Category : World
Service
Date : 01.04.2004
Printable version
The BBC World
Service news package is now operational on Shubuo, Turkcell's value-added
services (VAS) platform.
The service offers Turkish-language news updates and
a UK press review delivered over multiple mobile platforms.
Subscribers to the service, which is packaged around Turkcell's
special Shubuo concept, now receive an average of four SMS messages
from the BBC every day.
Users of the service can also listen to twice-daily
audio news updates and the daily press review.
Miles Palmer, Head of Business Development, BBC World
Service, said the BBC continued to develop new ways for people to access
impartial news.
"The mobile phone is now the most carried item
around the globe and, we believe, is the communication device of choice,"
he said.
"We are delighted that the BBC is now available
to Turkcell's user base and we plan to offer them more products, including
those in the English language."
Head of BBC Turkish service, Hüseyin Sükan,
added that the partnership with Turkcell would enable BBC World Service
to reach its audience through a new and growing medium.
"At a time when many historic developments are
taking place worldwide, our audience demands instant access to
our content wherever they are. This is a firm step towards serving
our audiences demand," he said.
Shubuo General Manager Esra Özbay said the BBC
news package was a direct response to the demand of a particular audience
who wished to monitor international events through a respected news
source.
She also stated that launching the BBC package was part
of Shubuo's plans to meet the varying needs of different segments of
subscribers and that they would be introducing new packages to cover
specific fields of interest in the future.
Istanbul-based communications consultancy Notisia helped
with the design and implementation of BBC World Service news on Shubuo.
Mehmet Yagci, Chief Information Officer of Notisia,
said the BBC's unequalled wealth of audio resources presented directly
and easily utilisable products for mobile operators.
"Value-added services are not only about SMS or
WAP. With the right products, VAS can help with increasing the airtime
use as well," he said.
Notes to Editors
BBC World Service broadcasts programmes around the world
in 43 languages and is available on radio and online.
It has a global audience of 150 million listeners.
BBC World Service is available globally on short wave;
on FM in more than 135 capital cities; and selected programmes are carried
on around 2,000 FM and MW radio stations around the world.
The BBC World Service websites receive more than 200
million page impressions every month.
With more than 19 million subscribers as of end-2003, Turkcell is Turkey's
premier mobile operator and the company ranks sixth in the overall European
GSM market in terms of subscribers.
Shubuo is Turkcell's leading VAS brand, presenting a
single, well-defined interface to mobile subscribers wishing to explore
various value-added services.
It provides subscribers with access to quality content
while creating a new medium for subscriber brands to promote their goods
and services.
