News 2001
365 Corporation and Virgin Mobile form partnership to launch the UK's first mobile voice portal
12/11/2001
365 Corporation plc ("365") today announces that its voice services division, Eckohtec, has partnered with Virgin Mobile, the UK's fifth network, to provide its 1.25 million customers with voice-activated information, entertainment and commerce services. The voice portal will operate as part of Virgin Mobile's VirginXtras brand, and will be powered by the Eckoh voice platform.
The partnership is for a minimum of two years and gives Eckohtec both application development and maintenance fees and an ongoing revenue stream based on usage. Eckohtec will host the service on its 4000 line Interactive Voice Response (IVR) platform giving Virgin Mobile a scalable solution to a huge growth market.
Virgin Mobile customers will access the voice portal service via a four-digit shortcode number and navigate around the system using speech recognition technology. Users can listen to news and sport and other audio content, as well as use the service to go shopping. It will be the first time that any UK mobile network has offered such a comprehensive content-rich speech recognition service to its customers.
The service will be launched this month and it is expected that early next year it will be enhanced to include other communication services that Eckohtec currently offers.
Commenting on this key announcement Nik Philpot, Chief Operating Officer of 365, said:
"Following on from the contracts announced recently with Granada, Emap Radio and Static 2358, this deal with Virgin Mobile further cements our leading position in the voice portal market. Virgin Mobile will be the first mobile operator to launch a voice portal service and indicates the potential size of the market for Eckohtec's cutting-edge speech recognition services in the mobile arena".
Joe Steel, Marketing Director of Virgin Mobile, said:
"We selected Eckohtec as the provider for our voice portal as they are the clear UK market leader in creating and hosting sophisticated speech recognition services. We look forward to offering our customers this exciting innovation - a service which is controlled by the most natural of media, the voice - as well as developing our partnership further".
Enquiries:
365 Corporation plc - Tel : 01442 458 300
Nik Philpot, Chief Operating Officer
Financial Dynamics - Tel : 020 7831 3113
Fiona Meiklejohn/Ben Atwell
Virgin Mobile - Tel : 07931 777777
Steven Day, Corporate Affairs Director
NOTES FOR EDITORS
365 Corporation plc
365 Corporation (365) is a high growth, digital media, technology and communications company. The Consumer Division distributes content and services to consumers via digital channels such as the internet, mobile platforms (phones, PDAs, WAP), television and fixed line phones. The Business Division provides a 'one-stop-shop' of integrated telecommunication services to SMEs in the UK and Ireland. These services include the provision of telephone systems, fixed line resale, mobile and complex data services.
365's voice services division provides own brand premium rate applications hosted on an IVR (Interactive Voice Response) platform, which currently has over 4,000 ports, and is scalable market-leading technology - which means it can terminate both core IVR traffic as well as more convergent services such as eckoh.
Eckohtec, its client voice services business, utilises the same telephony platform to provide call handling facilities to clients as well as ASP and bespoke applications utilising convergent technologies such as speech recognition and text-to-speech. Current clients include Sky, Granada, Channel 5, NSPCC, EMAP Radio, Static 2358, Cartoon Network, Classic FM and Chrysalis.
In June 2001 365 launched Europe's first comprehensive voice portal, eckoh, which can be accessed over the internet at www.08701101010.com or from any standard telephone - mobile or landline - by dialling one number: 08701 10 10 10. Eckoh allows the user to send and retrieve emails, go shopping, listen to the latest news, sport and entertainment, set up conference calls, check and create diary appointments, quickly connect to friends, family and colleagues - all driven by the power of his or her voice.
Virgin Mobile
Virgin Mobile is now established as the most successful virtual network operator in the world, and is the UK's fifth network. Since its launch in November 1999 it has attracted well over one million customers, making it one of the fastest growing mobile phone companies in history.
Virgin Mobile is a 50:50 joint venture company between Sir Richard Branson's Virgin Group and Deutsche Telekom's One 2 One, and is the UK's first mobile virtual operator.
It has scored a number of firsts, including being the first operator to scrap peak rate calls, introduce a daily discounting tariff and was the first company in the world to introduce an integrated MP3 mobile phone.
Virgin Mobile's VirginXtras service helps customers get the information they want, in the most accessible and easy-to-understand way. VirginXtras is available to every Virgin Mobile customer and puts service over technology.
The portfolio of 37 services provides a range of content and m-commerce via a mix of Voice, IVR, SMS and WAP and can be tailor-made to each individual.
Customers logging on to www.virgin.com/mobile simply pre-select areas of interest from seven core categories, including: sport, music, going out, staying in, travel, shopping and fun. So, whether people are after the most recent film releases at their local cinema, discounts on a whole range of items from CDs to holidays, football scores for their favourite team or a recommendation for a night out, VirginXtras offers the easiest way to get the best and latest personalised information.
In the UK, Virgin Mobile phones are available direct on 0845 6000 600; on the web at www.virgin.com/mobile; or on the High Street at over 5,000 outlets including Virgin Megastore, Our Price, V.SHOP, Carphone Warehouse, The Link, Phone People, Sainsbury, Tesco, WH Smith, Co-op, Asda, Somerfield, John Lewis, Littlewoods and Morrisons.
