The CDMA Development Group (CDG) today announced the successful conclusion of its third set of Open Market Handsets (OMH) trials in cooperation with CityCell in Bangladesh, PT. Telekomunikasi Indonesia, Tbk and PT. Indosat, Tbk in Indonesia, and HutchCAT in Thailand. The OMH program is part of the CDG's Global Handset Requirements for CDMA (GHRC) initiative and specifies a common set of requirements based on standards to procure CDMA2000(r) devices in an open-network and open-device environment. The completed trials in Bangladesh, Indonesia, and Thailand now complement previously-announced trials with Reliance Communications and TATA Indicom in India as well as with Bakrie Telecom and Mobile-8 Telecom in Indonesia.

Open Market Handsets enable operator-specific network configuration and service provisioning information, as well as subscriber-specific device provisioning information to be moved from the CDMA handset's onboard memory into a next-generation Removable User Identity Module (R-UIM) card. By doing so, the handset becomes a generic device that can be sold on the "open market" and used in multiple operator networks.

"In rapidly growing markets such as Bangladesh, Indonesia and Thailand, 3G will thrive in large part because of the availability of extremely affordable CDMA2000 handsets," said Perry LaForge, executive director of the CDG. "The OMH initiative provides device procurement and distribution flexibility in a network-independent, open-market environment. OMH will serve as a model for CDMA markets with rapidly-growing subscriber growth."

The trials in Bangladesh, Indonesia, and Thailand included OMH-enabled R-UIM cards provided by Eastcompeace, Gemalto, KSI, Oberthur or Watchdata and prototype devices developed by Huawei or ZTE. During the trials, Open Market Handsets were provisioned for full-fledged 3G data capabilities across the participating operators. Tested, proven features included backward compatibility, CDMA2000 1X packet data (SIP with CHAP and PAP), BREW, SMS, voice (with authentication), WAP/browser capabilities and R-UIM-based carrier customization.

Rather than storing all network, service and subscriber provisioning data on both the R-UIM cards and the devices, OMH trials have proven that data can be stored on OMH-capable R-UIM cards. The successfully-tested solution allows OMH-capable CDMA handsets to serve as open devices for any packet data application provisioned on the R-UIM card and on any CDMA2000 network, since user, network and service configuration data is stored on the R-UIM card.

Multiple operators benefit by offering the same "generic device" and differentiating themselves by selling and provisioning all of their data services on OMH-capable R-UIMs. Device OEMs benefit from larger distribution channels, enriched brand development and the ability to sell devices across many markets and regions. Consumers benefit by being able to transfer their identity and service configuration data to a new phone on the same network by simply moving the OMH-capable R-UIM card from the old phone to the new phone.

"Indonesia is a highly-competitive market with many operators, therefore the market must support a large selection of feature-rich, affordably-priced devices," said Mr. Guntur S. Siboro, Marketing Director of PT. Indosat, Tbk. "The Open Market Handsets initiative is a mutually-beneficial scenario that allows Indonesian operators to reduce inventory and empowers consumers to choose from a wider variety of handset models and features."

"These successful trials in Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, and now Thailand mark another milestone for CDMA operators in emerging markets. The Open Market Handsets initiative brings excitement to the mobile phone market in Thailand as it will allow Hutch customers the choice of additional devices from independent sources, thus encouraging greater CDMA market expansion in the country," said Mr. Panop Kasemsarn, Vice President Commercial Planning and Terminal Management, Hutchison CAT Wireless MultiMedia Ltd. (Hutch).

"The OMH initiative offers a flexible experience that exceeds that of today's RUIM cards due to the advanced capabilities of 3G CDMA," said Dr. Anand Rajasingham at CityCell. "Additionally, on one hand we reduce our inventory and testing costs while on the other hand CityCell seamlessly introduces new, lower-cost handsets to consumers."

Source:GlobeNewswire