Telenor and Bloggers

Telenor has always focused on its brand’s presence whether its online or offline. To align their brand marketing with the growing trends, Telenor went on to launch their Weblounge Service first in the bloggers meet-up held in major cities in the second week of August. We had appreciated the initiative of Telenor Pakistan as it was the first of its kind to provided a platform for bloggers to interact and give their feedback on services being offered from Telenor.  It was along this launch that Telenor Pakistan also announced a blogging competition for the interested bloggers. As is the case with new experiments, it takes some fine tuning to get to the objective.
The initial results of the blogging competition were received on 28th August, 18 days after the start of competition in which Telecompk.Net was ranked third. The email also stated that the competition will end in the last week of September.
During the Eid vacation, some bloggers discussed on the much awaited competition results on twitter and decided that the if Telenor fails to give the prize, the issue will be brought up on blogs.
Yesterday all the participating bloggers were informed that the competition has been extended for a month, now ending on 31st October and have also put a limit of 1000 referrers to qualify. However in order to encourage and appreciate the efforts of bloggers they are sending in gift hampers. Perhaps the low traffic during Ramadan and Eid could be the reason behind this.
Nevertheless, the change in competition rules has come as a surprise. But its not a big issue for those bloggers who blog with a purpose in mind. Prizes are nice but its more important to be a credible source of quality information. We at Telecompk.Net beleive that extending the date doesn’t mean a change in game plan. We think that this interesting experiment should be allowed to conclude in good faith and good spirits for all, not to be criticized with aggression like another breaking news blog did. Its always more important to talk about core issues rather than creating hype on non-issues.
Telecompk.Net has always provided a platform to share information. We welcome Telecom Pakistan to have their say with us.

Telenor Customer Service Via Facebook

Djuice, the youth oriented brand of Telenor is using Facebook to connect with its customers. See an example below where Djuice answer questions about how to block unwanted / annoying sms messages. Makes a lot of sense as Facebook is where most of Djuice users are likely to hang out.

Telenor Contributes To Declaration on Rights of Persons with Disabilities 2009

We previously covered Telenor Khuddar initiative. As a follow up to that, there was recently a declaration calling for the ratification of United Nations Convention on Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD), which was endorsed at the National Leadership Conference for Persons with Disabilities. Held at the National Institute for Special Education (NISE) from 12-14 Aug 2009, the conference was organized by Special Talent Exchange Program (STEP) in partnership with Telenor Pakistan’s flagship corporate initiative “Khuddar Pakistan.”
The conference (see pictures below) attracted attended by 50 Disabled Persons Organizations, International organizations, key leaders from the disability rights movement, state officials, disability advisors, volunteers as well as Telenor Pakistan management.


Telenor shared information through a press release:

Managing Director Pakistan Bait ul Maal, Zamurd Khan, Ex Director General Special Education Khalid Naeem, Country Director Sightsavers International Mr. Niazullah Khan, President STEP Atif Sheikh and Syed Hasnat Masood, Director Corporate Communications & Responsibility, Telenor Pakistan, termed the declaration a historic document because of the consensus behind it. The International panelists included Director of Japenese Society of Rehabilitation of Disabled persons, Masako Kuhira, Director International Foundation For Electoral Systems, Susan Palmer, Diasability advisor, Handicapped International, Virginia Robson and motivational speaker, Dr. Todd Shea.
Commenting on Telenor Pakistan’s support for the conference leading up to the declaration, Hasnat said: “Telenor Khuddar Pakistan is an initiative that promotes awareness, integration, and inclusion of persons with disabilities in the corporate sector as well as in the overall society. We are blessed with partners who are committed to consolidate grass-roots initiatives such as this declaration, which would hopefully help the rights movement of persons with disabilities in Pakistan. Only through a dignified acceptance of the rights of persons with disabilities, can we progress.”
The document titled “Islamabad Declaration on Rights of Persons with Disabilities 2009” was devised after panel discussions that spanned three full days and enjoyed active participation from the attending audience. The declaration urged the government to consider all Persons with Disabilities as full and responsible citizens of the country and to ensure that they enjoy the same rights, privileges, and opportunities as other citizens.
The declaration called upon the government to take necessary measures to ensure access to justice for persons with disabilities and reflect their issues in judicial policy, governance reforms and administrative structures. The declaration devised that this constituency of citizens of Pakistan also needs representation by persons with disabilities in the political arena. It was petitioned that a mechanism be developed for implementation of the 1981 ordinance on disabled persons and the 2002 policy on Disability and National Action Plan 2008, in addition to the cabinet decision of 8th June 2009 and Directives of President of Pakistan issued on 1st July 2009.
Civil society organizations were prompted in the declaration to include programs for persons with disabilities in their development agendas. It was suggested that they should work with electronic and print media to highlight and communicate issues of disability and generate awareness.
The corporate sector was asked to ensure employment according to the stipulations of the 1981 Ordinance of Disabled persons. It also endorsed accessible inclusion in employment environments and provision of assistive technologies. Most importantly, the declaration pressed upon persons with disabilities to educate and apprise themselves of existing laws and regulations relation to persons with disabilities.

Update – Talkshawk Discount Offer

After being pointed out on their advert for the latest Talkshawk Discount Offer, Telenor has come up with an updated ad. Now showing the subscription charges at the end.

Telenor has come up with their kind of version of the popular Ghanta Offers. The latest from them is the Talkshawk Discount Offer, but this again with a catch in their advert (officially received). Like we had pointed out earlier at their 7 Hour 7 Rs Campaign, telenor has been tricking the consumers in their ads.

In the 7 Hour 7 Rs offer ad headline was misleading, in that they only showed the subscription rental charges (RS 7) whereas the call charges of 20 Paisas per 30 Second was missing.

Now check out this ad for the Talkshawk Discount Offer.

In this one they show the call charges of 10 Paisas per 30 Second but miss on the subscription rental charges of Rs. 7 per day.

The details of the offer can be found on their website here. I guess its time now the authority plays its role in these misleading advert campaigns.

Telenor Persona Weblounge – Now Secure

Taking in to concerns raised in the bloggers meet-up for the launch of Weblounge, Telenor has today announced Weblounge over SSL connection. Earlier on its launch on 10th August it was on non-SSL page.

We at Telenor are pleased to announce that now moving ahead with more safety and security Telenor Persona Weblounge is now on SSL page. Providing customers with safety and security on internet, Telenor Persona Weblounge is now completely secured.

We appreciate the concern of bloggers towards this service, who highlighted the issue in early stages of launch. Telenor is always open to criticisms and give value to the words of its customers that in true sense highlight the loopholes. Telenor has strong relationships with internet medium and look forward to make it stronger in the future.

Cellular Trend Watch – July 2009

The latest numbers from PTA reveal that the total subscriber base of cellular services has reached 95.5 million, and the trend between Moblink and Telenor as discussed earlier continues.

The neck to neck race of subscriber acquisition continues between Mobilink and Telenor as Mobilink gained 414K in July 2009 and Telenor added 406K.

A significant increase as compared to May 2009 in subscriber base of Warid can also be seen, possibly due marketing comeback from Warid and introduction of the Glow prepaid package.

Ufone despite their intense marketing gained less than Zong in July.

The month to month subscriber change for the first half of 2009 shows a consistent increase in subscriber base over the past three months.

If the current growth pace is sustained, the subscriber number should be close to 100 million by end of December 2009.

Telenor Persona Weblounge

Telenor on Sunday arranged a bloggers meet-up to unveil their latest service WEBlounge before the actual service launch.

We at Telenor have changed our communication strategy. This time we will first communicate our new offering to bloggers community and then to other mediums. We believe that Bloggers are very powerful and effective when it comes to communication and personalized promotions. The new offer that will launch tomorrow is the Telenor Persona Weblounge.

Raheel Islam

Marketing Officer / meet-up organizer

Weblounge allows you to take control of all your mobile communication needs by ensuring a continuous access to your Persona subscription via internet.

Whether you want to purchase a number of your choice, shift from any other network to Telenor, make payments online or subscribe for exciting add-ons, special offers and value added services, Weblounge guarantees a world of convenience at your fingertips. Existing Telenor Persona customers can also manage their connections at the Weblounge.

It also comes up with with a portal http://www.telenor.com.pk/webloungeportal/.

The weblounge service will be launched commercially today on press and media.

Conditional Entry For Telenor In India

As discussed earlier of a possible acquisition of Telenor Pakistan by China Mobile Pakistan (CMPak) possibly to let Telenor get a green signal to enter the India.

The lastest news is that India is set to grant Telenor the necessary security clearance to increase its stake in Unitech Wireless to the legal maximum of 74% - but only on the condition that no employees from Telenor’s Pakistan subsidiary work for the Indian company.

The Economic Times newspaper notes that the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) was due to approve the investment, but delayed its decision pending a review of the security situation. Keeping the human assets of the Indian and Pakistani arms of Telenor separate is expected to take care of risks such as spying and subversion. The plan is reported to require that any Telenor employee who is, or has ever worked in Pakistan will be blocked from working in India.

At one end the leadership of India are on talk tables to increase trade and grow relations with Pakistan, whereas at the same time imposing ban on employees who is or has ever worked in Telenor Pakistan to work in India.

With this ban Telenor Pakistan’s CEO, Jon Eddy Abdullah, a non Pakistani and other foreigners associated with Telenor Pakistan will also not be allowed to work in India.

Telenor is also a majority shareholder in Bangladesh’s Grameenphone, but this was not considered to be such a significant security risk.

Telenor Khuddar Initiative: Kudos For Pioneering Work For Persons With Disabilities

Telecom companies have made significant impact on how business is conducted in Pakistan. Telenor, for instance, has consistently demonstrated leadership in the area of corporate social responsibility in Pakistan. Telenor’s latest CSR initiative, Khuddar Pakistan, is a good example of how businesse0s can work together with government and civic society to champion an important issue. Khuddar is Urdu for a person with dignity, one who does not depend on others.

An important part of this program is a detailed document with resources and information for persons with disabilities. I am very impressed by the wealth of information, presented in this reference book (3.6MB pdf). Kudos to the team members who created this. Of course, there’s more to it then launching this program - awareness is the first step, after that the program has to be sustained and expanded. More from Telenor about this.

With Khuddar Pakistan, we want to make a difference in the lives of our fellow persons with disabilities by addressing the challenges they face.

We want to change the public mindset by creating awareness about their abilities. We want to help develop technologies that will give them the opportunity to actively participate in our society. We pledge to integrate persons with disability fully into our workforce.

Currently, we are the only company in Pakistan to have a formal disability advisor and a disability advisory panel. We sponsor assistive technology training labs for persons with disabilities at National Institute of Special Education, National Training Center for Special Persons (NTCSP), and Special Talent Exchange (STEP). We have the first corporate products & services/career website that is fully accessible and our staff participate in the first formal employee volunteerism drive in the corporate sector to work with persons with disabilities.

CEO and President Telenor Pakistan, Jon Eddy Abdullah, addressing the inauguration ceremony said, “Some 7-10% of Pakistanis have disabilities, and most of them face adversity at every corner, fight negative social perceptions, are turned away by lack of accessibility, and cannot get adequate trainings and assistive technologies. With Khuddar Pakistan we want to start making a difference in the lives of our fellow persons with disabilities by addressing just these issues with the help of key partners. There has to be an organized effort in this regard and we believe with our expertise in providing mobility and our commitment to empower communities, we can play a role here. We still have a lot to do.”

Telenor Q2 net profit down on impairment losses - Telecom

Norwegian telecom operator Telenor ASA Thursday said second-quarter net profit fell on heavy impairment losses, but Ebitda improved, indicating a solid performance in core markets despite the economic downturn. "The trends from the first quarter of 2009 continued into this quarter, with a challenging business environment also affecting the telecom sector," Chief Executive Jon Fredrik Baksaas said. "In spite of pressure on the top line development our operations are improving their performance, resulting in a record high operating cash flow," he said. Telenor posted a 1.38 billion Norwegian kroner ($220 million) net profit for the three months to June 30, down from NOK3.54 billion the year before and below analysts' expectations for NOK2.15 billion. The result was hit by impairment losses of NOK1.97 billion on goodwill in Telenor Serbia. However, the closely-watched earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, or Ebitda, increased to NOK7.82 billion from NOK7.33 billion, ahead of expectations for NOK7.54 billion. "Grameenphone in Bangladesh and Mobile Norway are delivering a particularly strong quarter, both in terms of revenue growth and margins," Telenor said. Telenor provides voice, data, content and other communication services in 13 countries across Europe and Asia. The report comes after Telenor's Swedish rival Tele2 AB Wednesday posted a consensus-beating second-quarter result, boosted by strong sales growth and customer intake on the Russian market. Telenor said it expects 2009 organic revenue in line with 2008, although "on the negative side". It previously guided for revenue in line with 2008. It cut its outlook for capital expenditure as a proportion of revenue to 13%-15% from 15%-17%, in line with peers who are trimming costs to preserve cashflow. Second-quarter sales increased 3% to NOK24.51 billion, marginally missing expectations for NOK24.77 billion. Operating profit fell to NOK1.96 billion from NOK4.0 billion. Net cash flow from operating activities came in at NOK8.87 billion, up from NOK5.88 billion the year before. Profit from associate companies was NOK1.57 billion, down from NOK1.85 billion a year ago. The first-half result from associated companies was hit by foreign-exchange losses on the loan portfolio of Russian mobile operator Vimpel Communications, Telenor said. Telenor said it expects Unitech Wireless, meanwhile, to launch services in five circles in India.

Telenor and China Mobile ~ Merge, Would they ?

Few days back, there was rumour on TGP of possible merger of Telenor and Zong. Dawn News has confirmed of possible merger negotiations.

According to sources, Telenor group is interested to sell its shares in Pakistan and is holding talks with the China Mobile.Though both the operators have denied any such development, sources said that negotiations were being held secretly at the group level.

Though Telenor, a Norwegian company, has a subscriber-base of 20 million or so in Pakistan, it has been deliberating to sell its management shares since long because of ‘security issues’.

The Telenor group has already focused on India for investment, as it recently sought to buy about 67 per cent shares of Unitech Wireless and telecom arm of Unitech Ltd in India.

The Indian market is experiencing a major growth in mobile penetration and currently it stands at 27 per cent with a total population of about 1.2 billion.

There has been a lot of potential in the market and the global operators see it a best place for future market. China Mobile’s first international business venture, Zong, currently has over six million subscribers.

Before the merger talks with the Telenor group, the China Mobile had offered to buy the management shares of Warid Telecom Pakistan. However, deal could not materialise owing to price issue.

Mobilink, Telenor, Ufone, Warid and Zong (CM-Pak) have reportedly conveyed to the PTA that there was a room for only ‘four’ players.

A PTA official said there were chances that by 2010, the country may have four operators.

The number of cell-phone users in Pakistan has reached over 90 million. Though Average Revenue Per User (ARPU) shows declining trend over the last few years, aggressive marketing and expansion of network has enabled mobile operators to grab more subscribers on their networks.

Telenor TalkShawk Beware Of The 7 Hour 7 Rs Campaign

Take a look at the ad below from Telenor and share what you think the promotion appears to be. And then proceed to Telenor site to read the details. Blogs are already criticizing this. Updates to follow after your comments.

Telenor PERSONA Special 5ive – New Discounted FnF Rates to Local & International Calls

Telenor PERSONA offer another stirring offer to its subscribers who can now enjoy best call rates to their Friend and Family (FnF) numbers. Users can add five numbers of their loved ones by using NEW SPECIAL 5ive offer and can talk to their friends and family on a discount rate of 50% every call. That’s 25 Paisas/30 Seconds per call to local Telenor FnF numbers. This is not limited to Pakistan but they can also add their international friends to the list and can talk to them on a flat rate of 75 Paisas/30 seconds – Exciting.

To subscribe, you can either call to 345 or visit nearest Telenor Sales and Service center. Let me just guide you to the procedure so, you won’t make any mistakes or won’t forget the necessary documents.

Dial 345 from your handset

You can call any time at 345 to activate the subscription of Special 5ive. If you are short of balance that moment, you will need to visit the nearest Telenor Sales and Service Center to make additional deposit. Do not forget to bring your CNIC with you for verification purposes.

Telenor Sales & Service Center

Same as above, in case you don’t want to activate your subscription on phone, you can visit Telenor Sales and Service Center to avail this facility. Again, take your CNIC with you for Ownership verification purpose.

What are the charges of this service?

You will have to pay Rs. 150 + tax per month to enjoy this facility. That’s Rs. 181.5 inclusive 21% Tax.

For more details, please visit: http://telenor.com.pk/postpaid/special_faqs.php

Telenor Mobile Classifieds – Post, Browse, Search Advertisments

Enough of browsing newspapers to find an add You really are looking for. Telenor brings a convenient offer to its customers who can now Post & find advertisement right on their handset by using SMS, WAP, or Web Bases technologies. With this service, you can now save some bucks for the next advertisement. As, I mentioned earlier that subscribers of this service can post the ads, find relevant ads and can also create alerts, so, when a new relevant Ad is posted by someone, user is intimated through SMS.

Web Based Service

A website, dedicated to service subscribers where they can browse and post thousand of ads. Users don’t need to get them registered to post an Ad. They are simply required;

• Entering MSISDN
• Category Selection
• City Selection
• Add Description

User can enjoy all the features of a standard classified website which includes browsing the ads by categories, search an ad, view newly or recently posted ads etc. etc. Users who register themselves on the website can edit, delete their ads or can also can create, delete any specific alerts.

SMS Service

Now don’t go anywhere just pick your handset and following the procedure as given below:

For Selling:

• Sell Ad text to 2277
• You will shortly receive a message from service with a list of cities to select.
• You will be sent a confirmation message after you select a city.

For Buying:

• Buy Search condition to 2277
• You will sent a message with most relevant ads
• User can view next ad by replying ‘n’

Removal of Ads
To remove your ad, send ‘rem to 2277.

For assistance send Help to 2277 any time.

WAP

You can also Post, Browse, ads and create alerts by WAP bases interface.

www.telenor.com.pk/wapclassifieds

Charges:

Different rates are charged as per the facility availed:

Posting and Ad: SMS to 2277): Rs.3 + Tax / SMS

Searching an Ad: (SMS to 2277): Rs.3 + Tax / SMS

Browsing and Ad: Rs.0.50 + Tax / SMS

Ad Removal: SMS to 2277): Rs.3 + Tax / SMS

Ali Zafar after leaving Telenor has joined Mobilink

The race of teleco adverts has taken a new turn now. We have the on-going trend of taunting at each other in adverts but now its about acquiring over the brand ambassadors.

Ali Zafar, the renowned brand ambassador of Telenor Talkshawk has left all with a shock with his entry in the Mobilink Jazz latest promotion commercial. Talkshock!

The latest promotion is , if you haven’t used your Jazz Sim from May 20th, simply switch it on, and recharge. You will get instant Rs.30 plus 100 percent free balance on your first recharge.

The best part of the commercial is “Aaj hi join kia hai, dusari company se aye hain”

New commercial

Telenor Persona Karobar For Small & Medium Businesses

Telenor has introduced a new package called Persona targeted for small and medium sized businesses. It seems to be a smart move and the product has good features. However the website needs some improvements.

Below is the main page of Persona which is linked from the home page. The flash design is not appropriate for business users. There is no text based information about the different parts of Persona Karobar unless you click on one of the images. I had to click twice (total three clicks from the home page) before I could get to the packages and pricing info. It should have been a single click.

There are other small things missing such as the page title does not spell out the purpose of the page but just says ‘Telenor’.

Thanks to Anam Khan for the post suggestion and information.

Waridtel, Zong, Ufone, Telenor, Mobilink sms service center numbers

• Enter Menu Mode on your hand phone
  


• Select \"Messages\" or \"Mail\"
  


• Select \"Message Setting\"
  


• Select \"SMS Centre\"‚ \"Message Centre Number\"‚ \"Route Centre\" or its equivalent
  


• Enter Message Centre Number:

Ufone sms service center number +923330005150 or 00923330005150

Waridtel Service sms center number +9232100006001 or 00923210006001

Telenor Pakistan sms service center number +923455000010 or 00923455000010

Zong Pakistan sms service center number +923040000011 or 00923040000011

Mobilink Pakistan sms service center number +92300000042 or 0092300000042

Telenor USB DATA Package

Now its time for Telenor to capture the market with their new device of USB Data Package for internet connectivity anywhere around the 2000 cities in Pakistan. This offer is available for the Persona Postpaid subscribers. The package offers;

• One Year Free Internet
• One USB stick – E 169
• One Postpaid SIM including the USB Data Package

The Package details are;

• Telenor Smart Stick = Rs. 9,555/- (inclusive all taxes)
• 1 Postpaid SIM with Data 5 Package = Free
• Refundable Security = Rs. 500/-
• 1 year free GPRS/ EDGE (with monthly usage of 4GB)

Activate Rules:

• Line Rent for the 12 months in included in the price of Telenor USB stick. For first 12 months no line rent will be charged.
• After 12 months the package will expire in the subscriber will be shifted to Data 3 price plan.
• Voice can be activated without incurring any extra cost.
• Price plan can be changed by the Telenor USB stick holder without any additional expense. For this the holder need to show the ownership of the older version of USB and SIM.

Terms and Conditions:

• The Telenor USB Stick is available to all Pakistani Nationals having CNIC or foreigners having required credentials as per GOP/PTA regulations.

• Any Telenor SIM (Prepaid or postpaid with GPRS activated) can be used in Telenor USB Stick; however Postpaid SIMs with Data Package 5 are highly recommended.
• In case of loss of Postpaid USB DATA package SIM card, a replacement SIM with the same MSISDN (EDGE/GPRS/SMS allowed) will be issued after client verification as per standard SIM replacement charges. Voice feature will be inactive by default.
• The device has limited warranty of 1 year from the date of purchase.