FED: Telstra to switch off CDMA network from midnight

AAP General News (Australia)
04-28-2008
FED: Telstra to switch off CDMA network from midnight

Telstra's CDMA network will be switched off tonight .. amid lingering concerns some
people in the bush could be left out of the mobile phone loop.

The CDMA network will be shut down across the country from midnight .. closing a significant
chapter in the history of telecommunications in Australia.

Telstra is urging customers to switch to its more modern Next G network.

But Federal MP TONY WINDSOR says he has concerns about the quality of the Next G platform
coverage .. and says there's also a risk people in remote areas could be left isolated
in emergencies.

Telstra Country Wide director GARY GOLDSWORTHY says nothing has been left to chance
.. and all customers have been informed of the impending shutdown.



The CDMA service was launched in September 1999 .. and had more than one million customers
at its peak .. most in rural and regional Australia.

AAP RTV kms/sw/psm/

KEYWORD: CDMA (CANBERRA)

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