for grant62 please?, page-2

Hi Asmizon,

Removal from the ASX300 list actually means little for HTA, given that 85% of the share register is already illiquid (ie: due to Whampoa's large holding). Removal actually lifts a burden for HTA rather than adding to it (ie: less institutional pressure, so to speak).

Today's pricing movement appears linked to the following:
1)
Last Saturday's release of the new NEC e616 clamshell design mobile phone has apparently taken the market by storm, just as the release of clamshell designed handsets stormed Europe last Summer (including for Sony-Ericsson which knocked Nokia off its leading perch in Scandinavia in October, onwards).
2)
HTA is now claiming that weekly handset sales have ramped back up with >3,500 e616's sold so far this week.
3)
Tomorrow, HTA will increase its "3" range to 5 handsets, with the introduction of the e313. This phone will be heavily subsidised, being sold for $9pm/24m (original cost closer to $600). By April, this should be followed by Sony-Ericsson entering the "3" market, selling its handsets for between
HTA has now confirmed that subscriber numbers on "3" are well over 100,000, that its handset shortages are now being progressively addressed, that additional content is being arranged for the "3" services, and that it will compete aggressively to win market share.

The local CDMA services of Orange are also doing markedly better than previously considered possible.

In doing so, market gains will likely come at the expense of Vodafone which is now suffering losses in net additions, a declining grade of service, has reduced its advertising campaign markedly, is retreating more and more back into Sydney, and appears at risk of being bundled out of the Australian telecommunications market altogether (with little continuing global support).

Even J-Phone (Japan Telecom) is prospectively up for sale, and 2 weeks ago, Vodafone came close to taking up AT&T Wireless, whilst in the process signalling an exit from Verizon.

The Australian operations of Vodafone have never turned a profit and appear even more marginalised to Vodafone globally than ever before.

Beyond this, global commentators are now becoming more bullish for 3G /UMTS going into the back-end of 2004 and iin 2005.