One.Tel is the generic term used to describe a group of Australian based telecommunications companies, including principally the publicly listed One.Tel Limited (ACN 068 193 153) established in 1995 soon after deregulation of the Australian telecommunications industry, most of which are currently under external administration by court appointed liquidators. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Telecommunication involves the transmission of signals over a distance for the purpose of communication. ... Year 1995 (MCMXCV) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display full 1995 Gregorian calendar). ... In law, a liquidator is the officer appointed when a company goes into winding-up or liquidation who has responsibility for collecting in all of the assets of the company and settling all claims against the company before putting the company into dissolution. ...

The company was established by Jodee Rich and Brad Keeling and had high-profile backers such as the Murdoch and Packer families. James Packer and Lachlan Murdoch sat on the board of the company. Jodee Rich was a co-founder of the company One. ... Keith Rupert Murdoch AC, KCSG (born 11 March 1931) is an Australian born American citizen who is a global media executive and is the controlling shareholder, chairman and managing director of News Corporation, based in New York. ... Kerry Francis Bullmore Packer AC (17 December 1937 – 26 December 2005) was an Australian publishing, media and gaming tycoon. ... James Douglas Packer (1967-) is an Australian businessman and Australias richest man. ... Lachlan Keith Murdoch (born September 8, 1971), is the elder son of media mogul, Rupert Murdoch and the former Anna Torv. ...

One.Tel attempted to create a youth-oriented image to sell their mobile phones and One.Net internet services. It became Australia's fourth largest telecommunications company before collapsing in 2001. Rich and Keeling continued to pay themselves multi-million dollar performance bonuses while the company crumbled around them. The Packer and Murdoch families lost around a billion dollars between them, a significant embarrassment given the presence of the younger generation on the company's board. Year 2001 (MMI) was a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

The company's slogan was You'll tell your friends about One.Tel, to draw the connection between the brand and personal communication. The company also had a mascot known as "The Dude". The Dude was a cartoon-like depiction of a rather stupid man in his early twenties. His main role was to inform the public in television and print advertisements that even a stupid and lazy person such as himself could get a mobile telephone with One.Tel. The cartoonist responsible for drawing The Dude and many other of the company's graphic devices was also employed to paint large murals upon the garishly-painted walls of the company's offices all around the world. Internally, the company had a fondness for applying the One.- prefix to everything relating to the business: One.Dude, One.Team, etc.

A chronological outline of the One.Tel story

One.Tel began operations in May 1995. In 1999 One.Tel launched the One.Tel Next Generation GSM 1800 network in Sydney, Australia.

The original thought process began with a simple initiative: they wanted to start a new telephone company, one that the average person would understand. The company was very people focussed and focussed on the residential market, as opposed to corporate business. They wanted the consumer, or everyday person in the street, to have access to the entire suite of telephony products, which is why the company was marketed with the catch phrase “100% Telephone Company”.

At that time, the Company was firmly established in the telecommunications market, with operations in Australia, London, Paris, Amsterdam, Zurich, Frankfurt and Hong Kong.

One.Tel had three core product offerings: fixed wire long distance, Internet service provision and mobile telephony.

From 1998 through to 2000, One.Tel’s customer base more than tripled to 2.2 million and revenues doubled to $653 million. The business grew rapidly in Europe with One.Tel being the second most recognised brand in the UK for long distance behind BT at the time.

In February 1999, News Corporation (News) and Publishing and Broadcasting Limited (PBL) injected $709 million over three years.

In March 2000 One.Tel was successful in acquiring 15MHz spectrum across all major capital cities. The One.Tel Next Generation Network was launched nationally six months ahead of schedule. It was the most technologically advanced network in Australia and offered differentiating features via a Smart SIM including ‘Voicemail with Reply Now’, ‘Megaphone’ and location based information on demand services – features that are commonplace today.

At its peak, One.Tel’s strengths were recognised in consumer marketing and information systems, intuitive platforms and resources based on R&D in the Australian Next Generation Network, One.Tel continued to build quality, value for money telephony products and services while remaining a low cost producer for a time.

The pre-IPO years - 1995 to 1997

Jodee Rich and Brad Keeling decided to start a telephone company in August 1994. Jodee Rich developed a business plan for the company in September 1994. The ownership structure of the company in February 1995 was: Optus 28.5%; FAI 18%; James Packer 5%; Kalara Investments 50% (approximately). Kalara Investments was owned by Jodee Rich and Brad Keeling. The total initial seed capital for One.Tel was approximately $5 million. One.Tel was officially launched by Rodney Adler on 1 May 1995. 1994 (MCMXCIV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated as the International Year of the Family and the International Year of the Sport and the Olympic Ideal by United Nations. ... A business plan is a formal statement of a set of business goals, the reasons why they are believed attainable, and the plan for reaching those goals. ... Year 1995 (MCMXCV) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display full 1995 Gregorian calendar). ... SingTel Optus Pty Limited is the second largest telecommunications company in Australia, and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Singapore Telecommunications (ASX: SGT). ...

The link with Australia's second largest telecommunications company, Optus, proved crucial to the company's early success. One.Tel initially operated largely as a reseller of Optus services, receiving $120 for each mobile telephone customer that it attracted. The Optus contract was a wonderful deal for One.Tel and a terrible deal for Optus. One.Tel did not even need to sign up a customer to a long-term contract, it merely needed to have a customer accept a SIM card in order to receive $120 from Optus. This reportedly led to some unusual business practices, such as paying customers $10 to accept a new SIM card. Many SIM cards were never used. It also had an adverse impact on the credit-worthiness of One.Tel's customers, as One.Tel signed up many people who would not have been accepted as customers by other telephone carriers. It has been reported that One.Tel's customers were mainly "single mothers, pensioners and teenagers". This aspect of the business has led some commentators to speculate that the business was initially conceived as a pump and dump operation - a business that had no long-term future, but was being built up for a quick sale via an Initial Public Offering (IPO). SIM re-directs here; for alternate uses see Sim (disambiguation) A SIM card taken from a GSM mobile phone A subscriber identity module (SIM) is a smartcard securely storing the key identifying a mobile subscriber. ... The night singer of shares sold stock on the streets during the South Sea Bubble. ... An initial public offering (IPO) is the first sale of a corporations common shares to investors on a public stock exchange. ...

Between May 1995 and September 1996 One.Tel increased its customer base from zero to over 100,000. Optus decided to end its dealings with the company in September 1996, selling its shareholding back to the company for $4 million and paying compensation of $19.75 million for ending the $120 deal early. Year 1996 (MCMXCVI) was a leap year starting on Monday (link will display full 1996 Gregorian calendar). ...

In its annual report for the year ended 30 June 1997, One.Tel reported revenue of $148 million and a before tax profit of $7.5 million. At that time the company had almost 300 staff. 1997 (MCMXCVII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

From IPO to the onset of problems - 1997 to 2000

One.Tel floated on the Australian Stock Exchange at $2 per share in November 1997. Initial market capitalization was $208 million. On paper, FAI had turned a $950,000 investment into $51 million; Packer had turned $250,000 into $17 million and Rich and Keeling had a combined stake worth well over $100 million. The Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) is the primary stock exchange in Australia. ...

In addition, the company had paid out $4 million in dividends and $2.85 million in consulting fees to Rich, Keeling, FAI and Packer.

The original shareholders also received $16.9 million for the sale of two businesses, One.Net and One.Card to One.Tel in July 1998. Year 1998 (MCMXCVIII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display full 1998 Gregorian calendar). ...

In the financial year ended 30 June 1998 One.Tel reported a before tax profit of $8.8 million. During the year the company had commenced a 'Global Strategy', opening offices in Los Angeles, London, Paris, Frankfurt, Hong Kong, Amsterdam and Zurich. Flag Seal Nickname: City of Angels Location Location within Los Angeles County in the state of California Coordinates , Government State County California Los Angeles County Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa (D) Geographical characteristics Area     City 1,290. ... This article is about the capital of England and the United Kingdom. ... This article is about the capital of France. ... For other uses, see Frankfurt (disambiguation). ... Nickname: Motto: Heldhaftig, Vastberaden, Barmhartig (Valiant, Determined, Compassionate) Location of Amsterdam Coordinates: Country Netherlands Province North Holland Government  - Mayor Job Cohen (PvdA)  - Aldermen Lodewijk Asscher Hennah Buyne Carolien Gehrels Tjeerd Herrema Maarten van Poelgeest Marijke Vos  - Secretary Erik Gerritsen Area [1][2]  - City 219 km²  (84. ... Location within Switzerland   Zürich[?] (German pronunciation IPA: ; usually spelled Zurich in English) is the largest city in Switzerland (population: 366,145 in 2004; population of urban area: 1,091,732) and capital of the canton of Zürich. ...

In September 1998 the company purchased mobile spectrum in each of the Australian capital cities at a cost of $9.5 million with a view to establishing its own mobile network. The company was unable to secure bank finance for the deal, and James Packer and David Lowy provided $5 million each to fund the purchase. In most modern usages of the word spectrum, there is a unifying theme of between extremes at either end. ...

In December 1998 the Packer-controlled Consolidated Press Holdings purchased FAI's 16 million shares for $43 million. In February 1999 the Packer-controlled Publishing & Broadcasting Limited, in conjunction with News Limited agree to provide $710 million in return for a 40% stake in the company. The One.Tel share price hits a high of $13.55 in the days leading up to the announcement of the deal, prompting an insider-trading probe by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission. The News/PBL deal allowed the original shareholders to take more money from the company. Rich and Keeling received $62 million between them and James Packer received $20.5 million. Australian Consolidated Press (ACP), a member of Publishing and Broadcasting Ltd. ... Year 1999 (MCMXCIX) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1999 Gregorian calendar). ... Publishing and Broadcasting Limited, or PBL, is one of Australias major media companies. ... News Limited was the principal holding for the business interests of Rupert Murdoch until the formation of News Corporation in 1979. ... The Australian Securities & Investments Commission (ASIC) is an independent Australian government body that acts as Australias corporate regulator. ...

In the financial year ended 30 June 1999 One.Tel reported a before tax profit of $9.8 million.

The most remarkable day in the history of One.Tel was 23 November 1999. Lucent Technologies announced that it would build and finance a European GSM mobile network for One.Tel at a cost of up to US$10 billion. The company's market capitalization reaches a high of A$5.3 billion on 26 November 1999, making it one of Australia's largest 30 companies. On September 30, 1996, AT&T spun off its Systems and Technology units (AT&T Technologies, Inc. ... Not to be confused with Get Some Mates The Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) is the most popular standard for mobile phones in the world. ...

The emergence of problems - the year 2000

In March 2000 One.Tel spent $523 million on purchasing additional Australian spectrum licenses. The Packer and Murdoch families provide another $280 million in funding. Australian investors provide $340 million in funding. 2000 (MM) was a leap year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

In the financial year ended 30 June 2000 One.Tel reported a loss of $291 million. The share price plummeted to below $1. The annual report includes details of the remuneration of Rich and Keeling, a matter that is to prove controversial after the collapse. Each received a $560,000 basic salary and a $6.9 million bonus.

In statements that would prove ironic, in September James Packer tells Sydney Morning Herald jounalists that Rich is a visionary, that Brad and Jodee are excellent managers and that the share price will recover. ...

The end - 2001

In January 2001, Jodee met with Kerry Packer who told him, "You ran out of money with Imagineering, and you're going to do it again". A Macquarie Bank report states that the company was worth $3.5 billion, and the share price doubled within days. Merrill Lynch predicted that the company would run out of money by April. Year 2001 (MMI) was a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Kerry Francis Bullmore Packer AC (17 December 1937 – 26 December 2005) was an Australian publishing, media and gaming tycoon. ... Macquarie Bank Limited is an Australian merchant bank and financial services group, providing a broad range of products and services to investors, corporations and government. ... Merrill Lynch & Co. ...

In February, director Rodney Adler sold 5 million shares for $2.5 million. HIH Insurance was Australias second largest insurance company, which was placed into provisional liquidation on 15 March 2001. ...

During April and May the company's problems became increasingly apparent. In a final attempt to give the company a chance to survive, News Limited and PBL agreed to subscribe to a rights issue at 5 cents per share to supply another $132 million in much needed cash. News Limited and PBL reneged upon the agreement later in May when further evidence of One.Tel's financial problems emerged.

The directors appointed Ferrier Hodgson as administrator on 29 May 2001. The administrator's report states that the company was insolvent by March 2001. The administrator terminated approximately 3000 employees of the company on 8 June 2001.

Current developments - ongoing litigation

On 14 October 2005 the Sydney Morning Herald reported that the personal diaries of James Packer would be made available to ASIC to assist in its case against Jodee Rich. The Supreme Court of New South Wales ruled that the diaries should be made available to ASIC but warned that the material should not be used "in a manner that simply raises prurient or titillatory interest that is not directly relevant to the case". ASIC is reportedly seeking compensation of $92 million from Jodee Rich and the former One.Tel finance director, Mark Silbermann on the basis that they did not exercise their powers with respect to the company with due care and diligence. The Supreme Court of New South Wales is the highest state court for the Australian State of New South Wales. ...

RailCorp to use One.Tel's old network

The NSW Government announced plans to spend $200 million on a digital train radio system using the abandoned One.Tel network.

RailCorp has reached an agreement with the receiver of the telecommunications company One.Tel to buy necessary digital bandwidth to provide coverage of the state's train network.

One.Tel Abroad

Centrica acquired the UK business of One.Tel in 2001 and ran it successfully for some years. On 15 October 2005, Centrica stated that it wished to sell the UK One.Tel to concentrate on its oil and gas businesses. Ironically, a mooted purchaser was News Corporation. However, on 19 December 2005 The Carphone Warehouse announced it was buying the company to merge its customers with its TalkTalk telecommunications offering. Centrica plc (LSE: CNA) is a large multinational company, based in the UK but also with interests in North America and Europe. ... The Carphone Warehouse Group PLC (LSE: CPW), known as The Carphone Warehouse, is Europes largest independent mobile phone retailer, with over 1,700 stores across Europe. ... TalkTalk is the consumer telephone business of The Carphone Warehouse Group plc. ...

Scarlet acquired the Dutch business of One.Tel by a merger also in 2001.

See also

• List of notable business failures

The following is a list of notable business failures, known either for marking the end of a well-known brand, for criminal proceedings associated with their demise (often fraud or other corporate crime) or for causing significant financial problems or suffering. ...

Further reading

Paul Barry, Rich Kids, Bantam Books, 2002, ISBN 1-86325-338-6 Paul Barry reporting for Four Corners in 1993 Paul Barry (1952 - ) is a British-born, Australian-based journalist, who has won many awards for his investigative reporting. ...

External links

ASIC media releases

• http://www.asic.gov.au/asic/asic_pub.nsf/byheadline/One-Tel+file?openDocument File of ASIC media releases on One.Tel

Other One.Tel Websites

• http://www.onetel.com One.Tel UK Site
• http://www.topup2talk.com Operated by OneTel's Just Dial

Media coverage

• Barry, Paul. "The great One.Tel giveaway", The Age, 8 April 2002. 
• anonymous. "Packer ordered to give diaries to watchdog", Sydney Morning Herald, 14 October 2005. 
• Lampe, Anne. "One.Tel quiz looms for Packer", Sydney Morning Herald, 15 October 2005. 
• Lampe, Anne. "One.Tel auditor was linked to Packer", Sydney Morning Herald, 26 October 2005. 
• Lampe, Anne. "One.Tel liquidators told to show work", Sydney Morning Herald, 3 November 2005.