Thomson Portable Media Center selected by PCCW

Thomson Portable Media Center selected by PCCW for “eye 2”, its new multimedia service for the home

PARIS, France — Thomson (Euronext 18453; NYSE: TMS), worldwide leader of services to content creators, announced today that it has been selected by PCCW Hong Kong to provide a unique WiFi enabled portable device as the platform for PCCW’s second generation “eye service”, an advanced multimedia over IP to the home service. PCCW Limited, the holding company of HKT Group Holdings Limited (HKT), Hong Kong’s premier telecommunications provider and a world-class player in Information and Communications Technologies, is the first network operator in the world to offer this innovative integrated multimedia device for the home.

The Thomson Portable Media Center, which will be branded by PCCW as the “eye 2”, will enable users to move seamlessly between high quality IPTV channels, local and online music streaming and photo albums, video telephony as well as the complete range of online information and media services from PCCW’s walled garden offering.

All of this is accessed from a simple user interface, controlled either by the touch screen or from dynamically assigned controls on the surface. The device also contains high quality stereo speakers. It has an integral stand allowing it to be placed on any surface, or it can be comfortably held in the hand while moving around the home.

“We are very excited that PCCW Hong Kong, one of the most forward-looking service providers in the world, is the first customer to have selected our Portable Media Center for the launch of its “eye 2″ service” said Andrew Levido, Head of Business Operations and Thomson Connect, Thomson. “We developed this device for just such an application as this one. This innovative device has been designed to help operators enhance the breath of home networking and entertainment services that they can offer to the users wirelessly around the home”.

“Our subscribers have rapidly accepted the huge advantages of a seamless multimedia service over IP,” said Tom Chan, Managing Director, Consumer Group, PCCW Hong Kong. “We are so glad to launch the first and foremost “eye 2″ in Hong Kong. It embodies telephone, TV, multimedia player, infotainment and interactive functionalities. Supported by PCCW’s quadruple-play platform, we put every part of the service and unique user experience into the hands of our subscribers.”

The “eye 2” service, based on Thomson Portable Media Center, will be proposed from 9th June, 2009 to PCCW’s voice, broadband and IPTV subscribers.