Amsterdam, Jan 23, 2013 - Gemalto (Euronext NL0000400653 GTO), the world leader in digital security, announces that it is delivering its UpTeq LTE SIM and embedded software applications to EE, the UK’s most advanced communications company, powering the launch of the UK’s first 4G mobile network.

EE, the joint venture between France Telecom and Deutsche Telekom in the UK, is the first mobile operator in the UK to launch 4G, which is available on the company’s EE brand. EE’s 4G service is already live in 18 cities and towns across the UK, with 17 more planned by the end of March 2013, and 98% of the UK population is scheduled to be covered by the end of 2014.

In this first large-scale LTE deployment in Europe, Gemalto’s UpTeq LTE plays a key role in helping EE meet the commercial and technical challenges of 4G. The high-end software package included in the SIM card is compliant with the latest industry standards, and embedded for EE in both Micro SIM Plus and nano SIM (4FF) formats.

4G technology allows consumers to experience “blinding speed” mobile interactions, thanks to short response times (low latency), and loading speed up to five times faster than 3G. Customers can thus experience the full potential of their mobile devices when browsing the internet, and securely enjoy data-rich services such as high definition video, live TV, music and multi-user gaming.

"Gemalto was able to meet our very challenging requirements in terms of planning, capacity and overall program delivery," commented Simon Frumkin, VP of Procurement and Supply Chain at EE. "Gemalto moreover demonstrated the technical expertise required to assist EE in defining its services precisely, and in implementing quickly the card software functionalities as well as the back-end applications."

“Through the support of Gemalto EE enjoys immediate access to all the knowledge and expertise acquired in our recent high profile deployments in Japan and the US,” added Philippe Vrignaud, senior vice-president of telecommunications at Gemalto. ”EE is leading the introduction of LTE in the UK, and the Gemalto UpTeq LTE front-end and back-end software technologies allows them to rapidly leverage the full potential of LTE networks(1).”

(1) USIM for standard network access, ISIM for IMS network access and RoHTTP to support application deployment within the Global Platform standard.