Telegent enables free mobile access to TV broadcasts

SHANGHAI, CHINA – Millions of viewers worldwide will stay abreast of live sports coverage this summer with TV handsets that incorporate Telegent’s free-to-air mobile TV technology. According to SINO-MR, a leading China market research firm, 71% of China consumers surveyed were interested in watching the 2008 Beijing games on a TV phone, with 41% considering buying one to gain mobile access to the summer sports coverage. SINO-MR estimates that domestic sales of free-to-air analog TV handsets will exceed 21 million by year-end, propelling China to the forefront of mobile TV adoption

worldwide and suggesting that this summer’s quadrennial games are set to smash world records with the number of people viewing the event on mobile TV.

According to Telegent’s chief executive officer Weijie Yun, the Beijing games could be the first major sporting event to be widely viewed on mobile devices. “Free-to-air mobile TV provides consumers with a compelling, free and easy-to-use method of watching the same news, sports and other programming that consumers receive on their TV sets at home,” said Yun. “This explains why sales of analog TV handsets have already outpaced the number of digital subscription mobile TV viewers worldwide.” Analyst firm In-Stat predicts that 34 million analog TV handsets will be sold globally in 2008.

This view is backed up by major handset manufacturer ZTE. Mohamed Ben Hanzaz, vice president of ZTE Brazil noted, “In Brazil, the penetration of mobile technology combined with strong consumer interest in television for news and entertainment makes free-to-air mobile TV a compelling feature for driving consumer demand for handsets.” A separate survey conducted by Telegent in Brazil revealed that 58% of respondents were interested in mobile access specifically to news and sports.

The benefits of free-to-air mobile TV are enjoyed not only by consumers but also by broadcasters and operators. The TV handsets extend the broadcasters’ viewing audience by putting the same programming that broadcasters deliver to living room TV sets in the consumer’s pocket. Yun added, “For operators, free-to-air TV handsets provide access to the most popular content without any infrastructure investment, providing a platform for improving their competitive position in the marketplace.”

Telegent’s mobile TV technology supports free-to-air standards NTSC, PAL, SECAM and DVB-T, as well as the digital mobile TV standard DVB-H.