MobiTV Releases
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3UK, Orange, Teléfónica, and Vodafone Trial Mobile TV Powered by TDtv Technology
Pan-European Operator Group Work with IPWireless and MobiTV to Jointly Test Mobile TV Solution that Leverages Existing 3G Spectrum
London, October 11, 2006 – 3UK, Orange, Telefónica, and Vodafone today announce the launch of a technical trial of TDtv, the UMTS TD-CDMA-3GPP Multimedia Broadcast and Multicast Services (MBMS) standard-based solution. The trial is expected to provide valuable insights for mobile operators into the potential of using their existing spectrum and infrastructure to deliver mobile television and other multimedia services.
The TDtv trial, which is scheduled to run to the end of the year, will test key performance and deployment aspects of the mobile TV technology. TDtv base stations provided by IPWireless have been deployed on 12 cell sites covering parts of Bristol in the UK to provide broadcast services to TDtv enabled smart phones. MobiTV, Inc., the international mobile and broadband television services company, will provide the client application, as well as facilitate the mobile content and operational components of the trial.
TDtv operates in the universal unpaired 3G spectrum bands that are available across Europe and Asia at 1900MHz and 2010MHz. It allows UMTS operators to further utilize their existing spectrum and network infrastructure to offer subscribers attractive mobile TV and multimedia packages without impacting other voice and data 3G services.
TDtv enables mobile operators to deliver multiple TV channels to an unlimited number of customers. Mobile operators deploying TDtv would also be able to deliver digital audio, multicast, or other IP data cast services to enhance their service offerings to customers.
David Cooper, Chief technology Officer of 3 UK, said: “3 UK is pleased to participate in this trial as part of its quest to understand more about the different mobile TV broadcast solutions. This fits in with our business strategy of always ensuring that our customers have access to the best services possible.”
“It is encouraging to have so much industry interest and support in this exciting trial,” said Vivek Badrinath, Executive Vice President, Product Technology and Innovation, Orange. “We believe that it is important that leading service and content providers work together to examine options for future mobile TV platforms and pave the way for an enhanced customer experience and new era of mobile TV.”
"This experience forms part of the evaluation procedure being developed by Telefónica to assess the different technologies available on the market capable of supporting Mobile TV services", said Cayetano Lluch Mesquida, Managing Director, Technology and Services, Telefónica Móviles España. ”The development of multi-operator trial systems across Europe should be a stimulus for the evaluation, standardisation and development of new technologies.”
Professor Michael Walker, Director of Research and Development at Vodafone said: “Trials are an extremely important part of our strategic product development. In the case of mobile TV, there are a number of technologies emerging that must be fully explored so that we have a comprehensive understanding of how the technologies work and the experience they will offer. Currently the most interesting technologies are the variants of MBMS and DVB-H and this trial forms part of the MBMS assessments we are undertaking.”
As TDtv is based on the 3GPP family of standards, integration of TDtv with WCDMA on both the network and device side is simplified. Jointly testing TDtv will allow the operators to assess the coexistence of TDtv channels with neighbouring TD-CDMA and WCDMA networks.
About IPWireless
IPWireless develops advanced next generation mobile broadband
and multimedia technology based on global standards. The company's
TD-CDMA technology has emerged as a leading global standard
for wireless broadband, allowing operators and public safety
agencies to offer a spectrum of completely mobile, portable,
or stationary end-to-end packet-based services with unmatched
economics and performance. Its TD-CDMA-based TDtv solution
allows mobile operators to offer mobile television and other
multimedia services in existing spectrum. TD-CDMA has the highest
average sector capacity, the strongest cell edge performance,
and the lowest cost per megabit of any standards-based mobile
technology available today, and is deployed by leading operators
around the world. The IPWireless Partner Program and
chipsets allow device manufacturers and infrastructure vendors
to very quickly bring innovative new TD-CDMA solutions to market.
For more information, visit the company's Web site at www.ipwireless.com
About
MobiTV
MobiTV,
Inc. (www.mobitv.com)
is leading the convergence of television, film and music content
across the mobile and personal computing markets. The Emmy® Award
winning service has more than one million subscribers and offers
popular TV and digital radio channels from top labels, networks
and cable providers. The MobiTV® service
is available in; the US through AT&T, Sprint, Cingular, Alltel; the UK through
3UK and Orange; in Canada through Bell Canada, Rogers and TELUS Mobility; in
Latin America through América Móvil, Claro and Telcel; and other
regional carriers internationally. Founded in 1999, MobiTV
is a privately-held company headquartered in Emeryville, CA.
About 3
3 is a mobile media company delivering a convergence of communications,
entertainment and information to customers on the move. The
three areas which form the core of its business are:
- Communications – including all forms of personal communications, voice and video calling; text, picture and video messaging; and mobile blogging
- Entertainment – including television, music audio and video, computer games, and media publishing
- Information services – including wireless web, access to the best of the internet and a range of news services
3 UK is a member of the HWL group of 3G companies, which include 3G operations in Australia, Austria, Denmark, Hong Kong, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Sweden and soon Norway.
Three facts about 3:
- 3, a mobile media company, launched the UK's first 3G network
- 3 has over 3.75 million customers in the UK and over 13.5 million worldwide (August 2006 figures)
- The 3 network offers national coverage for calls and texts, and over 89% population coverage for 3G services.
For further information, please visit: www.three.co.uk or call the 3 Media Office on 020 7350 5696.
About Orange
Orange, wirefreeand
any other Orange product or service referred to in this release
are trademarks of Orange Personal Communications Services
Limited. Orange UK provides high quality coverage to 99%
of the UK population, and offers roaming to pay monthly customers
on 357 networks in 148 countries and to pay as you go customers
on 94 networks in 53 countries. As at the end of March 2005,
Orange was the largest mobile operator in the UK with over
14.3 million active customers. As at the end of December
2004, Orange controlled companies had almost 54 million customers
worldwide. In October 2004, Orange UK won the Mobile Choice
Consumer Awards - voted for by readers of Mobile Choice magazine – for
Best Network Operator for the fourth year running. Information
about Orange can be found on the Orange website at www.orange.co.uk and
media information can be found at www.orange.com
About Telefónica Móviles
Telefónica Móviles España (www.empresa.movistar.es)
is the mobile operator of Telefónica in the Spanish
market. As of June 2006, Telefónica Móviles España
had almost 20.7 million customers and a wide catalogue of services
and applications with the latest mobile technology, such as
UMTS. Movistar is the brand for the mobile companies of Telefónica
Group in Spain and Latin America with exception of Brazil.
About Vodafone
Vodafone is the world's leading international mobile telecommunications
group with equity interests in 27 countries across 5 continents
with 186.8 million proportionate customers worldwide as at
30 June 2006 as well as 33 partner networks. For further
information, please visit www.vodafone.com
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For further press information contact:
IPWireless Ed Howson +44 (207) 981 9783 ehowson@ipwireless.com |
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