Palm Experience Delivered on Windows Mobile With Push Email, 3G/UMTS Speeds

Palm (Nasdaq:PALM) today announced the Palm(R) Treo(TM) 750v smartphone, the first Treo smartphone to take advantage of Vodafone’s 3G/UMTS network. The Treo 750v brings the Palm experience on Microsoft(R)’s Windows Mobile(R) 5.0 to Europe for the first time. The new Treo 750v will be available first to Vodafone customers in the following countries: Austria, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Spain, Switzerland, the UK and other regions by the end of the calendar year.

“The new Treo 750v smartphone — made available first in Europe — on the Vodafone 3G/UMTS network is Palm’s latest salvo to reach more customers in more regions with an ever-expanding line of compelling Treo smartphones,” said Ed Colligan, president and chief executive officer from Palm. “Expanding the Treo footprint globally is a key focus for Palm, and with collaborative marketing investments in Europe from Palm, Vodafone and Microsoft, we are confident we can captivate mobile professionals and businesses and help them be more productive in the office and on the go.”

The Treo 750v combines the hallmark Palm experience of a multifeatured mobile phone with email, messaging, web browsing and organization software all in a new compact design.(1) The new smartphone comes with Microsoft’s Messaging and Security Feature Pack (MSFP) for Windows Mobile 5.0, which includes Direct Push Technology and enhanced security features free and out of the box.(2) It is also fully compatible with Vodafone Business Email, giving remote access to enterprise and Internet-based email accounts. These business-ready solutions address the need for a robust push-email solution that can be deployed easily by small businesses to global enterprises.

Unique to the Treo smartphone on Windows Mobile 5.0 is a suite of software enhancements developed by Palm that underscores its brand promise of fast access, ease of use and simplicity. Examples include the following:

– Today Screen enhancements, which feature the ability to “dial by name” with a few keystrokes on the keyboard, perform a web search directly from the Today Screen and perform one-touch dialing with personalized photo speed dials;

– Ability to manage a call directly from the Today Screen and stay on top of voicemail with on-screen, VCR-like icons, such as rewind, delete and fast-forward controls for easy navigation;

– Ability to ignore a call and quickly compose a text message, such as “In a meeting” or “Can’t talk”; and

– Dedicated messaging application for SMS/MMS that is organized in a “chat thread” so users can reference prior messages and use emoticons for a personal touch.

“The new Treo 750v smartphone, when combined with our high-speed 3G/UMTS network and push email, makes an invaluable tool for our business customers,” said Oliver Mauss, global director of Business Marketing, Vodafone. “Our commitment to help customers increase their productivity and make the most of their business and personal time will be further enhanced by the addition of this new innovative device to our range of business solutions.”

“We’re excited to team up with Palm and Vodafone to launch a Windows Mobile-based Treo in Europe. We’re seeing significant adoption of mobile applications among business users in the region, and the Treo is an attractive proposition for organizations considering mobile deployments,” said Nick Barley, business and marketing officer, Microsoft U.K. Limited. “The Treo 750v builds on the power and flexibility of Windows Mobile, Palm’s unique design and user experience, and service through one of the world’s leading mobile operators to deliver a winning solution that connects professionals to their critical information while on the go.”

Benefits of Windows Mobile 5.0 Pocket PC Phone Edition

The Windows Mobile-based Treo smartphones from Palm provide customers with a compelling combination of powerful software, an award-winning form factor, and the ease of use long associated with the Palm experience. Windows Mobile 5.0 Pocket PC Phone Edition provides many user benefits:

– Touch screen: Makes surfing websites, gathering data and navigating forms and applications much easier;

– Copy and paste: Additional functionality provides added productivity;

– Built-in viewers and editors: Ability to view and edit Microsoft Word and Excel(R) files and “roundtrip” those edits back to original files on the user’s desktop, and view PowerPoint(R) presentations and PDF files;

– Breadth of applications: More than 18,000 commercial applications available for Windows Mobile; and

– Saving: Ability to save images and sounds from a website.

Treo 750v Features and Benefits

– Powerful Microsoft Windows Mobile 5.0 with Palm enhancements;

– Integrated SMS/MMS with chat view and dedicated inbox;

– Mobile access to multiple business and personal email accounts;

– 3G/UMTS network for fast data access;

– 1.3-megapixel digital camera that also captures video;

– Windows Media(R) Player 10 Mobile for music and video;

– Built-in Bluetooth(R) wireless technology enhanced to support Bluetooth enabled stereo headsets;

– Mini-SD expansion slot; and

– 240×240 transflective (TFT) touch screen.

SK Telecom launches WCDMA automatic roaming services with England’s T-Mobile, Netherland and Sweden’s Vodafone, Denmark’s Hi3G in England, the Netherlands, Sweden and Denmark.

Automatic roaming services allow the user to take his/her mobile phone overseas for usage without changing handsets or being designated a separate number. WCDMA automatic roaming services even allow video calling (video calling not available in Denmark).

With four European countries added, WCDMA roaming services may be used in a total of 12 countries, including countries where previously available, such as Italy, France, Germany and Spain. SK Telecom has built a foundation for deployment of a WCDMA roaming belt in the European region, from Sweden in the North to Spain and Italy in the South.

SK Telecom revealed that it will continue to expand WCDMA automatic roaming services in the Europe region, in countries such as Portugal, Finland and Austria, and in Asia in countries such as Malaysia, Brunei, and the Philippines.

Lee Sung-Young, head of SK Telecom’s Global Roaming Division, remarked, “The availability of WCDMA roaming in the Western European region, where a great deal of foreign travel demand is concentrated, will contribute to the promotion of WCDMA.”

UMTS handsets up 241% and data revenue up 22%

Vodafone Italia has closed the first quarter of 2006 (1 April to 30 June) with 24,146,000 customers (up 90,000 on 31 March 2005). The number of UMTS handsets and connect cards has risen to 3,196,000 over the period, marking an increase of 241% on the end of June 2005. Vodafone live! customers total 5,650,000 at the end of June 2006.

Organic growth in service revenue (excluding the impact of termination rate cuts introduced by the Communications Authority) amounts to approximately 2.3% compared with the same quarter of last year. Taking account of the reduction in termination rates from 1 September 2005, service revenue has fallen by a nominal 3.4%.

Data and multimedia revenue performed well, growing 11% on the same period of 2005 and accounting for 17.3% of service revenue during the period. Messaging revenue is up 7.3%, whilst non-messaging data revenue is up by over 22% on the same period of 2005, thanks to increased penetration of UMTS handsets. Voice traffic is 7% up on the same period of the previous year.

Vodafone Italia’s ARPU (average revenue per user) for the quarter is EUR 27.6 up 4.5% compared to the previous quarter.