Carnival Cruise Lines Fleetwide Cell Phone Implementation Continues with LGC Wireless
Three Ships Already Equipped for Cell Phone Service; Balance of Fleet to be Completed by Early 2007
SAN JOSE, CA, September, 2006 -- LGC Wireless, the leader in advanced in-building wireless systems, today announced that its InterReach™ Unison systems have been installed on three Carnival Cruise Lines ships as part of the line's fleetwide implementation of cell phone service. The installation is on schedule and will continue at a rate of three ships per month with all 21 ships in the Carnival fleet expected to be completed by early 2007.
Deployments are handled by Wireless Maritime Services (WMS) and have already been completed on the line's Carnival Conquest, Carnival Triumph, and Imagination.
"Cell phone service is just the latest convenient, high-tech service we're providing guests sailing aboard the 'Fun Ships.' Guest response to cell phone service has been exceptional on the three ships already equipped with the technology and we are looking forward to the fleetwide deployment early next year," said Bob Woodry, Carnival's vice president - hotel commerce. "WMS and LGC Wireless have given us a state-of-the-art solution that offers outstanding performance and convenience for our guests."
The LGC Wireless system supports both CDMA and GSM-based cellular phone services, allowing the vast majority of the world's cellular users to send and receive calls, e-mail, and other services on their phones while aboard cruise ships. In fact, the CDMA coverage allows passengers to make and receive calls during cruises throughout Europe, Asia and other GSM-dominant parts of the world where they would otherwise have no coverage at all.
A joint venture of Cingular Wireless and Maritime Communications Network, WMS offers cost-effective roaming coverage for most of the world's cellular providers. Carnival and WMS are now working on plans to upgrade the cellular systems to support higher-speed EV-DO services sometime next year.
"LGC Wireless provides us with great support in our rollouts for Carnival Cruise Lines and many other cruise operators," said Rob Marjerison, vice president of deployment at WMS. "The Unison system is easier and more cost-effective to deploy and delivers better performance than the other systems we considered."
LGC's Unison distributed antenna system reduces installation and operational costs with an active, dual-star architecture that offers full end-to-end management over standard fiber and Cat 5 cabling. Thanks to its active electronics, the system delivers consistently high signal strength with low noise at every antenna point.
"Cellular coverage at sea is a winning proposition for cruise line operators, wireless carriers, and cellular phone users," said John Spindler, vice president of marketing at LGC Wireless. "We are delighted to be providing this convenience for Carnival Cruise Lines passengers."
About Carnival Cruise Lines
Carnival Cruise Lines, a unit of Carnival Corporation & plc (NYSE/LSE: CCL; NYSE: CUK), is the largest and most popular cruise line in the world, with 21 "Fun Ships" operating voyages ranging from three to 16 days in length to the Bahamas, Caribbean, Mexico, Alaska, Hawaii, New England, Canada, Bermuda, Europe and the Greek Isles.
The line currently has three new ships on order - the 110,000-ton Carnival Freedom, scheduled for delivery in February 2007, the 112,000-ton Carnival Splendor, slated to enter service in spring 2008, and an as-yet-unnamed 130,000-ton SuperLiner - to be the largest "Fun Ship" ever constructed - set to debut in fall 2009. For additional information on Carnival's "Fun Ship" vacations, contact any travel agent, call 1-800-CARNIVAL or visit carnival.com.
About Wireless Maritime Services
Wireless Maritime Services, LLC, (WMS) a joint venture of New Cingular Wireless Services, Inc. and Maritime Telecommunications Network, Inc. is the largest maritime cellular service provider in the world. WMS currently provides service for 8 cruise lines including Carnival Cruise Lines. WMS has roaming agreements in place with over 300 carriers in over 180 countries internationally, and delivers both GSM and CDMA roaming capability to the cruise industry. For more information on WMS and its services, please visit the www.cellularatsea.com website.
About LGC Wireless
With more than 5,500 deployments worldwide, LGC Wireless is the leader in extending scalable, high-performance wireless coverage inside buildings and public facilities. LGC's products offer low-cost installation, end-to-end monitoring and management, and easy integration of emerging wireless technologies. LGC Wireless is based in San Jose, California USA and is privately held. For more information, please visit www.lgcwireless.com.