If three's a crowd, what will a fourth telco bring?

Singapore

"IT is a period of civil war. Rebel tech companies, striking from a hidden base, have won their first victory against telecoms incumbents."

But, just as Star Wars is wont to end episodes on cliffhangers, the telco industry too is not tying anything up neatly as December draws to a close.

The coming year is sure to feature jostling and trodden toes, as the market here gets even more crowded.

Australian startup Zero Mobile elbowed its way into the Singapore market as a mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) this month. Fibre broadband company MyRepublic plans to make the leap to MVNO next year. And Australia's TPG Telecom is due to enter with its own mobile network.

These moves will follow a year that saw Singapore become a staging ground for the expansion of MyRepublic and MVNO Circles.Life. Incumbents, in turn, delivered their fair share of headlines - from Singtel's multibillion-dollar NetLink Trust divestment, to StarHub's surprise announcement that CEO Tan Tong …