X--Series from 3 will offer customers text instant messages, to or from Windows Live Messenger or Yahoo! Messenger, to another X-Series handset, or a PC. Sending and receiving text instant messages with an X-Series mobile will be free.(1)
Sharon Baylay, General Manager, Microsoft Online Services Group UK, said: "We're excited to be bringing one of Microsoft's best of breed communications services to 3's network. Already, in the UK alone, 3 users are having one million Windows Live Messenger conversations every day. These are exciting numbers and mobile broadband will bring a rapid shift in the delivery of internet services, and consumers' usage of them. This announcement shows Microsoft at the forefront of the mobile broadband revolution and we will continue to roll out 'anywhere access' to our leading web services."
Open Internet Access and Search
Customers will be able to search the internet without limitation from their mobile using a Google(TM) or Yahoo search engine, depending on their choice and the search services available in their country. Searching and browsing the internet on mobile will be free.(1)
Terry Semel CEO of Yahoo said: "Approximately three billion people in the world today are using mobile devices, and to have the ability to connect to those three billion, with broadband capabilities, and allow them to take advantage of Yahoo! Services on the go is a huge opportunity for both our company and for 3."
Dominique Vidal, Regional Vice President & Managing Director of Yahoo! Europe, said: "As the number of consumers accessing the Internet on their Mobile devices continues to grow, creating and partnering to deliver Innovative mobile communications services, personalised content and an intuitive search experience is a key component to Yahoo!'s future success. With the launch of broadband mobile Internet, 3 Group and Yahoo! can now deliver the rich and personalised Internet experiences that consumers want on the go."
Jim Holden, Director Wireless Strategic Partnerships, Google, said: "We want people to be able to find useful information on the internet wherever they are. 3 share this goal. Mobile search offers people the chance of a rich internet experience on the go. Our agreement takes us a step further to meeting this ambition."
The best Internet shopping with eBay
X--Series customers will be able to shop on eBay real-time. Searching and browsing and bidding will be free. This will give eBay users with access to 3 the ability to enjoy enhanced opportunities to buy and sell on the go and not just in front of their PCs. With 3 and X-Series, eBay sellers and buyers will be able to stay connected to one another when and where they want.
Cutting edge handsets
The global launch of the X-Series from 3 is being made possible by the first two handsets that will support this full range of services: the Nokia N73 and the Sony Ericsson W950i.
Kai Oistamo, Executive Vice President and General Manager, Mobile Phones, Nokia, said: "We are firm believers that mobile convergence is the future of mobility. With its wide array of features, the Nokia N73 multimedia computer is simply ideal for this kind of innovative service. The X-Series from 3 will be a great way for consumers to take full advantage of the devices' great features. We are proud to take part in the X-Series and we are most confident that our customers will greatly benefit from this mobile broadband service."
Miles Flint, President, Sony Ericsson said: "Today's sophisticated consumers want complex services at their fingertips and our devices are the physical touch-point between Internet services and the consumer. But consumers don't just want a functional device, they want something highly individual. That's what the W950i Walkman phone brings to the X-Series."
(1) Subject to international roaming limitations and fair use restrictions.
Webcast of media event
A webcast of the media conference announcing the global launch of the X-Series from 3 will be live from 10:30am GMT on 16th November 2006 and can be viewed at: http://xseries.three.com/webcast
Cantos Interview
Interviews with Canning Fok, Group Managing Director of Hutchison Whampoa Limited, Frank Sixt, Group Finance Director of Hutchison Whampoa Limited, Niklas Zennstrom, CEO, Skype and Kai Oistamo, Executive Vice President and General Manager, Mobile Phones, Nokia, can be viewed at www.cantos.com
3 Group
A division of Hutchison Whampoa, the 3 Group together with Hutchison Telecommunications International Limited, is the leading global player in the 3G arena, holding licences in 11 markets with total population coverage of approximately 175 million.
In just three years, the 3 Group has built an entirely new mobile broadband network, achieving probably the fastest rollout of a radio network in the entire telecom industry. Marketed globally under the 3 brand, the 3 Group was the first operator in the world to provide dual-mode 3G services.
To date, commercial 3G services have been launched in Italy, the UK, Australia, Austria, Sweden, Denmark, Hong Kong, Israel and Ireland. Hutchison announced more than 13.5 million customers in August 2006.
For more information about 3, please visit www.three.com
For more information on the X-Series from 3 please visit http://xseries.three.com
Contacts:
3 media office
UK
+44-207-350-5696
media@three.co.uk
Hutchison Whampoa
Laura Cheung
Tel: +852-2128-1289
Fax: +852-2128-1766
Email: laurac@hwl.com.hk
Contacts: 3 media office, UK, +44-207-350-5696, media@three.co.uk. Hutchison Whampoa, Laura Cheung, Tel: +852-2128-1289, Fax: +852-2128-1766, Email: laurac@hwl.com.hk
