TV channels to households that rely on
DTH,
cable,
DTT or
SMATV for their reception of television services.
International activities and markets
Approximately half of Telenor's employees work outside Norway.
Bangladesh
Telenor owns 62% of
GrameenPhone,
Bangladesh's largest mobile telephone company followed by Banglalink. As of January 2008, GrameenPhone has 18 million subscribers.
Denmark
In
Denmark Telenor owns three companies.
Sonofon is Denmark's second largest provider of mobile telephony with 1.5 million subscribers.
Cybercity provides broadband and has 150.000 customers.
Canal Digital is also present in Denmark.
Finland
Telenor's operations in
Finland are fixed datacom and
Canal Digital.
Hungary
Pannon is Telenor's fully owned subsidiary in
Hungary. The company offers mobile telephony, has 3 million subscribers and a marked share of 33%.
Malaysia
DiGi is Malaysia's third largest mobile telephony company, and Telenor owns 49% of the company.
Montenegro
ProMonte is Telenor's subsidiary in
Montenegro and offers mobile telephony.
Pakistan
Telenor Pakistan is a wholly owned subsidiary that started operations on the 15th of March 2005 and holds one of six mobile licences in Pakistan. It's also the fastest growing cellular network of Pakistan. Currently, Telenor holds the second largest GSM and the largest GPRS and EDGE coverage in Pakistan with the recent launch of it's nationwide EDGE-enabled network. It has achieved the second largest retailer network in Pakistan within the 2 years span of its operations and has started operations in Azad Kashmir and other northern areas of Pakistan. Telenor had reached its
breakeven in the first quarter of 2007 and had beaten Pakistan's largest mobile operator
Mobilink in sales. Telenor proactively participated in the earthquake disaster relief, and carried out a campaign for the welfare of flood victims in
Balochistan. The current CEO of Telenor Pakistan is Tore Johnsen.
Russia and CIS
Russia's second largest mobile telephone company is
VimpelCom, which Telenor owns about a third of. VimpelCom also operates in
Kazakhstan,
Tajikistan,
Ukraine,
Uzbekistan and
Georgia. The company is listed on
New York Stock Exchange.
Serbia
Telenor owns 100% of
Telenor Serbia, one of the three mobile vendors in
Serbia and has a customer base of more than 2.9 million.
Sweden
Telenor owns a number of different companies in
Sweden.
Telenor Sverige AB is the result of Telenor's purchase of
Vodafone Sweden in 2005, offering mobile telephone services with a market share of approximately 15%. Telenor also owns
Bredbandsbolaget, Sweden's second largest provider of broadband and the largest provider of
IP telephony.
Canal Digital offers TV distribution as well.
Thailand
Telenor holds an indirect position in
DTAC, a mobile telephony company in
Thailand. DTAC currently has about 14 million users which put DTAC as the second-largest mobile operator in the Thai market.
Probable strategy
The company started commercial operations in
Pakistan on
14 March 2005. It will continue its focus on mobile operations in Scandinavia, Eastern Europe and Asia, become the largest provider of TV and Broadband to customers in Scandinavia, and sell non-core assets outside this scope.
Generally, the company's strong growth has derived from a strategy of mobile communication in low-income, but fast-growing markets. These potentials being fulfilled, new incomes could come from either new market entries, or increased revenues from more services in existing emerging markets, from both mobile and broadband services.
Telenor is currently taking part in a race to acquire a sixth mobile operator in
Vietnam, in competition with other global telco's, among them
Vimpelcom. Telenor announced to the business newsparer
Dagens Naeringsliv last winter that they're looking at possible prospects for mobile operations in
Africa. They applied for a mobile lisence in
Kenya in early 2008, but didn't get that license.
Criticism
Norwegian Internet Exchange
In June 2007
Telenor announced that it would withdraw from the
Norwegian Internet Exchange (NIX). It would allow other
internet service providers to connect to Telenor's own exchange point, but wants to be able to charge content providers, like
NRK or
Schibsted, for prioritised access to their network. The
Norwegian Post and Telecommunications Authority stated they'd look at the legality of this move, but concluded that the withdrawal from NIX wouldn't negatively affect the Norwegian Internet infrastructure. This raised demands that the network division be
demerged from Telenor and made a separate company. Critics feel that this move compromises the
network neutrality of Norway, especially since Telenor has a 57%
market share domestically. Telenor chose not to fulfill their threats, and continue to connect to NIX through a ten gigabit
ethernet connection.
GrameenPhone
After
Muhammad Yunus was awarded the
Nobel Peace Prize in 2006, he claimed during his visit in Norway to receive the prize that
Grameen Bank had a
gentlemen's agreement with Telenor where Telenor was to sell part of GrameenPhone to the bank. Telenor wasn't interested in fulfilling this agreement, arguing it wasn't juridically binding.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Telenor'.
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