Touch of data for Wilson & Horton

By RICHARD BRADDELL

WELLINGTON - Herald publisher Wilson & Horton is to take a stake in the burgeoning market for mobile data through a new company, iTouch New Zealand, which expects to be in business by March.

It will be part of the global network of iTouch International, which will be floated later this year by its 70 per cent owner and Wilson & Horton's Dublin-based parent, Independent News & Media.

Coming hard on the heels of America Online's sealing a $US178 billion ($343.3 billion) deal to buy Time Warner, Independent's shares rose 15 per cent to a 52-week high of 7.25 euros ($14.45).

"People are anticipating that Independent will realise value from its new digital strategy," Joan Garahy, of Goodbody Stockbrokers in Dublin, told Bloomberg.

Some market reports suggested iTouch International could be worth as much as $US500 million.

London-based iTouch, founded in Cape Town, is led by Independent News South Africa chief executive Ivan Fallon. It is a supplier to mobile cellular operators around the world, including Vodafone and its South African affiliate Vodacom.

It is now developing mobile data, wireless application protocol and mobile commerce applications in Australia, Britain, Ireland and South Africa. It will launch in Israel and has plans for Portugal, Holland, the United States and eastern Asia.

In New Zealand the new company will be headed by David Sweet, who as head of Vodafone's sales operations until last December, is credited with a large share of the responsibility in trebling Vodafone's subscriber numbers to 395,000.

Wilson & Horton chief executive John Sanders said Mr Sweet was ideally suited to run iTouch New Zealand.

"Our goal is to build on our existing valuable brands like the New Zealand Herald," he said.

In addition to providing transactional services, including banking and ticket purchases, the new company will draw on the global content resources of Independent News & Media, as well as buying in content from other sources.

Mr Sanders said the immediacy of mobile data technologies in providing news alerts, sporting updates and transactional services would be quickly adopted by New Zealanders and would grow faster than general internet use.

While iTouch would initially be delivered under a non-exclusive agreement with Vodafone, he said the agreement was distinct from plans for a global internet platform unveiled in Britain by Vodafone Airtouch yesterday.