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Leading Mobile Phone Vendors Working Together to Drive Mobile Broadcast Services

Posted on: Friday, 10 September 2004, 06:00 CDT

ESPOO, Finland, September 10 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Motorola, NEC, Nokia, Siemens and Sony Ericsson today announced their co-operation in the Mobile Broadcast Services work, started under Open Mobile Alliance, OMA. The charter of the work is to specify the enablers needed to bring broadcast services to mobile devices and to open up the market for new exciting mobile services and terminals.

A likely spearhead service of mobile broadcast is mobile phone TV, a way to receive TV-like content to your mobile phone delivered over a mobile broadcast network. In general, mobile broadcast will enable cost efficient mobile mass delivery of any multimedia content. This is believed strongly to increase the consumption of media content using mobile devices. This is expected to drive the demand of new type of broadcast enabled smart phones with colour displays, local memory and applications to consume TV-like and other multimedia content.

"Content is king", says Steffen Ring of Motorola PCS, Chief Technology Office, "but mobility is queen. And we have come together to make this royal marriage happen."

"NEC developed the world's first working prototype of a mobile phone capable of receiving terrestrial digital TV broadcasting last year," says Masaaki Ohara, Senior Manager of NEC Mobile Terminals Division. "Driving Mobile Broadcast is essential for enabling end-users to enjoy various attractive services through our mobile phones. NEC hopes to contribute to driving these activities through participating in this charter."

"Mobile TV is one of the most fascinating new services with high consumer demand. A mobile device capable of both receiving broadcasted content and of communicating over the cellular network opens up the possibilities for innovative and exciting new services. The services can easily be accessed by consumers with these new types of devices. Nokia is happy to be one of the drivers of this development, and will introduce a mobile broadcast solution based on IPDC over DVB-H to the market," said Seppo Sutela, General Manager, IPDC, Nokia.

Jens-Thomas Pietralla, Chief Marketing Officer and Member of the Board of Mobile Phones, Siemens Information and Communication Mobile Group explained, "The mobile phone industry is changing rapidly. A mobile phone has already become a fashion accessory, a miniature office, a gaming machine, and an eclectic entertainment device. And with growing network bandwidth converging with cheaper, more advanced handset technology, consumers have every right to start getting excited about the arrival of richer mobile broadcast content. That's why Siemens mobile is thrilled to get involved with this charter - we will be a major part of delivering the devices that will play awesome content on the move."

Mats Lindoff, CTO of Sony Ericsson, says: "The ability to watch TV like content in a mobile phone is a natural next step of the advanced mobile multimedia services which are increasingly popular with consumers, and Sony Ericsson will be part of driving this evolution."

Mobile phone TV services are being introduced on the Japanese market while in Europe the market for commercial mobile broadcast services is envisaged to start to open up towards the end of 2005.

About Motorola

Motorola, Inc. is a global leader in wireless, broadband and automotive communications technologies that help make life smarter, safer, simpler, synchronized and fun. Sales in 2003 were US$27.1 billion. Motorola creates innovative technological solutions that benefit people at home, at work and on the move. The company also is a progressive corporate citizen dedicated to operating ethically, protecting the environment and supporting the communities in which it does business. For more information: http://www.motorola.com/

About NEC Corporation

NEC Corporation (FTSE: 6701q.l) is one of the world's leading providers of Internet, broadband network and enterprise business solutions dedicated to meeting the specialized needs of its diverse and global base of customers. Ranked as one of the world's top patent-producing companies, NEC delivers tailored solutions in the key fields of computer, networking and electron devices, by integrating its technical strengths in IT and Networks, and by providing advanced semiconductor solutions through NEC Electronics Corporation. The NEC Group employs more than 140,000 people worldwide and had net sales of approximately $44 billion in the fiscal year ended March 2004. For additional information, please visit the NEC home page at: http://www.nec.com/.

About Nokia

Nokia is the world leader in mobile communications, driving the growth and sustainability of the broader mobility industry. Nokia is dedicated to enhancing people's lives and productivity by providing easy-to-use and secure products like mobile phones, and solutions for imaging, games, media, mobile network operators and businesses. Nokia is a broadly held company with listings on five major exchanges. http://www.nokia.com/.

About Siemens

The Siemens Information and Communication Mobile Group (Siemens mobile) is one of the world's leading full-line suppliers in the field of mobile communication, offering mobile phones, cordless phones, wireless modules and mobile infrastructure, as well as all radio and switching modules, consulting services and systems integration. The mobile communication arm of Siemens AG markets products and services in more than 120 countries, generating sales of EUR 10 billion with a workforce of some 26,900 people in fiscal 2003 (September 30). Siemens mobile is the world market leader in prepaid solutions and digital cordless phones. More: http://www.siemens-mobile.com/press.

About Sony Ericsson

Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications AB offers mobile communications products for people who appreciate the possibilities of powerful technology. Established in 2001 by Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson and Sony Corporation, the joint venture continues to build on the success of its two innovative parent companies. Sony Ericsson creates value for its operator customers by bringing new ways of using multimedia communications while mobile. The company's management is based in London, and has 4,000 employees across the globe working on research, development, design, sales, marketing, distribution and support. For further information, please visit: http://www.sonyericsson.com/

Nokia

CONTACT: Motorola, Jakob Cederquist, Communication & Public AffairsManager, Motorola Nordic, Mobile: +46-708-44-45-44, Email:jakob.cederquist@motorola.com. NEC Corporation, AkikoShikimori, Telephone: +81-3-3798-6511, E-mail:a-shikimori@ay.jp.nec.com. Nokia, Riitta Mard, Telephone:+358-7180-36117, E-mail: press.office@nokia.com. Siemens,Sandra Grohmann, Telephone: +49-89-722-32-431, Email:grohmann.sandra@siemens.com. Sony Ericsson, Sony EricssonCorporate Communications, Telephone: +44-208-762-5858, E-mail:info@SonyEricsson.com

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