Swisscom and 724 Solutions Announce Strategic Partnership for Next Generation Messaging
The joint collaboration will focus on trialing and commercializing the delivery of SMS and MMS messaging services to Swisscom's IMS subscribers
Santa Barbara, CA, and Bern, Switzerland, (October 15, 2007) - 724 Solutions, a leading provider of next generation mobile data solutions enabling seamless communications in an IP-based world, and Swisscom, the leading telecommunications provider in Switzerland, today announced a joint strategic partnership to develop, trial and commercialize next generation messaging services, leveraging 724's Seamless Messaging Solution and Swisscom's IMS and mobile messaging services.
The joint collaboration between 724 Solutions and Swisscom will focus on identifying and implementing the technical and business aspects of seamlessly bridging SMS and MMS services from the installed base of Swisscom's mobile subscribers to their IMS subscribers. The collaboration will also explore new advanced messaging services that can be offered in Swisscom's converged environment.
724's Seamless Messaging Solution is an any-to-any messaging solution that bridges communications between subscribers, regardless of the devices, clients, networks or applications that they may be using. With 724's Seamless Messaging, Swisscom will leverage their network assets, such as identity and presence, and dynamically route and adapt messages as they flow through the network, ensuring they are delivered to users in the format that is appropriate for the environment or device in which they are operating at that point in time.
"Swisscom leads the market with our IMS deployment and we are now adding functionality to quickly and easily offer enhanced and next generation mobile data services," said Markus Doetsch, Head of Convergent Platform and Product Development for Swisscom. "We believe that collaborating with 724 Solutions to bridge SMS and MMS to new IMS devices with their Seamless Messaging will enhance the market appeal of our IMS offerings and accelerate adoption of those new services."
"By seamlessly bridging the traditional messaging domains to their new IMS domain, Swisscom ensures that adopters of new IMS services remain connected to other users that are within their communities of interest, thereby ensuring a higher level of interactivity among all users, accelerating the return from their IMS investment," said John Sims, Chief Executive Officer of 724 Solutions. "Collaborating with a market innovator like Swisscom , allows us to further refine the implementation details of Seamless Messaging and explore all of the requirements associated with creating a fully connected messaging paradigm."
About Swisscom
With a market share of 64%, Swisscom Mobile is the market leader in the Swiss mobile communications sector. In fiscal year 2006, Swisscom Mobile generated net revenue of CHF 4'022 billion and now has more than 4.6 million NATEL subscribers. Swisscom Mobile is a public limited company with Swisscom Ltd holding a 100% stake. The company operates a nationwide GSM network (900/1800 MHz), which was enhanced with EDGE in spring of 2005. With HSDPA, Swisscom Mobile is the first network carrier in Switzerland to roll out a turbo network. Launched in February of 2006, it is already about five times faster than a UMTS network. Already today, Swisscom Mobile provides coverage of around 90% of the populated area of Switzerland through its UMTS network as well as wireless LAN-Internet access through more than 1000 hotspots. This unique technology mix is the basis for a comprehensive mobile broadband network that enables high-quality mobile communication services. Swisscom Mobile launched UMTS-based services including live TV and video telephony. Its Mobile Unlimited PC Card supports automatic, seamless and high-speed mobile connections to the Internet. Natel® subscribers are not only reachable anywhere within Switzerland but, with over 470 roaming partner networks, all over the world. www.swisscom-mobile.ch
About 724 Solutions
724 Solutions delivers intelligent any-to-any service message and traffic handling solutions built upon a common carrier-grade architecture that allows mobile network operators and virtual network operators to rapidly deploy flexible and open next generation IP-based network and data services. The company's solutions enable the Unwired Lifestyle™, 724's vision of seamless communication without barriers; a vision of how subscribers will use mobile data services to enhance and enrich their professional and private lives with services relevant to their specific needs, with user communities preserved across generations of technology and with data services as reliable and ubiquitous as voice services. 724 Solutions is a global company headquartered in Santa Barbara, California and with development centers in Switzerland and India. 724 Solutions is privately owned by Austin Ventures. For more information, please visit www.724.com.
For more information, contact:
Kelly Lazarus, Director Corporate Communications
Tel: +1 805 884 8306, klazarus@724.com
