Onvol, Hello, Melita Cable and Melita Digital will only be a memory as from next Monday, with the holistic rebranding of Melita when all services will fall under one umbrella.

In a re-branding press conference at the Mediterranean Conference Centre yesterday, Melita’s Chief Operations Officer, Stephen Wright (photo) also said that Melita is soon going to introduce mobile telephony after taking on board suggestions from customers that have reacted positively to product bundling.

As from 1 September, the existing Melita Cable, Melita Digital, Hello, Onvol and Melita Business Communica-tions brands will fuse into one rebranded Melita.

These individual brands and their respective logos will cease to exist and will be replaced by the refreshed Melita brand. This will not affect any benefits enjoyed by subscribers from current product packages.

During question time, Mr Wright hinted at the launch of a new service in October, but would not be drawn into commenting further. The Malta Independent also posed the question of emerging technologies such as internet TV, video on demand, high definition television and others being incorporated into Melita’s basket of products.

Coyly, Mr Wright answered: “Our organisation is looking into what our customers want, some of these services make sense and others don’t, but we will be looking into introducing new products.

“This rebranding represents the shift from a multi-brand company to a complete home entertainment and communications solution – one source, one name, one brand,” said Mr Wright.

“We wanted to introduce a customer-focused, forward-thinking communications company to the Maltese Islands. This is a brand committed to listen to you, work for you and is all about you. Welcome to a fresh Melita experience.”

The essence of the reinvented Melita brand aims to simplify technology and amplify possibilities. Four core values lie at the heart of the Melita brand: human, flexible, empowering and reliable.

“The Melita brand is best summed up in one sentence Your world with you. It is an expression of a wide range of Melita’s experiences. It is a quick and easy way to remember what the brand does best - Melita empowers customers and provides them with the tools to build their own world of entertainment and communications,” Mr. Wright explained.

In line with this commitment, Melita has re-engineered its Customer Assistance Centre to offer a 24-hour, 7 days a week, customer service. The 24/7 operation kicks off on 1 September and customers can avail themselves from a single telephone number as a point of contact for all requirements: 27 27 27 27.

“Melita is very proud of its 17 year heritage as a pioneer in introducing breakthrough technology, to assist customers improve their quality of life. Our name is our pride, and research has shown that our customers and our employees are equally proud of Melita’s reputation.”

In the last months, the company commissioned professional market research to evaluate the strength and weaknesses of Melita’s house of brands and, subsequently, applied sound marketing communications strategies to reinvent a fresh and dynamic Melita brand.

Over the last months, a great evolution has been taking place within the company after GMT Communication Partners and M/C Ventures Ltd joined forces with Melita. As the rebranding project continues to unfold across all levels of the company’s operation, in the coming months Melita is set to grow further as it enters the mobile telephony market with a new offering. Melita holds a license from the Malta Communications Authority to operate a fully-fledged mobile network.

“We are determined to remain the leading provider of communications and home entertainment solutions in the Maltese Islands. Melita’s rebranding exercise is the first step in our journey towards launching a latest generation mobile network, thus becoming a quadruple provider for television, internet, telephony and mobile,” Mr Wright concluded.

Melita was launched in 1991 to provide cable television services in the Maltese Islands. Over the years, Melita branched out into new areas of communication services such as high speed broadband internet, fixed line telephony and corporate services. The analogue TV platform has now migrated to digital. Melita employs over 300 people, structured in a flat organisation with a young and energetic management team of eight people.

In the first six months of 2008, Melita created 88 employment opportunities, representing a 20 per cent net increase in its human resources base.

Melita has almost 50,000 subscribers on its fixed line telephony platform, 50,000 broadband internet subscribers and over 100,000 households connected to cable TV.