BT Livetime to Pilot Live TV to Mobile

July 13, 2006 - BT Wholesale and Virgin Mobile will pilot a service to deliver live television to mobile phones.

Selected Virgin Mobile customers will be able to access Sky Sports News, Sky News, a new music channel Blaze, more than 50 digital radio channels and the UK's first Electronic Programme Guide (EPG) delivered to a mobile device using DAB technology, all provided by BT Livetime.

Key partners for the pilot, alog with Virgin mobile, are Microsoft, Sky, Arqiva (formerly NTL Broadcast), HTC, GCap Media and Digital One.

A four-month pilot of 1,000 users within the M25 bracket began in June.

The wholesale service will enable a “one-to-many” delivery of mobile TV, where mobile operators offer their retail consumers access to television and radio channels broadcast direct to DAB digital radio enhanced mobile devices such as smartphones and personal media players. This is an extremely cost-effective method of giving high quality TV services to large numbers of consumers.

BT Livetime's wholesale mobile TV service is complementary to mobile operators' existing GPRS and 3G services, stimulating new revenue growth by delivering a facility similar to the interactive services which currently exist on digital television.

BT Livetime's commitment to enhance the UK's national commercial DAB digital radio network within the M25 for the pilot and create an EPG will also benefit the digital radio industry by increasing consumer access to digital radio services.

Chris Hutchings, director ventures BT Wholesale said: "BT Livetime intends to be Europe's first commercial mobile entertainment service to deliver broadcast TV and entertainment services direct to DAB-enhanced mobile phones and media players. Mobile broadcast TV delivers a significant commercial opportunity for UK mobile operators and is complementary to existing GPRS and 3G services."

Graeme Hutchinson, sales and marketing director of Virgin Mobile, said: "This is undoubtedly the most exciting mobile television service in the industry. No one else offers the ability to receive live television on your mobile, an electronic programme guide, or the ability to use the service anywhere. This mobile television service is revolutionary, yet it uses an existing technology which can be used right here, and right now, unlike some other forthcoming mobile TV offerings. We think the service is going to change forever the way people use their mobile phones, and we know our customers are going to love it!"

Annika Nyberg, President of the World DAB Forum, said: "The pilot of BT Livetime is not only a technological landmark for DAB digital radio as a standard but a major step forward for consumers in the UK who will be among the first to experience cutting edge technology. The UK already has an extensive DAB digital radio network in place and working and BT Livetime will be able to take advantage of the multitude of opportunities offered by this exciting technology."

BT Livetime is a BT business that was set up following an agreement between BT and GWR Group, the commercial radio company, now part of GCap Media following the merger of GWR and Capital Radio. It will provide its service via Digital One - the UK's only national commercial DAB digital radio network.