Press Releases

Seville Consumer DVB-H Trial a Huge Success

Highlights:
- 80.08% of the participants would recommend the Mobile TV service
- 8 out of 10 participants consider the service "very easy" to use
- News, series and magazine programmes are, in that order, the most popular content
- The trial started on the 16th December and involved 300 consumers within the city of Seville

Seville, Spain - Abertis Telecom, Nokia and Vodafone España today presented the first conclusions of a pilot scheme for digital television on mobile phones, based on DVB-H (Digital Video Broadcasting - Handheld) technology, which began in the city on the 16th December 2005.

300 users took part in the pilot which offered 14 television channels from a variety of local broadcasters including, Antena 3 TV, Net TV, Sogecable, Telecinco, RTVA (Canal Sur), RTVE, RTVV (Canal Nou) and Veo TV.

The key finding is that 72.8% of those taking part are very or quite interested in Mobile TV while 80.08% would recommend it.

In addition, participants used the service for 35.39 minutes on average per day and 37.90 minutes at weekends.

The most popular content among participants was news, series and magazine programmes. This compares with films, sport and documentaries which are the most popular content on traditional terrestrial broadcast TV services.

Mobility, use of available time and fast access to news or to a favourite programme are the three core factors contributing to the success of the service which, for 8 out of 10 participants, was 'very easy' to use.

DVB-H (Digital Video Broadcast Handheld) technology involves adapting terrestrial digital television standards to the specific requirements imposed by its use on the move, such as low battery consumption and small screen size.

The Mayor of Seville, Alfredo Sánchez Monteseirín, together with directors from Abertis Telecom, Nokia and Vodafone España, presented the results of this consumer Mobile TV trial at an event in Seville on Friday 5 May. Seville was selected for the pilot four months ago as a city at the forefront of technical innovation. In addition to the consumer trial, the project has also involved the creation of an experimental platform for mobile TV and the development of new technologies for mobile communications.

Abertis, Nokia and Vodafone España declared that they were highly satisfied with the first conclusions on this new system for delivering mobile television, which offers consumers content which they are already familiar with from conventional television services.

Abertis Telecom
Abertis Telecom is the leading telecommunications infrastructures and services group in Spain. Through Tradia and Retevisión, it has more than 3,000 sites for the broadcast and distribution of analogue and digital radio and television signals. It also provides the widest range of mobile radio communication services for security and emergency telecommunications services for telephone operators. It is part of Abertis, the leading private corporation in Spain in the management of transport and communications infrastructures.

Vodafone
VODAFONE España is part of the Vodafone Group, the leading mobile phone company in the world, with the presence of 27 countries and agreements with another 32 throughout the five continents. VODAFONE provides a full range of mobile telecommunications services, including voice and data communication, to be accessed by a proportional figure of more than 179 million customers. The almost 13 million Vodafone España customers benefit from the experience and capacity of this leading world company, which helps its customers - individuals, businesses and communities - to be better connected in the mobile world.

Vodafone is a global organisation recognised throughout the world because of the quality of its service and the innovation in its products. Vodafone's latest global service range, Vodafone live!, with 3G, opens up a world of mobile communication in colour through messages with photos and videos, also providing television, video games, polyphonic melodies and real music, news, e-mail, chat and services based on the location. Vodafone live! is available in 23 countries and has more than 38 million active customers throughout the world.

Nokia
Nokia is the world leader in mobile communications, promoting the growth and sustainability of the mobility sector as a whole. Nokia connects people and allows them to access the information they are interested in, providing innovative, easy-to-use products such as mobile phones, devices and solutions for the world of images, games, communications media and business. Nokia provides equipment, solutions and services to mobile network operators and companies.

Media Enquiries:

Vodafone España External Communications
Mamen Rodrigo
Tel: +34 610/513667
E-mail: mamen.Rodrigo@vodafone.com

Abertis Telecom
Communication
Tel: +34 93 230 50 84
Tel: +34 91 310 70 45
E-mail: abertis.comunicación@abertis.com

Nokia, Spain
Communications
Solange Cummins
Tel: +34 91 211 95 81
E-mail: Solange.cummins@nokia.com