Almost one third of mobile subscribers in the Netherlands are customers of virtual operators, according to a report published this week by Dutch analyst house Telecom Paper. The total number of MVNO subs in the market has now hit 6.6 million, or 32.8 per cent of the total subscriber base, the analyst said.

Dutch carrier KPN is the latest operator to join the revolt against flat rate data charges and is likely to introduce usage-based tariffs by the end of the year.

It’s been a week of pecuniary punishments in the Low Countries, with carriers in both Belgium and the Netherlands on the receiving end of regulatory remonstrations. First up was Proximus, a carrier with a name that makes it sound like a character from the film Gladiator. It’s appropriate, really, as the firm – which is the mobile arm of incumbent telco Belgacom and the market leader – seems to feel as if it’s been stabbed in the back by a petty, power-crazed ruler.

Dutch operator KPN said this week it has launched a nationwide mobile TV service based on the European Standard, DVB-H. Users of the KPN service, MobielTV, have access to a choice of ten channels, accessible via DVB-H-capable devices delivered by Nokia. KPB said the channels Nederland 1, Nederland 3, RTL4, RTL24, SBS6, Jetix/Veronica, MTV Music, [...]