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Direct marketing adds up for Telecom mobile

By Phil Boeyen, ShareChat Business News Editor

Monday 5th February 2001

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An Australian-based catalogue business is entering a joint venture with Telecom (NZSE: TEL) to push the telco's mobile phone sales.

Around six months ago listed Australian company Mobile Innovations entered a direct marketing arrangement with Telecom to sell its mobile services in catalogues and direct mail campaigns.

The company has been able to leverage off a huge database through its sister company in New Zealand, catalogue-retailer Innovations, and has already become one of Telecom's largest sales channels.

Now Telecom Mobile and Mobile Innovations are planning an Auckland-based joint venture to drive growth of post-paid customers at a lower cost.

Telecom Mobile's GM, Mohan Jesudason, says the direct marketing success of Mobile Innovations in New Zealand has proved that growth of higher value users is still buoyant.

"Telecom's intended involvement in the joint venture is designed to develop the synergies that exist between MI NZ's proven direct marketing ability and Telecom's consumer customer base.

"We see this arrangement as very complementary to the efforts of our other independent channels. MI NZ will be particularly instrumental in growing customer numbers as we move towards the launch of our new CDMA network, later in the year."

According to the half yearly results released by MI Australia its New Zealand operation had acquired 9,000 customers by the end of December 2000.

MI Australia says its new partnership with Telecom in New Zealand will have no implications for its Australian business, which works exclusively with Vodafone.

Telecom is due to announce its second-quarter results next week, including up-to-date details on its mobile customer numbers. TEL is believed to still be leading the mobile battle but rival Vodafone is nipping at its heels, having added 115,000 customers in the December quarter last year to takes its customer total to 753,000.

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