1999
Primus originally entered the Australian telecommunications market in 1996 by acquiring Australia's fourth largest telecommunications service provider, Axicorp. Primus Telecom was one of the first carriers to be granted a telecommunications license in 1997. Prior to this Australia's telecommunications industry was operated as a duopoly between the former Australian Government owned Telecom Australia, later re-branded Telstra and Optus, before the market was opened to full competition in July 1997.
1998 saw Primus expand their operations further in Australia with the acquisition of Eclipse Telecommunications Pty. Ltd. and Hotkey Internet Services Pty Limited.
In 1999 Primus' parent company Primus Telecommunications Inc. purchased the retail operations of Telegroup Inc., a long-distance telephone company based in Fairfield, Iowa who was in Chapter 11 bankruptcy. This acquisition included the Australian subsidiary of Telegroup which allowed Primus to improve their capabilities in the Australian market.
1999 was also the year Primus Australia's U.S parent company launched the iPrimus brand to spearhead the organisations:
...strategy of aggressively gaining retail market share by offering 'one- stop' shopping for bundled voice, data, Internet and cellular services...
Read more about this topic: Primus Telecommunications (Australia), History, Market Entry 1997