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.

Even though the UEFA Champions League hasn’t kicked off yet and the football Bundesliga 2006/07 has only just warmed up, there’s evidently a winning player on the field: Vodafone’s football service. The DГјsseldorf-based mobile communications provider is delivering live and full-length broadcasts of all first and second Bundesliga matches to UMTS mobile phone users. The ‘Vodafone live Football Flatrate’ only costs an extra EUR 7.50 a month and enables users to watch their favourite team play. If two matches have the same kick-off time, they can watch both of them using a conference function. The package also includes the ‘Vodafone FreistoГџ’ (Vodafone Freekick) programme, showing Bundesliga and UEFA Champions League highlights. Even football fans without a UMTS phone don’t have to miss out on the fun, because they can book the ‘Football Package’ for an additional EUR 5 a month. It includes a live ticker with images and many other football services. In short, both packages are full to the brim with football goodies and Vodafone live! customers have the opportunity to test them out free of charge and without obligation until 9 October 2006.

Thanks to UMTS, Vodafone has entered a new dimension of football TV broadcasting. Football fans with a UMTS phone and the ‘Vodafone live Football Flatrate’ can simply switch on their handset and watch the Bundesliga matches from the kick-off to the final whistle. “Being able to watch the whole 90 minutes live on a UMTS phone was something of a sensation at the start of the season,” said Erik Friemuth, the man in charge of Vodafone live!. “This innovative service is winning over new fans on a daily basis.”

The ‘Vodafone live Football Flatrate’ means 90 minutes of live football enjoyment
All UMTS phone users can book the ‘Vodafone live Football Flatrate’ for only EUR 7.50 extra a month. The first four weeks are entirely free of charge so that users can test out the service. All Bundesliga matches are broadcast live and in full length at the weekend. Users can either watch one Bundesliga match or use the conference function to switch between two different matches. There’s also a live ticker with images so that customers can keep up to date on match progress or check the latest league table status. And the ‘Vodafone live Football Flatrate’ also includes the ‘Vodafone FreistoГџ’ TV programme every Friday, Saturday and Sunday evening. This compact-format, 25-minute TV show provides detailed reports with images of all matches, match summaries, player portraits and many other things. The content provider is Vodafone’s partner Arena TV. UEFA Champions League matches are also on the programme in conjunction with Premiere. On UEFA Champions League match days, customers get a preview of the matches, a summary at half-time and match highlights after the final whistle.

The alternative for customers without a UMTS phone is the ‘Football Package’ with live ticker
Even football fans without an UMTS phone don’t have to sit in front of their TV set. Vodafone offers them the ‘Football Package’ as an alternative to the UMTS version for EUR 5 a month. They simply book it in addition to their term contract. It includes a live ticker with images of all first and second Bundesliga matches, plus the UEFA Champions League matches, for information about the progress of every game. Customers also get to use the popular MMS information services. MMS messages are sent to their phones at half-time and after the final whistle providing information about goals, ball possession, corners, yellow and red cards and send-offs. As usual, the ‘My Club live!’, ‘Bundesliga Compact’ and ‘UEFA CL Compact’ options are also available. Another interesting feature is the Video Clips on Demand service, which delivers video clips of the day’s matches.

Test the football services out for free until 9 October
Both offers – ‘Vodafone live Football Flatrate’ and ‘Football Package’ – can be tested free of charge until 9 October 2006. All Vodafone live! customers will receive an MMS in the next few days containing information about the offers and an invitation to try out the ‘football experience’ on their mobile phones. The test phase is non-binding and customers don’t have to provide notice if they don’t want to continue using the service.

If they do decide not to miss one more minute of football, they can subscribe to the football services at the Vodafone shop or on the Vodafone live! portal. Another, even simpler subscription option is to send a text message with the text ‘Ball’ to 55555. A response text message will be sent with a link to the portal where the football package can be booked. The ‘Vodafone live Football Flatrate’ has a minimum term of twelve months, and there is no charge during the summer and winter breaks.

Huawei Technologies has been selected to construct Latin America’s first UMTS network by Administración Nacional de Telecomunicaciones (“ANTEL”), the leading telecom operator in Uruguay.

This network is known as the first UMTS network in Latin America, this once again consolidate Huawei’s global leading position in UMTS and HSDPA infrastructure. After one year of testing, ANTEL purchases the UMTS equipments from Huawei. Huawei provides the HSDPA-based end-to-end UMTS solution for ANTEL.

Huawei’s end-to-end UMTS is a tailor-made solution for wireless networks. It enables not only high-quality wireless service provision but also additional value-added service, by comprising HSDPA-based series NodeB, compatible mobile Softswitch core network for GSM/GPRS/3GPP R99/3GPP R4, open intelligent network and mobile data platform, uniform network management solution and operating support system. Based on its self-designed ASIC chip, HUAWEI will provide a full-performance HSDPA solution, whose data rate can peak 14.4 Mbps in downlink.

As a global leading UMTS/HSDPA supplier, Huawei has secured 31 UMTS/HSDPA commercial contracts to date, and established partnership with global leading operators including Vodafone, TelefГіnica, Deutsche Telekom AG, Orange, Etisalat, KPN, etc. Huawei’s leading and innovative mobile Softswitch and new generation Node Bs serve many operators around the world and Huawei has accumulated abundant experience through the deployment of large-scale networks. Focusing on the requirements of customers, Huawei provides innovative and customer-oriented solutions to enhance long-term value and potential growth for customers.