(9 December 2006 8:00 pm)

MUMBAI: Alcatel-Lucent has announced that it has been selected by Singapore Telecommunications (SingTel), Southeast Asia’s largest telecom operator, for its Internet protocol television (IPTV) trial, which began in October 2006.

Based on a combination of Alcatel-Lucent’s services integration solution and Microsoft TV® IPTV Edition software platform, the project will include broadcast TV and video on demand (VoD), with content featuring high definition (HD)-quality picture resolution.

Alcatel-Lucent will provide SingTel with an end-to-end IPTV solution and will use the Microsoft TV IPTV Edition software platform to offer an enhanced user experience, enabling user-friendly features like instant channel change, multiple picture-in-picture and personal video recorder (PVR) functionality (such as one-touch recording and pausing live TV). Alcatel-Lucent will also provide a complete services integration solution that brings together the network infrastructure, software platforms and integration skill sets required to deliver a superior user experience.

Alcatel-Lucent is working closely with SingTel to develop an array of useful applications, including audio support in different languages, music-on-demand, karaoke-on-demand, customer self-service (allowing users to subscribe to new services and make account modifications) and bill viewing.

Alcatel-Lucent’s solution also includes HP ProLiant servers and video headend systems from Harmonic. SingTel is using Harmonic’s HD and SD real-time MPEG-4 AVC (H.264) DiviCom Electra video encoders, CLEARcut™ offline storage encoding solution and NMX Digital Service Manager™.

SingTel director of IPTV and content Low Ka Hoe says, “We are very excited about the launch of our IPTV technical trial. SingTel is confident that Alcatel-Lucent’s telecom expertise and experience in deploying end-to-end IPTV networks and integrating the Harmonic and Microsoft solution, will go far in ensuring the success of this trial."

Alcatel-Lucent Asia Pacific head Frederic Rose says, “Offering an advanced IPTV solution ensures that SingTel will continue to lead the way as one of Asia-Pacific’s most innovative operators. Alcatel-Lucent and SingTel are also working together on other value-added applications that will allow consumers to enjoy a better TV experience.”

In June 2006, SingTel selected Alcatel-Lucent for the first ever Gigabit Passive Optical Networking (GPON) trial in the Asia Pacific region and the first residential Metro Ethernet trial in Singapore.

Alcatel-Lucent provides purpose-built technology solutions and services integration that allow carriers to reduce the cost and complexity associated with large scale deployments. Alcatel-Lucent is involved in more than 40 major triple play deployments and more than 40 network transformation projects worldwide.