Cellphones in Albania

Ah yes, cellphones and more cellphones for Albania. Read BIRN's latest story about companies providing them...
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Albania Cellphone Firms Seek More 3G Licences
Tirana | 09 September 2010 |

Albania’s four major cellphone companies have called on the government to issue four 3G licences instead of only one to ensure competition in the telecoms market.


AMC, Vodafone Albania, Eagle Mobile and the newly created Plus Mobile said in a joint statement on Wednesday that awarding a single licence through a proposed public tender could create a monopoly in the sector.

“The 3G internet service should be supplied by four companies and not one ... because it [not only] increases government revenue, but also competition and offers consumers cheaper prices,” the statement added.

The operators also urged the government to set the licences at a lower price than planned in order to help them meet the growing demand inside the country for broadband internet.

“The four cell operators see with regret the price tag of €12.5 million which, coupled with the extra investment for the installation of the network, makes the venture in 3G technology unreasonable,” the statement read.

3G, the third-generation standard for mobile phones, enables the simultaneous use of speech and data services on a cell network, while also providing mobile broadband access to laptop computers and smart phones.

Vodafone Albania is a subsidiary of Vodafone, while AMC is part of the Greece-based COSMOTE Group.

Eagle Mobile is owned by the Turkish group Calik Holding, while Plus Mobile is owned by consortium of local businesses and Kosovo Telecom