Europe : Telia's over four million mobile customers can now view live television broadcasts on their mobile phones. The first broadcasts will be in collaboration with TV4 News and the entertainment channels The Voice TV and Star!. The services will be provided free of charge in Sweden until August 31 this year.

"We have had very good experience from our earlier TV broadcasts on mobile phones, such as the Swedish Eurovision Song Contest (Melodifestivalen) and the most recent Olympic Games. More and more people are watching these broadcasts and demand is increasing for more mobile TV. We will continue to offer our customers this service in order to give them the opportunity to experience the new opportunities afforded by mobile technology," says Indra Åsander, head of the Consumer Segment at TeliaSonera Sweden.

Broadcasts from three television channels

Telia's live TV offer will initially consist of the following three broadcasts:
- TV4 - TV4 News (and weather). All regular broadcasts.
- The Voice TV - Music videos, creativity and interactivity. Broadcasts 24 hours a day.
- Star! - The latest entertainment news and reports from Hollywood and the Nordic region - everything in music, film and entertainment. 24 hours a day.

Watching TV on the train is most wanted

Now people can watch mobile television while on the go in town, on a bus, or in any location where there is coverage. Telia therefore polled approximately 9,500 people all over Sweden to find out where they would prefer to watch television outside their homes. Swedes would first of all like to watch TV while travelling on the train, according to 31 percent of the respondents in the survey, followed by in the car (28%), on an airplane (20%), on a bus (14%), on a boat (6%) and in a taxi (1%).

How to get TV on your mobile phone

All of Telia's mobile customers can utilise the television services, but to a varying extent, depending on the mobile handset they have and the network. Two things are needed - Telia SurfPort (formerly Telia Go) has to be installed on the phone and you need a handset capable of video streaming. Almost all 3G phones and a number of GSM handsets are video-capable. Live broadcasts of TV4 News can be viewed by everyone with a mobile capable of video streaming. In addition, users can see video clips on demand. The Voice TV and Star! broadcasts can be viewed around the clock by users with 3G handsets that can receive video streaming.

Telia SurfPort functions today on more than 160 mobile phone models. People who already have one of these phones with a Telia subscription, or a Telia Refill prepaid card, can activate the service free of charge. Send an SMS message with the text "surf" to 4466 and follow the instructions in the SMS message that is automatically sent back.