Europolitan and Karlskronahem create wireless homes on Stumholmen

PRESS RELEASE - Karlskrona, 23 February 2000 Europolitan and Karlskronahem create wireless homes on Stumholmen As a result of a unique working partnership between Europolitan and Karlskronahem, 64 households on the island Stumholmen in Karlskrona now have the chance to become completely wireless. Fixed telephones are being replaced by mobile telephones, Internet access is offered via wireless broadband and the island's inhabitants will in future be able to, for example, book the laundry room, look for vacant flats and contact service technicians via an intranet. The pilot project - one of the first of its kind in the world - will be tested for a year. The pilot project is known as Telecom Home and is the result of a unique working partnership between Europolitan and Karlskronahem. The package offered to Stumholmen's tenants includes constant Internet access via wireless broadband, mobile telephony at the same cost as fixed telephony, one WAP telephone for each household and additional regular mobile phones for other family members, as well as Europolitan's Multi-services for all household members. In future, they will also have access to a local intranet so that they, for example, can book the laundry room, look for flats or contact the caretaker. With Telecom Home, Europolitan has created a so-called zone solution on Stumholmen, within which the inhabitants can use their mobile phones at fixed telephony rates. Regular mobile rates apply outside the zone. In addition, family members can use short numbers to call each other at cheap rates both inside and outside the zone. Calls from non-family members are routed to a fixed number and the call is then automatically transferred to the mobile phone. The Telecom Home pilot project will be tested for a year, after which it will be carefully evaluated. Stumholmen was chosen as the testing area for the technical solution because this is where Karlskronahem has most tenants with mobile phones and home Internet subscriptions. Stumholmen is also an island, which means that it is ideally suited in technical terms to the setting up of a zone-based solution. It remains to be seen whether a full-scale solution of this type is technically or financially feasible. "This was an ideal opportunity for us to test the very latest technology and also offer it to a number of pioneer customers," says Mikael Kluge, Vice President Marketing Europolitan. "And the fact that we have been able to do it in Karlskrona, where we have our head office, is an added bonus. Telecom Home is a tremendously exciting project where we use highly advanced technology to create uncomplicated and easy-to-use services that simplify people's everyday lives in their home environments." "We see this as an opportunity to offer our tenants something unique. This solution offers them complete mobility. They can go anywhere and still be reached. It is also a way for us to attract tenants. We currently have a high turnover of flats on Stumholmen and it is a tremendous advantage to be able to offer prospective tenants a wireless home," says Anette Blomqvist, Head of Marketing at Karlskronahem. Europolitan AB is a Swedish GSM operator that prioritises service and quality. The company's head office is in Karlskrona, Sweden. Europolitan is a leader in the field of technically advanced services for GSM 900/1800. The Europolitan Group, which also includes the stock market listed parent company Europolitan Holdings AB and its sister companies, Europolitan Stores AB and Doberman AB, employs around 1,000 people. For more information, please contact: Mikael Kluge, Vice President Marketing, Europolitan AB, tel: +46 708 33 12 05, e-mail: mikael.kluge@europolitan.se Lotta Hansson, Press Officer, Europolitan AB, tel. + 46 708 33 13 51, e-mail: lotta.hansson@europolitan.se Anette Blomqvist, Head of Marketing, Karlskronahem AB, tel: +46 708 31 13 04, e-mail: anette.blomqvist@knahem.se ------------------------------------------------------------ Please visit http://www.bit.se for further information The following files are available for download: http://www.bit.se/bitonline/2000/02/23/20000223BIT00110/bit0001.doc http://www.bit.se/bitonline/2000/02/23/20000223BIT00110/bit0002.pdf