Released by Eastman Kodak:
Kodak Introduces New Mobile Imaging Service in Europe
CANNES, February 23, 2004 – Eastman KODAK Company, the world’s imaging leader, announced the introduction of KODAK Mobile Service in Europe, the company’s latest move to deliver on its comprehensive digital strategy.
Consumers in Europe will be able to access the service beginning early May. KODAK Mobile Service is an easy-to-use, comprehensive service available for the growing number of consumers using camera-enabled mobile phones. With KODAK Mobile Service, these consumers can view, share, organise, store and print their pictures and video on the go.
The expansion of KODAK Mobile Service into the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Spain, Italy and the Netherlands follows the successful launch of the service in the United States late last year. It will offer mobile-phone users in Europe the most complete imaging services available, accessible in six languages: English, German, French, Spanish, Italian and Dutch. KODAK announced the introduction of the service at the 3GSM World Congress today.
“With more than 100 years of imaging heritage, no company is better positioned than KODAK to lead the burgeoning market for mobile-imaging services,” said Bernard Masson, president, Digital & Film Imaging Systems, and senior vice president, Eastman KODAK Company “KODAK Mobile Service will benefit consumers, , mobile-service providers, handset manufacturers and retailers as they embrace this rapidly growing market. The introduction of this service in Europe represents another step in KODAK’s drive to make photography available to consumers anytime, anywhere.”
In May, consumers in Europe will be able to enjoy mobile imaging through the following services from Kodak:
·· Online. A new KODAK website, www.kodakmobile.eu.com, is dedicated to managing, sharing and printing digital and mobile-captured pictures and video. The site will be linked to Ofoto, KODAK’s market-leading online photofinishing service, making it easy for consumers to get KODAK prints of their favorite pictures mailed directly to their home.
·· Handsets. KODAK has created a handset service designed to quickly upload pictures and videos from camera phones to private albums with KODAK Mobile Service. It also enables users to save, share, view and order Kodak prints of digital and mobile phone camera-captured images straight from the handset. Users of Nokia 6600, Nokia 7650 and Nokia 3650 will be the first to take advantage of this latest development in imaging technology.
·· Kiosks. To supplement the KODAK Mobile Service, the company is introducing enhanced KODAK Picture Maker kiosks at retailers across Europe to allow for faster printing of images. Using Bluetooth and infrared wireless transfer technologies, customers also will be able to use these kiosks to get KODAK prints of images from digital cameras and camera phones within seconds. The KODAK Picture Maker kiosks offer five-second prints in 10x15cm and 13x18cm formats for increased ease of use and convenience. KODAK Picture Maker kiosks are equipped with proprietary software to reveal more vibrant colours, richer detail and fewer dark shadows in every picture. Kiosks are currently being rolled out in Nokia stores, in the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Spain and the Netherlands and are being tested in retailers such as Car Phone Warehouse and Orange stores.
IDC estimates that more than 250 million camera-enabled mobile phones will be in use over the next three years in Europe.
“The mobile-imaging market is truly exploding and KODAK intends to make the most of it for the benefit of consumers and our partners,” said Lisa Gansky, general manager, Digital Imaging Services, Eastman KODAK Company. “While the introduction of 1- and 2-megapixel camera phones in the coming years will improve the quality of prints for consumers, it will also increase the challenges for operators to manage, store and transmit larger files. With some of our partners, such as AT&T Wireless, Verizon Wireless, Orange and Nokia, KODAK is offering flexible and scalable solutions to handle the surge in images and deliver an irresistible and uncompromised experience for the mobile consumer.”
Anyone with a camera- or image-enabled phone that supports WAP 2.0 can begin using KODAK Mobile Service in May. The service can be accessed by computer or handset browser at www.kodakmobile.com. KODAK Mobile Service is available via a monthly or yearly subscription basis.
About Eastman Kodak Company
Kodak is the leader in helping people take, share, print and view images – for memories, for information, for entertainment. The company is a major participant in infoimaging, a $385 billion industry composed of devices (digital cameras and flat-panel displays), infrastructure (online networks and delivery systems for images) and services & media (software, film and paper enabling people to access, analyze and print images). With sales of $13.3 billion in 2003, the company comprises several businesses: Health, supplying the healthcare industry with traditional and digital image capture and output products and services; Commercial Printing, offering on-demand colour printing and networking publishing systems; Commercial Imaging, offering image capture, output and storage products and service to businesses and government; Display & Components, which designs and manufactures state-of-the-art organic light-emitting diode displays as well as other specialty materials, and delivers optics and imaging sensors to original equipment manufacturers; and Digital & Film Imaging Systems, providing consumers, professionals and cinematographers with digital and traditional products and services.
