Nokia host commercial OMA PoC and Presence services for 3 Scandinavia

July 6, 2006

Nokia will host commercial Push to talk over Cellular (PoC) and Presence services for 3 Scandinavia in Sweden and Denmark, thus allowing the operator to roll out the solution more quickly and efficiently. The service, enabling people to use their mobile phones like walkie-talkies, communicating with a selected group or with individuals at the push of a button, will be launched in September.

The agreement marks the launch of the world's first commercial Open Mobile Alliance (OMA)-compliant Push to talk over Cellular service. The PoC services are interoperable across all OMA-compliant wireless networks and handsets. Nokia will operate the PoC platform from its new Hosting Center to be opened in Vienna, Austria in September. Nokia will also deliver 3 Scandinavia Nokia Eseries business devices with preset PoC settings.

"After a successful push to talk trial with Nokia, we are confident in Nokia's ability to host the service for 3 allowing us to concentrate on our core business," said Jorgen Askeroth, Chief Technology Officer, 3 Scandinavia. "Arranging meetings, for example, will be cheaper and and faster by push to talk than by a regular mobile phone call."

"Nokia Mobility Hosting tackles the major challenges operators face in launching and managing as-yet unproven new services -cost, complexity, risk- and gives them the confidence to explore and discover important new revenue streams," said Patrik Sallner, Head of Hosting Service Line, Networks, Nokia. "Hosting is a rising telecoms industry trend, and an area where Nokia intends to grow."

Hosting is one of the many tools that Nokia can offer operators to help grow their business in the face of ever-toughening competition and growing technological complexity. Hosting sits alongside Managed Services to form one of the main pillars of Nokia's growing Services business unit.