27 May, 1996

Mobile Telephony: For How Long a Licence to Print Money?

Background briefing paper for the Telecommunications Infotechnology Forum, 27 May 1996.

Mobile Telephony: For How Long a Licence to Print Money?

As of March 1996, Hong Kong had 717,400 digital mobile subscribers and 69,700 analogue subscribers — a huge jump from 12 months earlier when the numbers were 274,400 and 213,200 respectively. The biggest single reason for this growth is the price war now fully under way in Hong Kong as Hutchison and SmarTone have just slashed prices on their GSM (Global System for Mobile) network handsets and Hutchison has rolled out its new CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access) digital network with a low unlimited calling plan. Pacific Link quickly followed suit.

Download the paper here

Photo by Yura Fresh

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