New mobile record in the 1st half year: prepaid subscriptions leap ahead
Fornebu
2 minute read
Sales of mobile phones are still breaking all records in Norway. So far this year Telenor Mobil has sold 266,984 new GSM subscriptions, making a total of 100,000 more GSM subscriptions in the first half of the year compared with the same period in 1998. RingKontant, i.e. prepaid subscriptions, account for more than 90 percent of the new sales. Telenor Mobil is now expanding network capacity for RingKontant in order to be able to cope with its gigantic growth.
As of 30 June 1999, Telenor Mobil had a total of 1,787,520 mobile phone subscribers. "If growth continues at this high rate, we will reach 2 million mobile subscribers before the end of the year," said Stig M. Herbern, President Telenor Mobil.
The majority of the new subscriptions are RingKontant - prepaid subscriptions. At the end of the first six months, Telenor Mobil had 555,805 RingKontant customers, an increase of 120,000 over the 1st quarter.
"We see that most new mobile phone users now prefer the prepaid subscriptions," explained Herbern, emphasising that the growth is so large that Telenor Mobil has been forced to expand network capacity for RingKontant for the second time this year. Herbern has also given cash customers an appreciably expanded service programme during the last year. They now have access to text messaging and MobilInfo, and this summer the company opened for the use of cash cards outside Norway
The majority of the new subscriptions are RingKontant - prepaid subscriptions. At the end of the first six months, Telenor Mobil had 555,805 RingKontant customers, an increase of 120,000 over the 1st quarter.
"We see that most new mobile phone users now prefer the prepaid subscriptions," explained Herbern, emphasising that the growth is so large that Telenor Mobil has been forced to expand network capacity for RingKontant for the second time this year. Herbern has also given cash customers an appreciably expanded service programme during the last year. They now have access to text messaging and MobilInfo, and this summer the company opened for the use of cash cards outside Norway