KTF Launches 3.5G HSDPA; 50 Commercialized Centers in Service

KTF (CEO Young-chu Cho, www.ktf.com) has announced the release of 2 new handsets from June 30 for 3.5G mobile telecommunication technology, HSDPA (High Speed Downlink Packet Access; hi-speed downward packet connection). It revealed it has commercialized HSDPA services in 50 regions, including in regional capitals (in total this gives 80% coverage of the population). KTF also announced the release of the World Phone View, a new brand for global mobile phone roaming that allows customers to use the same service abroad as they do at home and video-based HSPDA services.According to industry analysts, HSDPA will become a key technology around the world. On a global market scale, HSDPA will mean a greater variety of handsets and high quality services at inexpensive prices. HSPDA is a step forward in telecommunication evolution from the existing 3G WCDMA services. Users will be able to make video phones calls at home and abroad, as well as use high-speed and high-quality wireless internet based on next-generation networks.

HSDPA technology offers a maximum possible download speed of 14.4Mbps. While the new handsets support a maximum download speed of up to 1.8Mbps, a large improvement in speed is expected by 2007 to a maximum of 7.2Mbps. The upload speed will improve from the second half of 2007 from 384Kbps to a maximum of 5.8Mbps, thus opening the possibility of a diverse range of application services, including two-way transfer, such as the sharing of large files between users.

In the announcement of the new commercialized HSDPA service, KTF revealed it had opened 50 networks in the main cities across the country, including in Seoul, Incheon, Busan, Daegu, Gwangju, Daejon, and Ulsan (coverage of around 80% of the population). It said it would further increase the number of HSDPA centers to 84 (covering around 91% of the population in South Korea) by the end of the year, thus bringing HSDPA to the majority of the population. KTF is making global roaming possible within a single handset and is thus opening up the possibility for excellent roaming services in most countries, which generally use or will use HSDPA (including WCDMA) and GSM.

KTF is expanding coverage to 25 countries by the end of this year to countries where HSDPA (including WCDMA) roaming is possible in Asian Pacific and European regions, such as in Japan, Singapore, and Australia. In countries where HSDPA is not yet commercialized, KTF will utilize GSM auto-roaming to provide roaming services in 90 countries by the end of the year, thus providing users with voice and video calling, SMS, MMS, and wireless data services. In relation to this, KTF will work together with strategic partner NTT DoCoMo and the Asia Pacific Mobile Alliance (which was formed in April, this year) to expand the global roaming area and create suitable international roaming plans to develop and offer a differentiated service to users who are overseas.

The two HSDPA-compatible handsets (Samsung Electronics’ SPH-W2100 and LG Electronics’ LG-KH1000) can connect to both HSDPA and the existing CDMA networks at the same time, which means users can use the phones uninterrupted when moving into regions where HSDPA coverage is unavailable. The SPH-W2100 offers terrestrial DMB and a variety of services, and is slim by existing handset standards at 21.1mm in thickness. The LG-KH1000 sports duo slide functionality, and makes video calls and chatting a synch with included Bluetooth technology.

The new HSDPA phones retail around the 700,000-won mark. However, users newly subscribing to 3.5G HSDPA or changing to HSDPA from CDMA networks will receive a 200,000 won discount on their HSDPA phones regardless of when they signed up for a CDMA service previously. This subsidy brings downs the price of a HSDPA-compatible handsets to around 500,000 won. KTF is offering new HSDPA subscribers 300 minutes free (a maximum of 900 minutes, equivalent to 540,000 won) of free video calls. Such boons will allow subscribers to fully enjoy HSDPA services (handset subsidies: as of June 30).

To further drive the popularization of HSDPA, KTF plans to significantly increase the choice of handsets and services available. By the end of the year, 2 to 3 new handsets will be released, as well as wireless modem data cards that will work anywhere across the globe, and specially video equipped handsets for remote-control video monitoring.

KTF plans to move into a new dimension of mobile telecommunication services through the commercialization of HSDPA, making this a reality under the banner of, “Watching the World in the Palm of Your Hand.�

It has 4 main steps to make its plan a reality:
① Visually entertaining mobile telecommunications in services and handsets; move away from the restricted global roaming of the past with
② complete global roaming; change from slow-speed wireless data services to
③ high-speed wireless data services; and offer
④ diverse application services built on UICC.

① Visually entertaining mobile telecommunications: If today’s CDMA network is about listening and speaking on the phone, then HSDPA is predicted to bring the excitement of visually entertaining calls into the mix. Moving away from voice-centric phone calls, HSDPA will offer new services, including today’s video call functions, as well as video message boxes, callback tones with video, video chatting, video advertising, and remotely controlled video monitoring. Also, DMB quality will be at least twice as good as on CDMA networks, thus bringing crystal clear footage to users wherever they are. Telecommunications will evolve to allow users to view crystal clear DPA coverage from anywhere.

② Complete global roaming: The existing CDMA network limits services to voice and SMS, and handsets that allow global roaming are inconvenient to use. HSDPA will globalize mobile services, allowing users to take one handset in Korea and use it anywhere in the world for all services, including voice, video, SMS, MMS, and wireless data services.

③ High-speed wireless data services: HSDPA will be able to greatly reduce the waiting time people must endure on the existing EVDO network infrastructure, with HSDPA providing network speeds 3 times faster upstream and 6 times faster downstream. The increased speed will facilitate transfer of large-size contents and greatly improve the wireless data services environment, including for network games, large MMS, and high-speed internet connectivity.

④ Diverse application services built on UICC: Within today’s CDMA network, some handsets are equipped with IC cards, but with HSDPA, all handsets will come with UICC (Universal IC Card: an IC card that contains telecommunication recognition modules and diverse applications functionality) embedded. Security for mobile use is increased, and there are plans to offer a wide range of services, such as traffic-related, membership deals, K-Bank (mobile banking service), and credit cards.

To promote HSDPA services, KTF has released 6 regular HSDPA subscription plans: 3 video call plans, and 3 opt-in-type data/messaging plans. It also announced plans for significant promotions to help spread the word about customer video calling and wireless data usage.

To mark the commercialization of HSDPA, KTF is running an event where it will offer those who sign up for the new service before the end of September 300 minutes of free video calls a month for 3 months (300 minutes is worth around 540,000 won). It is also holding a free-data-use promotion, where users who have subscribed to the W Nationwide Data Plan by the end of September will receive free data usage until the end of November after they have exceeded 14,000 won in data usage in a month. Once this promotional period is over (after November 30), the plan will revert to its regular maximum data charge of 28,000 won a month, after which no further data charges are made to the user for that month.

KTF has opened up 50 HSDPA network spots and anyone nationwide can sign up to use the service. Customers who already have numbers starting with the 010 prefix on a CDMA network can change over to the World Phone View service with the same number. Those who don’t will have to change over to a 010 number to use the HSDPA service.

KTF marketing vice president Hyun-myung Pyo emphasized, “The commercialized HSDPA service is just part of the next-generation in telecommunications KTF will offer. In the future, KTF will developer innovative HSDPA services and pricing plans for customers and through this create ever better telecommunications services.�

Source: KTF