Vodafone Germany is planning to launch high-definition TV services next spring using its LTE network.
The company is already conducting trials of HDTV over its LTE network in Düsseldorf, and is looking to use its new high-speed technology to provide a wider reach for its burgeoning IPTV offering.
Thomas Ellerbeck, an executive vice president at Vodafone Germany, told the Handelsblatt newspaper that its LTE network provided coverage to around 7.5 million German households and would enable high-speed Internet access to areas with poor fixed-line service.
The company is pushing hard to boost subscriber numbers to its IPTV service and has announced the availability of several more HD channels. Vodafone Germany is looking to attract 100,000 IPTV users by the end of this year, with Vodafone TV CEO Dhananjay Mirchandani telling the Financial Times: "Our marketing is making very good progress."
However, the company is far behind market leader Deutsche Telekom, which already has 1.38 million customers to its IPTV platform, Entertain.
For more:
- see this Handelsblatt article (translated via Google Translate)
- see this Broadband TV News article
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