Maxis測試MediaFlo手機電視廣播

QUALCOMM Teams with Maxis and Astro to Trial MediaFL in Malaysia

QUALCOMM Incorporated (Nasdaq: QCOM), a leading developer and innovator of advanced wireless and broadcasting technologies and data solutions, Maxis and Astro today announced that the companies have signed an agreement to conduct technical trials of QUALCOMM’s MediaFLO™ technology in Malaysia. The MediaFLO trial is expected to begin in Autumn 2007, and will feature twenty-five live content channels provided by Astro delivered in an 8 MHz UHF channel. Maxis and Astro will have the opportunity to closely evaluate the performance capabilities of the MediaFLO System – an open, mobile broadcasting technology – in the lead up to a potential commercial deployment of mobile broadcasting on the Maxis cellular network in early 2008

Maxis Communications Berhad (Maxis) is the leading telecommunications service provider in Malaysia, offering a range of UMTS third-generation wireless, fixed and international network services. Astro All Asia Networks plc (Astro) is the region’s leading cross-media multichannel broadcaster with direct-to-home satellite television services in Malaysia, Brunei and Indonesia. The company currently offers nearly 80 channels of content in PAL format.

“Maxis is the innovative leader at the forefront of delivering new products and services to our customers. Already, we offer over 20 TV channels on 3G, and we see great mass market potential for a high-quality mobile TV broadcast technology like MediaFlo. As such, we are committed to offering mobile TV to the Malaysian market,” said Jon Eddy Abdullah, Chief Operating Officer, Maxis Communications Berhad. “Through this trial we will assess the business and technical performance of MediaFLO, and the promise of a compelling user experience with easy access and fast channel switching.”

MediaFLO is built on the premise of readily available high power transmitters operating in the UHF band, which limits the need for a large quantity of repeaters. The trial in Kuala Lumpur will be operated using a smaller number of transmitters than is normally expected for urban areas. In addition to live and pre-encoded broadcast channels, the trial will feature Clipcasting™ media – short-format video content that can be delivered over the MediaFLO network – putting users in control of watching stored programs at a later time.

“With a Direct-to-Home market penetration of more than 36% in Malaysia, we are anxious to work with an efficient mobile broadcasting technology to reach our subscriber base outside the home with the maximum number of our services whilst utilising the minimum of scarce terrestrial broadcasting frequency resource” said Graham Stephens, Chief Technology Officer Astro All Asia Networks plc. “We expect that this trial will confirm MediaFLO’s network capacity and user experience, complimenting the large and varied content bouquet that we currently offer to our 2M pay-TV subscribers in Malaysia.”

“Maxis and Astro represent strong allies for a MediaFLO trial in Malaysia because of their combined expertise and market penetration,” said Peggy Johnson, President, QUALCOMM Internet Services and MediaFLO Technologies. “This trial will demonstrate both the superiority of MediaFLO in a real world setting, and the substantial business benefits that the technology provides as we work towards commercial deployment in the region.”

MediaFLO technology is a global mobile entertainment platform, enabling broadcasting of high-quality video, audio, Clipcasting media and IP datacasting streams to mobile handsets. The MediaFLO System, comprised of the MediaFLO Media Distribution System and FLO Technology, is a comprehensive, end-to-end solution designed specifically to address the inherent challenges of distributing large volumes of high-quality mobile multimedia content to wireless subscribers. Invented with mobility in mind, MediaFLO efficiently and cost-effectively addresses the usability, network capacity, and device constraints typical of video delivery to mobile handsets. More information about MediaFLO is available at http://www.mediaflo.com/.