UK wireless operator O2 has lifted the lid on some of its plans for the next 24 months. The last of the country's operators to launch commercial 3G, the company aims to rectify this next month with a network initially based on 20 cities and rolling out to the rest of the country during 2005, and to group properties in Germany and Ireland in 2006. High speed downlink packet access (HSDPA) will be implemented from the summer.

From the second half of the year, the company will begin to commercialise i-Mode mobile Internet services in partnership with NTT DoCoMo using a low cost overlay to its existing infrastructure.

In the spring, O2 will trial mobile broadcast TV based on the digital video broadcast-handheld (DVB-H) standard in Oxford to assess likely customer demand. Also participating will be Nokia, cable operator NTL Broadcast and other as yet unidentified content providers.

From mid-year O2 is planning to trial rich, peer-to-peer multimedia services using the 'IMS@vantage' IMS platform being provided by Siemens Communications Group. Commercialisation will follow from the year end The company says that the IMS-supported service repertoire could include enhanced instant messaging, push-to-talk and push-to-watch services, combined chat and picture messaging, folder sharing, presence services, voice over IP and 'rich call'.

Yesterday, O2 cto Dave Williams said: "Today's (IMS) announcement supports O2's plans to develop an 'all-IP' multimedia communications infrastructure by 2007. This will help stimulate new mobile data revenue streams as well as drive down ongoing operational costs by eliminating duplication across current multiple service specific networks and creating a single multi-service hub".
John Williamson