MTN Delivers First Mobile TV Launch in Africa With Gemalto
Cape Town (ots/PRNewswire)
- Leading African Operator Provides its Subscribers With Quick and Easy Access to Compelling Service
Gemalto (Euronext NL0000400653 GTO), a world leader in digital security, today announces it has been selected by MTN South Africa for the first-ever commercial rollout of secure mobile TV on the African continent. MTN South Africa is part of the MTN Group, a multinational telecommunications group operating in 21 countries in Africa and the Middle East. The Gemalto package includes the supply of third-generation cards, as well as consulting services and project management. Based on the DVB-H technology, the service is available to all MTN South Africa subscribers, post- and pre-paid.
Under the contract, Gemalto delivered a complete m-TV solution that allows MTN South Africa to address all categories of subscribers. Willing to make its innovative services accessible to the great majority, MTN South Africa aims to offer mobile TV to people who do not own a TV set so that everyone can watch their favourite program, whenever they want, wherever they are. Subscription to the service is very simple and users are offered direct access to TV programs through an easy-to-navigate menu.
The Gemalto cards host the end-user's access rights and protect the access to the encrypted TV content to ensure the highest levels of security to the service. The cards allow MTN South Africa to dynamically manage each subscriber's profile and offer a personalized user interface, thus creating a highly flexible mobile TV service.
Ashraff Paruk, General Manager, Strategy, Product and Innovation at MTN, said: ''MTN is delighted to offer the first commercially available 3G/DVB-H cellphone in the South African market. We are happy that Gemalto's encryption technology gives MTN a competitive edge in the local marketplace. Together with our partners we have enabled customers to get their hands on LIVE TV.''
"MTN South Africa has always been at the forefront of innovation," added Xavier Chanay, president CIS, Middle East and Africa at Gemalto. "We are pleased to strengthen MTN's brand exposure through these pioneering multimedia services."
About Gemalto
Gemalto (Euronext NL 0000400653 GTO) is a leader in digital security with pro forma 2005 annual revenues of EUR1,7 billion ($2.2 billion), operations in 120 countries and 11,000 employees including 1,500 R&D engineers. The company's solutions make personal digital interactions secure and easy in a world where everything of value -from money to entertainment to identities- is increasingly represented as bits and bytes communicated over networks.
Gemalto thrives on creating and deploying secure platforms, portable and secure forms of software in highly personal objects like smart cards, SIMs, e-passports, readers and tokens. More than a billion people worldwide use the company's products and services for telecommunications, banking, e-government, identity management, multimedia content, digital rights management, IT security and other applications. Gemalto was formed in June 2006 by the combination of Axalto and Gemplus International S.A. For more information please visit www.gemalto.com.
About the MTN Group
Launched in 1994, the MTN Group is a multinational telecommunications group, operating in 21 countries in Africa and the Middle East. The MTN Group is listed on the JSE Securities Exchange under the share code: "MTN". As at 30 June 2006, MTN recorded more than 31 million subscribers across its operations, including those of the newly acquired Investcom LLC. In August 2006, the MTN Group launched operations in the Islamic Republic of Iran following the successful purchase of a 49 percent shareholding in Irancell.
The MTN Group operates in Botswana, Cameroon, Cote d'Ivoire, Nigeria, Republic of Congo (Congo Brazzaville), Rwanda, South Africa, Swaziland, Uganda and Zambia. The acquisition of Investcom adds the following countries of operation to MTN's portfolio: Afghanistan, Benin, Cyprus, Ghana, Guinea Bissau, Guinea Republic, Liberia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen.
Contacts Gemalto
Gemalto
Aline Borne
T.: +33-1-55-01-51-05
M.: +33-6-16-29-87-04
aline.borne@gemalto.com
Fleishman-Hillard
Odile Bibollet
Tél.: +33-1-47-42-92-82
odile.bibollet@fleishmaneurope.comContact:
Gemalto, Aline Borne, T.: +33-1-55-01-51-05, M.: +33-6-16-29-87-04,
aline.borne@gemalto.com;
Fleishman-Hillard, Odile Bibollet, Tél.: +33-1-47-42-92-82,
odile.bibollet@fleishmaneurope.com