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RCOM & BBC World News Enter a Strategic Agreement for Mobile Content

  • BBC World News available on Reliance Mobile as live streaming for first time in India
  • Reliance Mobile subscribers can view from anywhere in India
  • Service accessible 24x7

Mumbai, September 16, 2008 : Forging ahead in its aggressive plans to provide innovative content to millions of subscribers, Reliance Communications has made available BBC World News for the first time as a mobile streaming (unicast) service 24 hours a day for Reliance Mobile users across India. Through this agreement, Reliance Mobile users can access BBC’s trademark live breaking news and landmark programming initiatives as they happen directly on their handsets.

Reliance Communications became the first telecom operator (CDMA) to provide mobile streaming (unicast) service in India in 2004. ‘Mobile TV’ on Reliance Mobile World is already a very popular service representing different genre of content such as TV news and shows, music, cricket and sports, fashion and glamour. Reliance provides hours of latest entertainment, and information based rich media content through eleven TV channels to its subscribers. They have been available to several millions of users with Reliance Mobile World enabled handsets supporting TV streaming (unicast) service, for many years.

Hosted on the Reliance Mobile World (R World), the ‘Mobile TV’ menu offers unique experience in viewing BBC World News’ popular content including the Network’s latest programming. As the streaming is on-line 24x7, Reliance Mobile customers can watch their favorite programs conveniently from anywhere even while on the move within the state or traveling across the country.

Worldwide trend showcases how consumers are upgrading from ringtones and wallpapers, the mainstays of the mobile entertainment, to more advanced features like mobile TV and propelling the growth of TV on the mobile phones by leaps and bounds. In countries like South Korea and Japan, Mobile TV is already a way of life. Other countries in the Americas and Europe are fast catching up.

Commenting on the tie-up, Mr. Krishna Durbha, Head- VAS Business & Marketing, Reliance communications said, “Today lakhs of mobile phones on Reliance Communication network are unicast streaming enabled. Through these phones, Reliance Mobile customers can watch more than eleven TV channels 24 x 7. We are proud that Reliance Communications is one of the very few telecom operators in the world to provide such a service. Our association with BBC World News will enable us to provide up-to-the-minute international news coverage to our subscribers.”

Mr. Nachiket Pantvaidya, Genral Manager, Global Channels, South Asia said “Globally, BBC World News is a successful tri-media news service delivering international news and information across multiple platforms of TV, online and mobile. It has been our endeavour that the highest number of mobile users in India can have access to the in-depth, credible and up-to-the minute news coverage that the BBC is synonymous with. We are happy that our association with Reliance Communications has helped us facilitate the same.”

About Reliance Mobile World

Reliance Mobile World(R World) is a virtual one-stop-shop for entertainment, communication, gaming and m-commerce. Thanks to the wide range of applications, it has endeared itself to users from all walks of life. Reliance Mobile World has over hundreds of useful applications and over 2,00,000 content titles which include Mobile TV, videos, cricket updates, music, ringtones, phonebook transfer and back-up service, m-commerce services like Mobile Banking, bill payments, mobile e-mail and instant messenger, city and TV guides, booking gas cylinders, tracking Speed Post, Airlines and Railway reservations, examination results and much more. About Reliance Communications

About Reliance Communications

Reliance Communications Limited founded by the late Shri. Dhirubhai H Ambani (1932-2002) is the flagship company of the Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group. The Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group currently has a market capitalization of over Rs. 2,25,000 crore (US$ 53 billion), net worth in excess of Rs. 58,000 crore (US$ 14 billion), cash flows of Rs. 12,000 crore (US$ 3 billion), net profit of Rs. 8,000 crore (US$ 2 billion) and zero net debt.

Rated among "Asia's Top 5 Most Valuable Telecom Companies", Reliance Communications is India's foremost and truly integrated telecommunications service provider. The company, with a customer base of over 57 million including over 1.7 million individual overseas retail customers, ranks among the Top 10 Asian Telecom companies by number of customers. Reliance Communications corporate clientele includes 2,100 Indian and multinational corporations, and over 800 global, regional and domestic carriers.

Reliance Communications has established a pan-India, next generation, integrated (wireless and wireline), convergent (voice, data and video) digital network that is capable of supporting best-of-class services spanning the entire communications value chain, covering over 20,000 towns and 450,000 villages. Reliance Communications owns and operates the world's largest next generation IP enabled connectivity infrastructure, comprising over 175,000 kilometers of fibre optic cable systems in India, USA, Europe, Middle East and the Asia Pacific region.

About BBC World News

BBC World News, the BBC's commercially funded international 24-hour news and information channel, is owned and operated by BBC World News Ltd, a member of the BBC’s commercial group of companies. BBC World News attracts 78 million viewers a week, is available in more than 200 countries and territories worldwide, and reaches 283 million households and more than 1.5 million hotel rooms. The channel's content is also available on 57 cruise ships, 42 airlines, 35 mobile phone networks and a number of major online platforms including bbc.com/news. For further information on how to receive BBC World News, download schedules or find out more about the channel, visit bbcworldnews.com

For further information, please contact:

Lakshman Sundar Aiyar 09324110166
Chaitra Harihar 09323861167


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