M1 & Nokia take the lead in mobile telephony innovations with creative MMS applications from the MMS challenge
4.9.2003

Singapore, 9 April 2003 – MobileOne (M1) and Nokia today unveiled three first-of-its-kind multimedia messaging service (MMS) applications that are set to thrill tech-enthusiasts and add excitement to the dynamic mobile phone application landscape in Singapore.

These applications are the winning innovations of the Multimedia or MM Challenge that was jointly launched by M1 and Nokia in October 2002. A milestone initiative, it aims to continuously introduce breakthrough mobile solutions and services to the market, nurture Singapore’s technology talents and to further develop and raise the standards of the local wireless industry.

“The possibilities for mobile telephony applications and services are endless and will only be limited by the human imagination and our creative prowess in thinking up practical solutions to overcome hurdles. The MM Challenge is, we believe, a good platform for mobile telephony innovations to come to life. We are glad that this inaugural initiative has led to the creation of several exciting applications that will benefit our customers and we hope to continue to leverage this platform to do so,” said Mr Steven Chan, Director of Internet Services & Product Development, M1.

Sharing M1’s sentiment in championing mobile communications innovation, Ms Kirsi Kotilainen, Head of Forum Nokia, said, “Nokia is always on the lookout to work alongside our operator customers in creative initiatives to make the market. The MM Challenge is one such initiative and we are confident that it will effectively address the growing reliance on mobile phones and the demand for a slew of dynamic mobile applications and services to complement the fast-paced lifestyle of sophisticated city dwellers.”

Twenty developers with proven track records were invited to take part in the MM Challenge by Forum Nokia, the global developer programme by Nokia and M1’s Application Developers Community (ADC), which supports developers with test-bed facilities and other incentives. Eight developers participated and submitted proposals to pioneer multimedia products, applications and services. Among the eight, three entries – Monster World, Diva Server and Fun Video - have been selected for commercial launches by M1 within the year.

As the first multi-player real-time multimedia game on the mobile phone platform, Monster World aspires to be “LAN gaming on the go”. Currently, Monster World boasts animated graphics and gaming mechanics similar to LAN games as gamers roleplay as rookie monsters and move about in the virtual world by giving commands via SMS and MMS.

Diva Server, a phone-to-phone application, allows for the first time, MMS phones without video support to receive and view video contents in animated GIF format and WAP phones to receive video contents as fitted WML pages. When made available, this innovative video content transcoding application will eliminate the worry of multimedia messages not being displayed properly on the receivers’ phones.

An event-based application, Fun Video, allows video phone users and subscribers of this service to be their very own video broadcaster. With this service, video clips or images shot by an MMS-enabled video phone can be shared and broadcast almost “live” on a display device by streaming the content through the Fun Video server to various event locations. Supporting images of different resolutions and various video formats from different MMS phones, the Fun Video truly bridges the gap between the mobile user and the world of multimedia and broadcasting.

Chosen for their novelty, and technical and market feasibility, the winning applications of the MM Challenge have placed M1 and Nokia once again at the forefront of mobile communication technology with unprecedented applications and services that are set to keep pace with the demands of a dynamic and forward-looking market.

In addition to their practical benefits, the selected applications also meet customers’ needs in the following ways:
- Provide fun and entertainment
- Complement lifestyle
- Provide news and information
- Facilitate messaging and communication

“The selected applications bear testimony to the potential of the MM Challenge as an effective platform for mobile technology innovations. M1 and Nokia are determined to improve, improvise and apply the Challenge concept to extend beyond multimedia applications and into other areas of mobile phone technologies to serve our customers better,” said Mr Chan.

“ We may consider extending subsequent Challenges to more developers in the region and will continue the provision of a comprehensive suite of technical information and support to facilitate real-time simulation of the application in use,“ added Mr Chan.

For the inaugural MM Challenge, developers of the chosen application are technically supported by Future Lab, a collaborative facility by M1 and Nokia that boasts servers and facilities to test, develop and demonstrate applications to improve user-friendliness and market feasibility.

Developers of the selected applications are also awarded a total of S$20,000, inclusive of S$2,000 awarded upon submission of their proposals. M1 will enjoy the exclusive use of the winning applications for six months upon their official launch in Singapore.

M1, Singapore's most exciting and innovative mobile, IDD and paging service provider, was launched in April 1997. Since then, it has made significant inroads into the local mobile communications market, gaining considerable brand presence and market share. M1 aims to be the leader in personal voice and data communications, focusing on value, quality and customer service. More information on M1 is available at www.m1.com.sg.

A world leader in mobile communications, Nokia has established itself as the leading preferred brand in many markets where it is present in the Asia-Pacific. Backed by its experience, innovation, user-friendliness and secure solutions, Nokia is the world’s leading supplier of mobile phones, and fixed, mobile and IP networks.


Monster World by Orange Gum

Monster World is the enhanced version of the popular text-based SMS game of a similar name in MMS format. The inaugural mobile multi-player and real-time game is jazzed up with cool environment and character graphics, heralding in a potentially bright future for mobile LAN gaming!

To play the MMS game, gamers first take on a character from a selection of four different monsters. Commands to navigate each monster character in the Monster World are sent via MMS. Gamers command their monsters to roam the virtual rooms, hidden corners and pathways to out scare one another and to collect treasures. The objective of the game is to increase the “fright quotient” of the monster by scaring off the others and the scarier monster wins. To do that, gamers command their monsters to store up enough energy for the next big scare.

In operations since 2000, Orange Gum Pte Ltd (www.orangegum.com) provides expert mobility enabling services for enterprise partners, and develops, aggregates and delivers premium mobile content and wireless Internet services through mobile carriers to consumers in Asia. Orange Gum aggregates contents from Japan, Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, the Philippines and the US. It distributes content through its carrier network which includes China Mobile, China Unicom, Taiwan Cellular, Chung Hwa Telecom, Far Eastone, KG Telecom, Mobitai, Trans Asia, CSL, Hutchison, Smartone, Sunday, Peoples, New World Mobility, Singtel, Mobileone, Starhub, Globe, Smart, DTAC and Maxis.

Orange Gum’s mobile content delivery platform m.Ark is being deployed by customers such as NEC, Kyocera, Samsung and ACCS. The company is headquartered in Singapore with offices in Tokyo, Shanghai, and Taipei.

Contact : Geraldine Lai, Senior Executive (Corporate Communication)
MobileOne Ltd
DID: 6895-1369
Email: laimy@m1.com.sg

Karen Wong Chayavirabood

Senior Manager (Nokia Communications, Asia Pacific)
Nokia Pte Ltd
DID: 6723-1824
Email: karen.k.wong@nokia.com