Acclaimed architecture aboard Emirates’ flight is also at the heart of
emergency/ first responder and rural GSM solutions

 CTIA Las Vegas, 1 April 2008 – Altobridge’s core technology has just enabled the world’s first in-flight personal mobile phone services, delivered by AeroMobile aboard an Emirates Airline Airbus A340-300 on 20th March. Altobridge, (Booth #627, Hall C1/2, Ireland Pavilion) will be at CTIA Wireless in Las Vegas highlighting this very same core technology at the heart of its other acclaimed solutions for critical wireless applications. Showcased on the stand will be the company’s Remote Contiguous Communications Unit™ (RCC), a portable wireless solution that provides Emergency First Responder and Humanitarian applications with their own private networks, or extends existing networks to these locations, providing standard, cost-effective communications.  

 In addition to the RCC, (see notes for editors), Altobridge will also be displaying its Local Connectivity solution at the Ericsson stand, which cuts the cost of communications by switching local calls at the base station. Altobridge has been selected for this technology as one of four finalists in this year’s Andrew Seybold Choice Awards, under the category: “Most Innovative New Design Concept”.

 After several years of privately funded R&D, Altobridge developed an inflight technology - Altobridge’s AM Gateway Platform™ - capable of overcoming the most demanding technological hurdles and regulatory challenges posed in meeting the requirements of the aeronautical GSM space. This was then selected in 2005 as the technology of choice for the world’s first commercial deployment of In-Flight Mobile Communications by the ARINC / Telenor joint venture, AeroMobile.

 Bjorn-Taale Sandberg, Chief Executive Officer of AeroMobile Limited, commented, “Altobridge’s technology is integral to the AeroMobile system and provides us with unique capabilities in the aviation marketplace, such as the ability to operate over all Inmarsat satellite communications systems. The Altobridge AM Gateway Platform allows AeroMobile and our airline customers to benefit from the highest level of service while at the same time minimising use of aircraft satellite links, improving the commercial viability of our service.”

 Altobridge Chief Executive Officer, Mike Fitzgerald, said, “We are thrilled that Aeromobile and Emirates have reached this major, historical milestone for both the wireless and aviation industries and that our core technology lies at the heart of this success.”

 At CTIA, Monte Egeland, Altobridge Vice President, North America, added, “This great in-flight success is testimony to the technology that powers the RCC solution for the emergency/first responder market. Not only is this solution now commercially proven, it has been proven in a scenario for which the technological and regulatory requirements have been the most demanding of any GSM application. The RCC is every bit as exceptional.”

VISIT ALTOBRIDGE AT CTIA 2008 ON BOOTH # 627, Hall C1/C2, THE IRELAND PAVILION

About the RCC

The RCC enables standard cellular communications anywhere, under any circumstances including extreme natural disaster scenarios. Whether for use by Government First Responder/Emergency personnel or the business community for communications continuity (Communications Insurance™) the  Altobridge RCC can provide a guaranteed cellular service in the most challenging environments.

The system operates without the cost/technology barriers that exist with traditional solutions, such as vehicle-based Cell On Wheels (COW). The Altobridge RCC combines the patented Altobridge AM Gateway Platform™, a standard pico-cellular base station and a satellite transmission unit (e.g. Inmarsat GAN/BGAN), all in a single carry case.

All existing emergency communictions solutions carry with them certain barriers, either technological, financial, mobility etc., which prevent an effective and timely response in a situation where immediate standard communications matters most. Using the Altobridge RCC Unit, interoperability, coverage, capacity, mobility and power issues are all overcome by a lightweight service delivered by distributing small transportable communication cases to the key locations. The business model can include a 24/7, fully-managed service, including support, training and rehearsals.

The system is ideal for sceanarios following natural disasters, where service is lost, congested or the disaster takes place outside the normal coverage area. Emergency workers can communicate from, and be contacted on, their existing mobile handsets. With the RCC, first responders are able to carry the units with them and simply turn on their existng cellular handsets, ensuring maximum communications impact the moment it is needed.

 About Altobridge - www.altobridge.com

Headquartered at Kerry Technology Park, Ireland and with regional offices in Tyson’s Corner, Virginia, USA and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Altobridge is a leading provider of telecommunications solutions that cut the cost of communications to/from and between wireless devices. The company’s core, patented AM Gateway Platform™ and Local Connectivity Platform™ cut backhaul costs to/from base station sites as well as providing local call switching at the base station site. These solutions have been successfully tested and deployed in wireless telecommunications networks as well as the following vertical markets: Remote Community/Enterprise, Aeronautical, Maritime, Secure and Emergency/First Responder wireless communication markets.

 Altobridge licenses its software to leading vendors and operators and can also provide a fully managed wireless service to mobile operators. Wireless operator clients include: Maxis (Remote Community), AeroMobile (Aeronautical GSM), Blue Ocean Wireless (Maritime GSM).  Vendor clients include: Ericsson (Local Connectivity).