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'Singapore Telecommunications Limited' (, ) (commonly abbreviated as 'SingTel') and formerly known as'Telecom Equipment', is Singapore's largest telecommunications company. With a combined mobile subscriber base of 124 million customers from its own operations and regional associates at the end of March 2007 ^[1], SingTel is the largest mobile network operator in the Asia Pacific outside of the People's Republic of China. A former government monopoly privatized in 1992, SingTel divested its postal operation SingPost in 2003 and now concentrates on providing internet service provider(SingNet), mobile phone and fixed line telephony services. SingTel has launched its pay TV service in July 2007, named mio TV.
SingTel has expanded aggressively outside its home market and owns shares in many regional operators, including 100% of Australian telecommunications company Optus, acquired in 2000 from Cable and Wireless and other shareholders of Optus.
SingTel is majority-owned by state investment vehicle Temasek Holdings. Chua Sock Koong serves as its current CEO, having replaced long-serving CEO Lee Hsien Yang (brother of Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong) in April 2007. ^{[2] [3]}
SingTel's commitment to customer privacy had come into question as a result of its subsidiary's actions during Odex's actions against file sharing in 2007. [1] It was revealed that SingNet simply consented to the release of customer information without their lawyers contesting in the courts. [2]

Contents

Subsidiaries

Quick facts

Events in 2005

Pay TV

SingTel satellite stations

References

External links

Subsidiaries

The Singtel group of companies includes various subsidiaries, associated companies, as well as shareholdings in overseas entities. Its mainstay is in the mobile phone industry, however, where it commands a total subscription base of 92.42 million as at 30 June 2006, with a total of 35.57 million proportionate subscribers (subscribers calculated as a proportion of shareholding):

Mobile company	Country	Shareholding	Subscribers	Proportionate subscribers	Market share in domestic market
Advanced Info Service	Thailand	21.4%	17.318 million	3.710 million	52%
Bharti Group	India	30.6%	42.073 million	12.34 million	29%
Globe Telecom	Philippines	44.6%	13.894 million	6.193 million	37%
Optus	Australia	100.0%	6.555 million	6.555 million	32.5%
Pacific Bangladesh Telecom Limited	Bangladesh	45.0%	0.686 million	0.309 million	4.7%
SingTel Mobile	Singapore	100.0%	1.619 million	1.619 million	38.7%
Telkomsel	Indonesia	35.0%	29.270 million	10.245 million	55%
'Total'			'92.415 million'	'35.565 million'

Other members of the Singtel group includes the two wholly owned subsidiaries of SingNet, a wholly owned internet service provider, and NCS Private Limited an information technology (IT) and communications engineering services provider. Associated companies include Singapore Post, which was formerly a subsidiary until its separate listing on the Singapore Exchange in May 2003 and New Century Infocomm of Taiwan of which Singtel has a 24.5% stake. Singtel owns a 20.33% stake in Hong Kong's APT Satellite, although it is not included as a subsidiary as the stake is non-controlling.

Quick facts

★ SingTel traces its heritage back to 1879 when Singapore became one of the first cities in the East to have telephone service, three years after Alexander Graham Bell patented his invention. At that time, a Mr Bennet Pell started a private telephone exchange which had 50 lines.

★ SingTel was incorporated in March 1992 and became a public company in October 1993.

★ SingTel was listed on the Singapore Exchange in November 1993 and on the Australian Stock Exchange in September 2001.

★ SingTel is the largest company listed on the Singapore Exchange with a market capitalisation of about S$40 billion (US$24 billion) as of May 2004.

★ SingTel’s first overseas office was set up in May 1993 in New York City.

★ For the first time in its history, SingTel’s group revenue exceeded S$10 billion for the year ended 31 March 2003. Its revenue for the year ended 31 March 2004 hit S$12 billion.

Events in 2005

SingTel said that it has agreed to increase its stake in India's Bharti Telecom to 32.81% from 26.96% for US$252million (S$417million). SingTel said that with its latest deal, its interest in Bharti Tele-Ventures would rise to 30.84% from 28.16%. Bharti Telecom's main asset is it 45.9% holding in Bharti Tele-Ventures, India's second largest mobile phone operator.
SingTel entered the Bangladesh mobile telecommunication market by purchasing 45% equity of Pacific Bangladesh Telecom Limited (PBTL) for US$118 million, SingTel also has a call option to increase its equity to 60% for an additional US$65 million. The call can be exercised between April 1 and June 30, 2007. PBTL is the parent company of CityCell, Bangladesh's third largest mobile phone operator.

Pay TV

On July 21 2007, the company launched of the new 'mio TV' service to rival cable TV operator Starhub^[4]. The service will be cheaper than Starhub's and will be available in high definition. Reception would be via a IPTV.

SingTel satellite stations

★ Bukit Timah Satellite Earth Station

★ Seletar Teleport

References

1. http://australianit.news.com.au/articles/0,7204,21698980%5E15337%5E%5Enbv%5E15306-15316,00.html
2. http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporebusinessnews/view/220500/1/.html
3. http://info.sgx.com/webcorannc.nsf/e9886c5637268fd148256db0003472d2/90cf6729a582a0f9482571b2000bab0c?OpenDocument#
4. SingTel launches Singapore pay TV to rival StarHub Jennifer Tan

External links

★ Official SingTel website

★ SingNet, ISP wholly owned by SingTel

★ NCS Pte Ltd leading regional information technology (IT) and communications engineering services provider, wholly owned by SingTel