Pelephone ( he, פלאפון, , lit. "wonder phone") is a
mobile network operator
A mobile network operator (MNO), also known as a wireless service provider, wireless carrier, cellular company, or mobile network carrier, is a provider of wireless communications services that owns or controls all the elements necessary to sel ...
in
Israel
Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
, and also the first company to offer
mobile telephony
Mobile telephony is the provision of telephone services to phones which may move around freely rather than stay fixed in one location. Telephony is supposed to specifically point to a voice-only service or connection, though sometimes the li ...
services in Israel. Due to this, the
brand-name
A brand is a name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that distinguishes one seller's good or service from those of other sellers. Brands are used in business, marketing, and advertising for recognition and, importantly, to create a ...
"Pelephone" became the
genericized trademark
A generic trademark, also known as a genericized trademark or proprietary eponym, is a trademark or brand name that, because of its popularity or significance, has become the generic term for, or synonymous with, a general class of products or ...
for mobile phones in Israel, regardless of service provider. The company is a subsidiary of the Israeli telecommunications conglomerate
Bezeq
Bezeq ( he, בזק) is an Israeli telecommunications company. Bezeq and its subsidiaries offer a range of telecom services, including fixed-line, mobile telephony, high-speed Internet, transmission, and pay TV (via Yes).
History
Bezeq was fo ...
, which is also the principal provider of terrestrial telephone service in the country. As of June 2016 Pelephone had 2.26 million wireless subscribers.
History
![Givatajjim097](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/62/Givatajjim097.jpg)
Pelephone was founded as a company in 1985 as a joint venture between
Motorola
Motorola, Inc. () was an American Multinational corporation, multinational telecommunications company based in Schaumburg, Illinois, United States. After having lost $4.3 billion from 2007 to 2009, the company split into two independent p ...
and
Tadiran Tadiran refers to a former Israeli conglomerate, which was founded in 1962 by the merger of two companies, Tadir and Ran (itself founded as a batteries manufacturer in 1932). The name of the company is a joining of both companies’ names.
Through ...
, after Motorola was awarded the contract to build Israel's first mobile phone network in November 1983. Pelephone began operations of its mobile phone network in March 1986. Pelephone's first television commercial featured Israeli actor
Hanan Goldblatt
Hanan Goldblatt ( he, חנן גולדבלט; born October 10, 10 October 1941) is an Israeli actor, comedian and singer who appeared in plays, films, television programs, and who was most widely known for his part in the educational TV show "Bli S ...
using his
car phone
A car phone is a mobile radio telephone specifically designed for and fitted into an automobile.
This service originated with the Bell System and was first used in St. Louis on June 17, 1946.
Overview
The original equipment weighed , and th ...
to buy and sell shares via a
stockbroker
A stockbroker is a regulated broker, broker-dealer, or registered investment adviser (in the United States) who may provide financial advisory and investment management services and execute transactions such as the purchase or sale of stocks an ...
while driving at the same time.
In 1994, Bezeq acquired 50% ownership of Pelephone, and in 2004 acquired full ownership of the company from its co-owner
Motorola
Motorola, Inc. () was an American Multinational corporation, multinational telecommunications company based in Schaumburg, Illinois, United States. After having lost $4.3 billion from 2007 to 2009, the company split into two independent p ...
.
In December 2011 Pelephone became the host network of "
Rami Levy Communications
Rami Levy Communications ( he, רמי לוי תקשורת) is a mobile virtual network operator in Israel, using the network from Pelephone. Founded in 2011, it is owned by Rami Levy Hashikma Marketing. The prefix assigned to Rami Levy Communic ...
", the first
MVNO
A mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) is a wireless communications services provider that does not own the wireless network infrastructure over which it provides services to its customers. An MVNO enters into a business agreement with a mobile ...
to begin operating in Israel. As of 2012, Pelephone states that it has 4,500 employees, although the workers' union says that there are just 3,800.
YouPhone (Alon Cellular) was a member of the Pelephone network as a virtual
MVNO
A mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) is a wireless communications services provider that does not own the wireless network infrastructure over which it provides services to its customers. An MVNO enters into a business agreement with a mobile ...
operator. It was established as a subsidiary of Alon Blue Square Israel, but since 2015 it has been owned completely by Pelephone and also merged its operations with Pelephone.
Network
The Pelephone network started as
AMPS/NAMPS in the 850 MHz band. In the mid-to-late 1990s it converted to
IS-95
Interim Standard 95 (IS-95) was the first ever CDMA-based digital cellular technology. It was developed by Qualcomm and later adopted as a standard by the Telecommunications Industry Association in TIA/EIA/IS-95 release published in 1995. The ...
CDMA
Code-division multiple access (CDMA) is a channel access method used by various radio communication technologies. CDMA is an example of multiple access, where several transmitters can send information simultaneously over a single communication ...
and later added
CDMA2000
CDMA2000 (also known as C2K or IMT Multi‑Carrier (IMT‑MC)) is a family of 3G mobile technology standards for sending voice, data, and signaling data between mobile phones and cell sites. It is developed by 3GPP2 as a backwards-compatible ...
/
EV-DO
Evolution-Data Optimized (EV-DO, EVDO, etc.) is a telecommunications standard for the wireless transmission of data through radio signals, typically for broadband Internet access. EV-DO is an evolution of the CDMA2000 (IS-2000) standard which su ...
capabilities as well.
A
UMTS
The Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) is a third generation mobile cellular system for networks based on the GSM standard. Developed and maintained by the 3GPP (3rd Generation Partnership Project), UMTS is a component of the Inte ...
network in the 850/2100 MHz bands was launched in early 2009 and in March of that year, Pelephone stopped selling cellphones that use the CDMA system. In mid-2010, the UMTS network was upgraded to
HSPA+
Evolved High Speed Packet Access, HSPA+, HSPA (Plus) or HSPAP, is a technical standard for wireless broadband telecommunication. It is the second phase of HSPA which has been introduced in 3GPP release 7 and being further improved in later 3GPP ...
. In 2014 the company launched an
LTE network in the 1800 MHz band.
In April 2017, Pelephone announced plans to shut down their CDMA network over the summer, and did so on June 28, 2017.
Operations and services
Pelephone lost its monopoly status in 1994, when
Cellcom was founded, breaking Pelephone's monopoly as a mobile network operator, and in 1999, a third competitor,
Partner
Partner, Partners, The Partner, or, The Partners may refer to:
Books
* ''The Partner'' (Grisham novel), by John Grisham, 1997
* ''The Partner'' (Jenaro Prieto novel), 1928
* ''The Partners'' (book), a 1983 book by James B. Stewart
* ''Partner'' (m ...
(formerly known as
Orange
Orange most often refers to:
*Orange (fruit), the fruit of the tree species '' Citrus'' × ''sinensis''
** Orange blossom, its fragrant flower
*Orange (colour), from the color of an orange, occurs between red and yellow in the visible spectrum
* ...
) was established.
The
prefix (area code) for Pelephone customers is 050, although customers who requested to keep their old number from a different cellular company may have a different area code, as required by law.
Hii mobile
![Hii mobile](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2f/Hii_mobile.png)
On April 11, 2016, Pelephone launched a new mobile brand "Hii-Mobile", in cooperation with Hunnam (owned by
Yaakov Kedmi
Yaakov Kedmi ( he, יעקב קדמי; born 5 March 1947 in Moscow), also known as Yasha Kazakov and Yakov Iosifovich Kazakov (russian: Яков Иосифович Казако́в) is an Israeli politician and diplomat. He was the head ...
). This brand appeals particularly to young people, soldiers and students with attractive offers and packages for this target audience.
Pmobile
Pelephone and the Bug Multisystem retail chain launched the cellphone brand "Pmobile" in May 2016. The brand offers Pelephone network services at prices significantly lower than normal.
Criticism
Involvement in Israeli settlements
On 12 February 2020, the
United Nations
The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...
published a
database
In computing, a database is an organized collection of data stored and accessed electronically. Small databases can be stored on a file system, while large databases are hosted on computer clusters or cloud storage. The design of databases sp ...
of companies doing business related in the
West Bank
The West Bank ( ar, الضفة الغربية, translit=aḍ-Ḍiffah al-Ġarbiyyah; he, הגדה המערבית, translit=HaGadah HaMaʽaravit, also referred to by some Israelis as ) is a landlocked territory near the coast of the Mediter ...
, including
East Jerusalem
East Jerusalem (, ; , ) is the sector of Jerusalem that was held by Jordan during the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, as opposed to the western sector of the city, West Jerusalem, which was held by Israel.
Jerusalem was envisaged as a separat ...
, as well as in the occupied
Golan Heights
The Golan Heights ( ar, هَضْبَةُ الْجَوْلَانِ, Haḍbatu l-Jawlān or ; he, רמת הגולן, ), or simply the Golan, is a region in the Levant spanning about . The region defined as the Golan Heights differs between di ...
.
Pelephone was listed on the database on account of its activities in
Israeli settlements
Israeli settlements, or Israeli colonies, are civilian communities inhabited by Israeli citizens, overwhelmingly of Jewish ethnicity, built on lands occupied by Israel in the 1967 Six-Day War. The international community considers Israeli se ...
in these occupied territories,
which are considered
illegal under international law.
See also
*
Bezeq
Bezeq ( he, בזק) is an Israeli telecommunications company. Bezeq and its subsidiaries offer a range of telecom services, including fixed-line, mobile telephony, high-speed Internet, transmission, and pay TV (via Yes).
History
Bezeq was fo ...
*
Walla!
Walla! Communications Ltd. ( he, וואלה! תקשורת בע"מ) is an Israeli internet company headquartered in Tel Aviv and is fully owned by The Jerusalem Post. Until 2020, it was fully owned by Bezeq. Walla!'s web portal provides news, sea ...
*
Spacecom
Spacecom, or Space Communication (), is an Israeli communications satellite operator in the Middle East, European Union and North America headquartered in the city of Ramat Gan, Israel. Spacecom operates two satellites at orbital position 4° ...
References
{{Eurocom Group
Mobile phone companies of Israel
Israeli brands
1986 establishments in Israel