Partner and Nokia build push to talk in Israel
March 18, 2004
Push to talk is set for rapid take off in one of the Middle East's most advanced markets.
Partner Communications Company Ltd. ("Partner"), Israel's largest GSM operator, has selected Nokia's Push to Talk over Cellular (PoC) solution to bring this easy and instant form of communications to its customers. Partner joins the growing list of operators worldwide that are adopting Nokia's innovative solution for walkie-talkie type of voice services between individuals or within groups.
Delivery of the solution starts immediately to enable Partner to launch the service, subject to regulatory approval, during the first half 2004.
"We see push to talk as one of the attractive voice services on the mobile landscape today," says Menahem Tirosh, Vice President, Technologies, Partner. "Nokia's push to talk over cellular solution is very suitable for offering this cutting edge service to our demanding market. Nokia's end-to-end offering is an important advantage for us as we roll-out the service."
"We are delighted to be working with Partner to introduce push to talk to the Israeli market," says Rajeev Suri, Vice President, Networks, Nokia. "This is a service that has seen tremendous uptake around the world, and we are convinced that the same will be true in Israel."
Nokia's carrier grade push to talk solution provides competitive performance, a full feature set, and a smooth migration path to the upcoming Open Mobile Alliance (OMA) standard. Nokia is trialing its solution with more than 30 operators around the world.
Nokia launched it carrier-grade push to talk network products in October 2003, and the world's first push to talk phone, the Nokia 5140, in November 2003. During 2004, Nokia will introduce a full range of push-to-talk capable GSM phones, including non-Symbian terminals and Symbian OS based smartphones.
From 2005 onwards push-to-talk will become available for virtually all Nokia GPRS/WCDMA phones.
About Nokia
Nokia is the world leader in mobile communications, driving the growth and sustainability of the broader mobility industry. Nokia is dedicated to enhancing people's lives and productivity by providing easy-to-use and secure products like mobile phones, and solutions for imaging, games, media, mobile network operators and businesses. Nokia is a broadly held company with listings on five major exchanges.
About Partner Communications
Partner Communications Company Ltd. is a leading Israeli mobile communications operator known for its GSM/GPRS based services and the development of wirefree applications under the preferred orange(TM) brand. The Company commenced full commercial operations in January 1999 and, through its network, provides quality of service and a range of features to approximately two million subscribers in Israel. Partner subscribers can use roaming services in 128 destinations using 287 GSM networks. The Company was awarded a 3G license in 2002. Partner's ADSs are quoted on NASDAQ under the symbol PTNR and on the London Stock Exchange (LSE) under the symbol PCCD. Its shares are quoted on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE) under the symbol PTNR. For further information please visit: http://www.investors.partner.co.il.
Media Enquiries:
Communications
Networks, Nokia
Tel. (Int.) + 358 (0) 7180 38198
E-mail: networks.communications@nokia.com
Nokia
Communications
Tel. +358 7180 34900
E-mail: press.office@nokia.com
www.nokia.com
Dr. Dan Eldar
V.P. Carrier, International and Investor Relations
Partner Communications Company, Ltd.
Tel: +972 67 814151
Fax: +972 67 814161
Note to editors
Push to talk over Cellular (PoC) introduces a new, direct one-to-one and one-to-many voice communication service into GSM/GPRS networks.
With Push to talk, mobile phone users can use their mobiles like walkie-talkies, communicating with a selected group or individual with the push of a single button. This simple, direct communication will serve the needs of both business and private users.
Push to talk is especially suited for cases where users need to communicate repeatedly but occasionally with the same group or individual.
Nokia's Push-to-Talk solution offers a full feature set and smooth migration to the upcoming Open Mobile Architecture (OMA) standard and IP multimedia subsystem as standardized in 3GPP.
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