Primus Telecommunications (Australia)

Last updated

Primus Telecommunications Pty Ltd.
Company type Subsidiary
Industry Telecommunications
Founded1 July 1997;27 years ago (1997-07-01)
HeadquartersAustralia
Products ADSL, ADSL2+, Mobile Broadband, Mobile Telephony, Fixed line, VOIP
Number of employees
500 [1]
Parent Vocus Communications
Website iprimus.com.au

Primus Telecommunications Pty Ltd. is an Australian telecommunications company and wholly owned subsidiary of Vocus Communications that primarily focuses on fixed, mobile, and broadband services.

Contents

Primus Telecom was the first telecommunications carrier to receive a licence when full deregulation and competition was introduced in Australia in 1997 and has network facilities across Australia. Primus operates its own fibre network in the five major capital cities; Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth. [2]

Primus is a participant in the controversial Internet censorship trials. [3]

History

Market entry (1997–1999)

Primus originally entered the Australian telecommunications market in 1996 by acquiring Australia's fourth-largest telecommunications service provider, Axicorp. [4] Primus Telecom was one of the first carriers to be granted a telecommunications licence in 1997. [5] Prior to this, Australia's telecommunications industry was operated as a duopoly⠀ between the former Australian Government-owned Telecom Australia, later rebranded Telstra and Optus, before the market was opened to full competition in July 1997. [6]

1998 saw Primus expand their operations further in Australia with the acquisition of Eclipse Telecommunications Pty. Ltd. [7] and Hotkey Internet Services Pty Limited. [8]

In 1999 Primus' parent company Primus Telecommunications Inc. purchased the retail operations of Telegroup Inc., a long-distance telephone company based in Fairfield, Iowa, which was in Chapter 11 bankruptcy. [9] [10] This acquisition included the Australian subsidiary of Telegroup which allowed Primus to improve their capabilities in the Australian market. [11]

1999 was also the year Primus Australia's U.S. parent company launched the iPrimus brand to spearhead the organisation's strategy of aggressively gaining retail market share by offering 'one-stop' shopping for bundled voice, data, Internet and cellular services. [12]

Primus' growth (2000–2003)

During the period from 2000–2003, Primus achieved some significant growth. They were one of many telco providers to benefit from the collapse of One. Tel by actively pursuing those customers left in a lurch. [13] They used this inertia to grow their customer base to approximately 750,000 retail customers including over 400,000 Internet customers by 2003. [14]

Industry consolidation (2004–2008)

In February 2004, AOL|7 was purchased by Primus Telecom. This acquisition added approximately 90,000 customers to Primus' existing residential iPrimus customer base. [15]

Primus' acquisition would coincide with much industry consolidation as competitor Telstra purchased a 50% stake in mobile provider Hutchison 3G for A$450 million, Kaz Group for A$333 million and Damovo for A$64 million[ citation needed ]. Meanwhile, competitor Optus purchased Uecomm for A$227 million, a 50.8% stake in Alphawest and A$50 million for the remaining 74% of Virgin Mobile Australia [ citation needed ].

In early 2007, Primus sold PlanetDomain to NetRegistry for over A$8 million. [16]

In late 2008, Primus acquired Imagineering Data Centre, a Melbourne-based hosting and colocation provider. [17]

Acquisition of iPrimus (2012–present)

On 16 April 2012, it was announced that Primus Telecom would be purchased by M2 Group in preparation for the National Broadband Network. Primus Telecom was acquired by M2 on 1 June 2012 for $192 million. [18]

In 2012 iPrimus in conjunction with Hungry Jack's launched a free Wi-Fi service in 348 stores, as part of a $6 million contract with Hungry Jack's parent company, Competitive Foods Australia. [19]

Residential products

Broadband

iPrimus is one of Australia's largest telecommunications carriers and offers high-speed broadband through ADSL and ADSL2+, as well as NakedDSL and 3G mobile broadband. Primus's DSLAM network is one of the largest in Australia, with more than 66 exchanges. [20]

Fixed line and mobile

The iPrimus mobile network is a virtual network operator and uses the Optus network, with 2G and 3G capabilities. Primus Telecom also offers a range of home phone and VoIP services.

Other services

iPrimus also offers add-on services including anti-virus and anti-spam filtering, dial-up Internet connection, WebFilter proxy, global roaming and wireless hotspot access. FetchTV is available to iPrimus broadband customers.

Business Products

Internet & Data

iPrimus offers business services including ADSL, ADSL2+, SHDSL, [21] FTTH, Mobile Broadband, [22] and a variety of internet services including Private IP Networks, Domain Names & Web Hosting, Cloud Computing, Virtual Hosting, Dedicated Hosting, Co-Location and Managed Services. Mobility Services by Primus Telecom have recently included Blackberry solutions[ buzzword ] [23] and dedicated Mobile business plans.

Voice

Accella(r) is the iPrimus brand for business IP, voice and data services. IPrimus Accella Logo.png
Accella® is the iPrimus brand for business IP, voice and data services.

Primus Telecom services include PSTN, ISDN, SIP Trunks, Hosted IP Phone Systems, Inbound 1300/1800, Intelligent network. Primus Accella operates as the Business Voice service for Primus Telecom and is a business-grade hosted communications solution.[ buzzword ] [24]

Awards

YearAwardDescriptionOrganisationReference
2012#1 Home Phone ProviderBest home phone provider based on customer satisfaction in the month of February 2012. Roy Morgan [25]
2012#1 Home Phone ProviderBest home phone provider based upon customer satisfaction in the month of March 2012.Roy Morgan [26]
2012#1 Home Phone ProviderBest home phone provider based upon customer satisfaction in the month of April 2012.Roy Morgan [27]
2012Best Home Broadband <20GBBest Home Broadband for the <20GB categoryyour money Magazine [28]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Telecommunications in Australia</span>

Telecommunications in Australia refers to communication in Australia through electronic means, using devices such as telephone, television, radio or computer, and services such as the telephony and broadband networks. Telecommunications have always been important in Australia given the "tyranny of distance" with a dispersed population. Governments have driven telecommunication development and have a key role in its regulation.

Singtel Optus Pty Limited is an Australian telecommunications company headquartered in Macquarie Park, a suburb in the Northern Sydney region of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Singaporean telecommunications company Singtel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Spark New Zealand</span> Telecommunications company in New Zealand

Spark New Zealand Limited is a New Zealand telecommunications and digital services company providing fixed-line telephone services, mobile phone services, broadband, and digital technology services. Its customers range from consumers to small - medium business, government agencies and large enterprise clients. It was formerly known as Telecom New Zealand until it was rebranded to Spark on 8 August 2014. It has operated as a publicly traded company since 1990. Spark's mobile network reaches 98% of New Zealand, with over 2.5 million mobile connections and 704,000 broadband connections

iiNet Australian internet service provider

iiNet Limited is an Australian internet service provider and telecommunications company that sells NBN plans, 4G and 5G Home Wireless Internet and services on its ULTRA Broadband Cable, FTTB and VDSL2 networks. It also sells mobile phone sim-only plans using the Vodafone network.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">TPG (Internet service provider)</span> Australian internet service provider

TPG is an Australian internet service provider that specialises in consumer and business internet services as well as mobile telephone services. As of August 2015, TPG is the second largest internet service provider in Australia and is the largest mobile virtual network operator. As such, it has over 671,000 ADSL2+ subscribers, 358,000 landline subscribers and 360,000 mobile subscribers, and owns the second largest ADSL2+ network in Australia, consisting of 391 ADSL2+ DSLAMs. It also operates in New Zealand.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Austar</span> Defunct Australian telecommunication company

Austar was an Australian telecommunications company founded in 1995 as Community Entertainment Television (CETV). Its main business activity was subscription television. It was also involved with internet access and mobile phones.

Innovate Corp. is an American public financial services company founded in 1994.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hong Kong Broadband Network</span> Hong Kong internet service provider

HKBN Ltd., commonly known for its subsidiary Hong Kong Broadband Network Limited, is a Hong Kong-based Internet, communication and telecommunication company. HKBN was established on 23 August 1999, it is one of the largest residential and enterprise internet, communication and telecommunications service providers in Hong Kong.

AAPT is a fixed-line telecommunications company owned by TPG Telecom. It owns significant fibre and internet infrastructure in Australia. Its national network offers data, cloud, voice and internet services.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Orange UK</span> 1994–2010 UK mobile network operator and ISP

Orange UK was a mobile network operator and internet service provider in the United Kingdom, launched in 1994. It was once a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index but was purchased by France Télécom in 2000, which then adopted the Orange brand for all its other mobile communications activities. Orange UK merged with Deutsche Telekom's T-Mobile UK to form a joint venture, EE in 2010. EE continued to operate the Orange brand until February 2015, when new connections and upgrades on Orange tariffs were withdrawn. Existing Orange customers could continue on their plans until March 2019.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eftel</span> Telecommunications company in Australia

Eftel Limited was an internet service provider and telecommunications provider in Australia, with approximately 120,000 active accounts. It was established in 1999. Eftel offers a range of services including: DSL and dial-up Internet access, web hosting and telephony services - to the retail, corporate and wholesale telecommunications markets.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Neuf Cegetel</span>

Neuf Cegetel was a French wireline telecommunications service provider and a mobile virtual network operator (MVNO). It offered various telecommunications services to consumers, enterprises and wholesale customers, ranking second in the country in annual revenues. It was legally established in 2005 following the completion of the merger between Neuf Telecom and Cegetel. As of June 2008, the company became a wholly owned subsidiary of SFR, and the brand disappeared commercially.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Slingshot (ISP)</span> New Zealand telecommunications company

Slingshot is the fourth largest telecommunications company in New Zealand. It has an approximately 16% market share of the New Zealand fixed telephone landline and residential broadband market. There are 300+ employees who all work in Auckland CBD.

Internet in Australia first became available on a permanent basis to universities in Australia in May 1989, via AARNet. Pegasus Networks was Australia's first public Internet provider in June 1989. The first commercial dial-up Internet Service Provider (ISP) appeared in capital cities soon after, and by the mid-1990s, almost the entire country had a range of choices of dial-up ISPs. Today, Internet access is available through a range of technologies, i.e. hybrid fibre coaxial cable, digital subscriber line (DSL), Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) and satellite Internet. In July 2009, the federal government, in partnership with the industrial sector, began rolling out a nationwide fibre-to-the-premises (FTTP) and improved fixed wireless and satellite access through the National Broadband Network. Subsequently, the roll out was downgraded to a Multi-Technology Mix on the promise of it being less expensive and with earlier completion. In October 2020, the federal government announced an upgrade by 2023 of NBN fibre-to-the-node (FTTN) services to FTTP for 2 million households, at a cost of A$3.5 billion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vocus Group</span> Australian telecommunications company

Vocus Group Limited, formerly known as Vocus Communications, is an international telecommunications company headquartered in North Sydney, Australia. Founded by James Spenceley as a wholesale, business, government and consumer telecommunications provider, Vocus owns and manages Australia's second largest intercapital fibre network. Vocus provides retail, wholesale and corporate telecommunications services across Australia and New Zealand. Vocus offers data network services such as Internet, dark fibre, IP WAN, unified communications and telephony and cloud services to mid, large and corporate businesses direct and also acts as a wholesaler. The company owns and operates 18 data centres across Australia and New Zealand and has an onshore network operations centre run by the engineers who built the network.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">M2 Group</span> Former Australian retailer

M2 Group Ltd was an Australian retailer and wholesaler of telecommunications services as well as power, gas and insurance products.

Imagine Communications is an Irish internet service provider and telecommunications operator, who provide WiMAX, wireless broadband and resell Eircom telecommunications wholesale packages. The company operates in Ireland, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Austria, Norway and the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Airtel India</span> Indian telecommunications company

Airtel India is the second largest provider of mobile telephony and third largest provider of fixed telephony in India, and is also a provider of broadband and subscription television services. The brand is operated by several subsidiaries of Bharti Airtel, with Bharti Hexacom and Bharti Telemedia providing broadband fixed line services and Bharti Infratel providing telecom passive infrastructure service such as telecom equipment and telecom towers. Currently, Airtel provides 5G, 4G and 4G+ services all over India. Currently offered services include fixed-line broadband, and voice services depending upon the country of operation. Airtel had also rolled out its VoLTE technology across all Indian telecom circles.

Birch Communications was an American provider of IP-based communications, network broadband, cloud computing, and information technology services to small, mid-sized, enterprise and wholesale business customers in the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico. It was acquired by Fusion Connect in 2018 and integrated into the company. Founded in 1996 in the wake of the 1996 Telecommunications Act, several years later the company began acquiring other telecom companies in an effort to increase its network size and service offerings. Birch Communications raised $77.5 million in funding in 2011, and $110 million in funding in 2012 after it financed a new $90 million facility.

Amaysim Australia Ltd. is an Australian provider of mobile phone plans. Amaysim operates as a mobile virtual network operator on the Optus mobile network, and specialises in offering a range of SIM-only mobile plans. As of June 2024, Amaysim had over 1.5 million mobile subscribers.

References

  1. ↑ "M2 acquisition of iPrimus" (Press release). Herald Sun.
  2. ↑ "iPrimus About Us" (Press release). iPrimus. Archived from the original on 20 August 2012. Retrieved 17 August 2012.
  3. ↑ Pilot to assess technical feasibility of ISP filtering Archived 13 February 2009 at the Wayback Machine
  4. ↑ "PRIMUS TELECOMMUNICATIONS ACQUIRES AXICORP, AUSTRALIA'S FOURTH LARGEST TELECOMMUNICATIONS SERVICE PROVIDER". PR Newswire. 25 March 1996. Retrieved 9 September 2010.
  5. ↑ "Primus Awarded Full Carrier License in Australia - Expects Equal Access to Begin in July - 1997". PR Newswire. 9 July 1997. Retrieved 9 September 2010.
  6. ↑ "Gain Insight in to Australia Telecommunications Market". Business Wire. 23 February 2007. Retrieved 14 September 2010.
  7. ↑ "PRIMUS Acquires Data Communications Service Provider". PR Newswire. 6 April 1998. Retrieved 9 September 2010.
  8. ↑ "Hotkey History". Hotkey. Archived from the original on 8 August 2010. Retrieved 9 September 2010.
  9. ↑ "Primus to Buy Some Assets of Telegroup". Wall Street Journal. 31 May 1999. p. 8.
  10. ↑ "COMPANY NEWS; PRIMUS TELECOMMUNICATIONS BUYING TELEGROUP ASSETS". The New York Times. 29 March 1999. Retrieved 10 September 2010.
  11. ↑ "Telegroup, Inc. Announces Sale of Certain Australian Subsidiaries Which Had Been Placed in Administration" (Press release). New York: Business Wire. 11 March 1999.
  12. ↑ "PRIMUS Launches iPRIMUS.com to Attack Global Internet/Data Market". PRnewswire. 24 May 1999. Retrieved 15 September 2010.
  13. ↑ "Ombudsman advises One.Tel customers to make reasoned decisions" (Press release). Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman. 7 June 2001. Archived from the original on 28 November 2010. Retrieved 15 September 2010.
  14. ↑ "Primus Telecom Reports Record First Quarter 2003 Profit of A$10.7 Million" (Press release). Business Wire. 5 May 2003. Retrieved 16 September 2010.
  15. ↑ "PRIMUS Telecommunications to Acquire the Internet Service and Interactive Media Businesses from the Shareholders of AOL/7 and to License the AOL Brand in Australia". Business Wire. 11 February 2005. Retrieved 12 September 2010.
  16. ↑ "NetRegistry Acquires PlanetDomain" (Press release). NetRegistry. 19 February 2007. Retrieved 16 September 2010.
  17. ↑ "Imagineering Data Centre - Company Information" (Press release). Imagineering. 8 September 2008. Archived from the original on 21 November 2010. Retrieved 2 January 2011.
  18. ↑ "M2 acquisition of iPrimus" (Press release). Herald Sun. 16 April 2012. Retrieved 17 August 2012.
  19. ↑ "iPrimus to power Hungry Jacks WiFi" (Press release). 27 March 2012. Retrieved 17 August 2012.
  20. ↑ Primus Mobile
  21. ↑ Business SHDSL
  22. ↑ Business Speedster
  23. ↑ iPrimus Blackberry Business Solutions Archived 2009-12-21 at the Wayback Machine
  24. ↑ Primus Accella business solutions
  25. ↑ "Awards | About Primus | About Us". www.iprimus.com.au. Archived from the original on 4 June 2012.
  26. ↑ "Awards | About Primus | About Us". www.iprimus.com.au. Archived from the original on 4 June 2012.
  27. ↑ Roy Morgan April 2012 Results
  28. ↑ "iPrimus MobileBB". Archived from the original on 2 September 2012. Retrieved 17 August 2012.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.