Europe : VIPnet offers the first commercial UMTS service in Croatia - Vodafone Mobile Connect UMTS - presentation of the City Broadband service - the most favorable and most accessible Internet broadband in Croatia - introduction of the new Marketing Director of VIPnet

As of today, one month upon the execution of the Concession Agreement, VIPnet has the first commercial UMTS service in its offer: City Broadband - a new tariff adapted for permanent access to Internet using Vodafone Mobile Connect - UMTS Card. In VIPnet’s UMTS network Vodafone Mobile Connect - the UMTS Card enables a wireless access to the Internet and the office Intranet from a laptop at a speed of up to 384 kbps. This speed is up to 10 times higher than that offered by GPRS. The high speed of the new data card in combination with its simplicity of use will result in a higher productivity of the customers.

Josef Vinatzer, CEO of VIPnet, emphasized at today’s press conference: "After the launch of EDGE last year UMTS is one of the most important events on VIPnet’s 3G path. With a significantly higher data transfer speed customers will feel the announced advantages of UMTS, they will be able to do more in shorter period of time. According to our first experience and on the first place to the experience of Vodafone’s customers in a large number of countries worldwide, VMC UMTS is really transforming the mode of operation".

City Broadband is offered in 91 cities, the so-called city zones. Monthly subscription fee for City Broadband amounts to HRK 191 (inclusive of the VAT). The service includes 512 MB of monthly traffic in the zone selected by the customer himself/herself (where the customer will use the service). Any additional transfer of data as well as transfer to an area outside the selected zone is charged HRK 0.91 kn/100kB.

"With City Broadband, with our Vodafone Connect Cards and the EDGE and UMTS technology, VIPnet is offering the fastest and easiest mobile Internet in Croatia. There are no wires, there is no fixed line subscription fee, no waiting for the installation, and the speed enables a quality of operation equal to that when you are in the office - just forget about your fixed line!", stated Martin Lippautz, Marketing Director of VIPnet.

VIPnet entered the world of the mobile telephony of the third generation as early as in April last year when EDGE was introduced. In October 2004, VIPnet has been granted an UMTS concession, and the Concession Agreement was signed on December 16th.
Under the Concession Agreement VIPnet has undertaken to achieve a 25% coverage of the population within two years; such coverage has almost already been achieved by now, one month upon the execution of the agreement. Four major cities - Osijek, Split, Rijeka and Zagreb - are covered with the UMTS network.

"There are already more than 60 UMTS networks in the world; however, VIPnet is one of the first operators in the world to offer two 3G technologies to its customers on a commercial basis - EDGE and UMTS", stated Toni Puljak, 3G Project Leader at VIPnet.