Thomson's Next Generation Networks Enter Poland with Telefonia Dialog
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Thomson's Cirpack softswitches used by Poland's largest alternative telecoms operator to augment capacity of legacy networks, increase services and pave the way for VoIP
Paris July 11, 2006 - Thomson (Euronext 18453; NYSE; TMS) today announced that its Cirpack softswitch solutions have been selected by Telefonia Dialog, Poland's largest independent telecom operator, to increase the capacity and simplify the structure of their legacy telephone networks, as well as to prepare its infrastructure for massive deployment of voice over broadband. This announcement places Thomson in a unique position to help Polish operators migrate to Next Generation Networks and IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) infrastructures for the delivery of fixed and mobile multimedia services.
In this initial phase, Telefonia Dialog is using Thomson's Cirpack softswitches to improve the transit capacity of its long distance voice infrastructure, creating new interconnection points with other carriers with both SS7 and VoIP technologies. Using Cirpack's advanced voice routing mechanisms, Dialog is now also capable of providing extra services such as 800 numbers, carrier pre-select and prepaid telephony.
According to Eurostat, costs of both traditional telephony and internet access in Poland are high due to lack of competition. By upgrading their networks to the latest voice switching technologies from Thomson, Telefonia Dialog can manage more traffic with a better quality and offer more attractive services at a much lower cost.
In a second phase later this year, Dialog intends to leverage its Thomson softswitching infrastructure to deliver primary line telephone services into new geographical areas using Voice over IP over DSL. As the Polish Office of Electronical Communications recently passed legislation obliging Poland's incumbent telecom operator to rent their DSL lines to other ISPs for 50% lower prices, independent forecasts show that fixed telephony will be steadily substituted for VoIP in Poland.
Dialog's Vice President, Mr Andrzej Kryszyński commented "We organised a tender to see which suppliers had the strongest technology and widest experience in the softswitch field. Thomson provided us with many examples of successful deployments of their Cirpack platforms in many different type of applications. The Cirpack deployment in our network proved that this is the most advanced solution from a technical point of view and we are confident it is the ideal platform for Dialog to build its new PSTN and VoIP services."
Jean-Pierre Dumolard, General Manager of Thomson's Next Generation Networks business unit commented "We are pleased to announce our first Cirpack customer in Poland. This project is quite different, as Dialog is using Thomson's Cirpack switches to create an intelligent network environment to connect its legacy voice infrastructure to service platforms as well as to provide transit capacity to other operators. This proves that Thomson's Cirpack switches are equally as efficient for legacy networks as for VoIP."
About Telefonia Dialog
Dialog telecom is the largest independent fixed line operator in Poland. The company provides telecommunications services to 450,000 subscribers as well as 100,000 internet users. Dialog's customers include residential and business clients of all sizes. Dialog's is a wholly owned subsidiary of KGHM Polska Miedz SA - one of the world's largest producers of copper and silver. Dialog provides a wide choice of tariffs, plans and options at competitive prices with a guarantee of quality, leading edge technology, flexibility and high customer care standards. Dialog uses its own network of switches, transmission systems, fibre optics, last mile copper and radio systems. For more information visit: www.dialog.pl
About Thomson - World Leader in Digital Video Technologies
Thomson (Euronext Paris: 18453; NYSE: TMS) provides technology, services, and systems & equipment to help its Media & Entertainment clients - content creators, content distributors and users of its technology - realize their business goals and optimize their performance in a rapidly changing technology environment. The Group is the preferred partner to the Media & Entertainment Industries through its Technicolor, Grass Valley, RCA, and Thomson brands. For more information: www.thomson.net.
Thomson's Access Platforms and Gateways (AP&G) activity, part of the company's systems and equipment division, is a leading supplier of digital entertainment receivers to the world's major satellite and terrestrial broadcasters, cable operators and telecom service providers. It offers a full range of digital set-top boxes, phones, broadband modems and gateways with modular VoIP, IPTV and wireless capabilities. Through its Next Generation Networks business unit, Cirpack, it is also one of the leading suppliers of softswitch solutions to migrate telecom infrastructures to NGN (Next Generation Networks) and IMS (IP Multimedia Subsystem) enabling massive deployments of broadband telephony and IP Centrex, for instance. Products are marketed under the RCA, THOMSON, SpeedTouch and CIRPACK brands. You can find more information on AP&G's products at www.thomson-broadband.com and www.cirpack.com
For more information contact:
Joanna Pays
International PR Manager
Tel: +33 1 41 44 38 18
jpays@cirpack.com
THOMSON TELECOM
NGN Business Unit, CIRPACK
www.cirpack.com
www.thomson.net
