O2 Launch GPRS Video Trial

Emblaze Systems announced the launch of a trial for mobile video with O2, a leading provider of mobile services to consumers and businesses in the UK.

Inset is Itai Ben-Dor, CEO of Emblaze Systems who says he is focused on helping O2 achieve its goals and is quoted below.

Emblaze is providing a turnkey solution, incorporating video streaming & download, managed services, production and publishing of content and a wide variety of end user services.

O2 has selected 350 customers to participate in a free, six-week trial, using the O2 xda, Nokia 7650 and Nokia 3650 mobile devices. The trial focuses on three principal areas: Streaming video, downloading clips and video messaging.

O2 is using its GPRS network to enable trial participants to browse, select and download video clips via a special WAP portal set up by Emblaze. Further, Emblaze offers an innovative feature - enabling trial users to easily download the EMplayer™ directly from the portal. Using the Emblaze EMplatform™, O2 will offer a continuously updated range of services from news, weather and entertainment, through music & movie trailers. O2 is also leveraging its sponsorship of Arsenal football club and the England rugby team.

Emblaze has delivered a complete end-to-end service, including technology, service management, and hosting, together with its partner, Virtue Broadcasting PLC - a major provider of streaming media services; thus creating a wireless application service provider (WASP) solution.

Emblaze provides a customized, media centric, end-to-end solution for wireless multimedia, enabling wireless operators to create, manage and deliver rich media services and offer a personalized communications experience to their wireless subscribers. On demand news, weather and sports services as well as messaging and online audio/video capabilities enable wireless service providers to generate new forms of revenue from their subscriber base. The Emblaze solution runs on all networks, including GSM/GPRS, EDGE, UMTS, CDMA, 1X, and EVDO. It is also compatible with all leading formats, such as MPEG4, Windows Media.

" We are focused on helping O2 achieve its goals, namely to maximize revenues from existing 2.5g networks and to extend the range of services currently offered," said Itai Ben-Dor, CEO of Emblaze Systems. "The successful introduction of new rich media services is dependant on the quality of the user experience: Emblaze ensures the best user experience to the widest number of people - on any network and any rich-media wireless device."

Dave McGlade, CEO O2 UK said: "Mobile Video is a natural addition to the range of services we already offer like Media Messaging and the O2 Games Arcade and fully exploits the technology we have available today. We want to develop a range of communications and entertainment services that our customers really want and trials like this give us the opportunity to listen to our customers and get crucial feedback."

"A partnership with Emblaze extends our strong position out of the IP video/audio streaming arena into the mobile space and enables Virtue to deliver new streaming services to our clients" said Giles English, Director Virtue Broadcasting. "If the trial proves successful we will be rolling the services out to our whole client base."

About Emblaze Systems

Emblaze Systems, established in 1994 and part of the Emblaze Group of companies, is a leading provider of customized, media centric, end-to-end solutions for wireless multimedia services. The company provides carriers with a technologically advanced system, as well as a broad portfolio of support services; business and site analysis, installation and integration with existing infrastructure, and dedicated customer care.

The Emblaze solution is compliant with 3GPP, 3GPP2, MPEG-4 and other globally recognized industry standards on interoperability.