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Deutsche Telekom press conference at IFA: Niek Jan van Damme emphasizes the need for free platforms on the Internet

  • Different platforms and operating systems must be able to communicate with one another
  • Network availability and network quality will be the key to all services
  • Deutsche Telekom plans to structure market diversity without restricting customers' freedom of choice

Deutsche Telekom Board member Niek Jan van Damme stressed the need for free platforms on the internet as well as on devices at the Group's press conference held today at the Internationale Funkausstellung (IFA) in Berlin. "Customers use numerous apps and services from different providers. The many different platforms generate the need to archive purchased and self-created content in multiple locations. We offer cross-platform services such as our Media Center, the PagePlace digital kiosk, the Telekom music app and the Program Manager to help our customers become more independent of the big platforms." In view of the constantly growing range of devices and services, he said, it is necessary that the different platforms and operating systems can communicate with one another. The complexity involved in different operating systems is, however, more likely to set up hurdles for consumers. "But the actual essence of telecommunications lies in overcoming hurdles," explains van Damme, who also sees this as one of Deutsche Telekom's strengths. Back in 2007 - and therefore long before its competitors - Deutsche Telekom focused its strategy on connected life and thus on overcoming precisely these hurdles. Photos, videos, music, books, TV and day-to-day communication are what connected life is all about. And it's also about the devices consumers use to access them, wherever they are - computers, tablets, TV sets and smartphones. Van Damme wants to make it easier for customers to choose the right products and services to suit their needs, without restricting their freedom of choice. "We have developed products and services featuring intelligent access options, intuitive operation and ease of use." Deutsche Telekom lost no time in addressing new market trends with services such as high-speed internet and HD-quality TV, time-shifted television with Entertain, and the mobile internet. The Media Center is no exception to this. The free cloud storage service with an inclusive volume of 25 gigabytes has been awarded the TÜV data security seal of quality. All data is stored online on servers in Germany in compliance with very stringent data security standards. Call & Surf Comfort via Funk gains speed The basis for the services offered in this package is a high-quality, high-speed network. Deutsche Telekom continues to steadily expand its high-speed networks in the fixed-line and mobile segments. Good news for customers in rural areas: their current rates are set to gain speed significantly. As of September 1, the maximum download speed of 3 Mbit/s will increase to as much as 7.2 Mbit/s. Uploads will be almost three times as fast as before, with speeds of up to 1.4 Mbit/s. The monthly charge of EUR 39.95 will, however, stay the same - with the result that customers get more service for the same price. Current subscribers to the Call & Surf Comfort via Funk rate will benefit automatically from the new scope of service. Deutsche Telekom bases its Call & Surf Comfort via Funk service on the LTE (Long Term Evolution) and HSPA (High Speed Packet Access) mobile communications technologies and, in doing so, eliminates 'white spots' on the broadband map. With this service, customers will therefore be able to surf the net several times faster than was previously possible in their area. Customers who already subscribe to a DSL service at up to 2 Mbit/s can easily change over to Call & Surf Comfort via Funk. Entertain now available via satellite Deutsche Telekom is launching a new television service for all TV fans: Entertain, Telekom's TV service, is now also available over satellite and can therefore be received by over 75 percent of all households in Germany. TV and radio signals are transmitted via digital satellite signal, more than 270 TV and 170 radio stations over Astra, for example - including HD+ channels such as RTL HD, Sat.1 HD and ProSieben HD. The HD+ card needed to receive HD+ programs comes with the Entertain Sat package and is free of charge for the first year. Interactive convenience functions such as personal TV and video recommendations, the online video store, Electronic Program Guide (EPG) and the Program Manager, which enables users to remotely program their hard disk recorders, are supplied via the customer's internet line. Beside digital television, Entertain Sat includes a flat landline and internet rate with a DSL bandwidth of between three and sixteen Mbit/s and is available from EUR 39.95 /month. The term of contract is 24 months. The HD-capable Media Receiver 500 Sat hard disk recorder with a capacity of 500 gigabytes comes at EUR 5.95 /month. Deutsche Telekom will be exclusively presenting the first LTE smartphone, in cooperation with Samsung, at the IFA. All known Deutsche Telekom services, including voice, SMS/MMS and video streaming, are already integrated and will be available in time for the market launch of LTE smartphones in the Deutsche Telekom LTE network. The first LTE tablet computer will also be live in action at the IFA. The Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9 LTE will be available by the end of the year.

About Deutsche Telekom Deutsche Telekom is one of the world’s leading integrated telecommunications companies with around 128 million mobile customers, 35 million fixed-network lines and approximately 17 million broadband lines (as of June 30 , 2011). The Group provides products and services for the fixed network, mobile communications, the Internet and IPTV for consumers, and ICT solutions for business customers and corporate customers. Deutsche Telekom is present in over 50 countries and has around 241,000 employees worldwide. The Group generated revenues of EUR 62.4 billion in the 2010 financial year - more than half of it outside Germany (as of December 31, 2010).

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