by Globes correspondent
 
Celltick Technologies, a developer of interactive broadcast technology for mobile networks, has signed an agreement to provide its system to China Unicom, one of the two licensed mobile operators in China.
Celltick's interactive broadcast system will be installed in XinJiang state over the next few weeks, implementing the first stage of an agreement to provide the system to China Unicom's XinJiang subscribers.

China Unicom is one of the largest mobile operators in the world, with 80 million subscribers and a 20% annual growth rate. Considering overall subscriber growth and new subscriptions in the Chinese provinces, Celltick anticipates sizable future revenues over the next three years.

The Celltick Interactive Broadcast Platform enables mobile operators to establish an interactive communication channel with its mass subscribers, while increasing revenue from value-added services. The system uses the mobile phone's control channel, enabling subscribers to receive a continuous stream of content to the handset, without interrupting regular service and without disturbing the user. Content is broadcast to the mobile operators' subscribers without using bandwidth the operators' most expensive resource. The company said that the system "creates a new medium, transforming the mobile phone into a real-time, mass-communications channel like a mini-TV, offering direct, easy access to a rich variety of content and applications".

Celltick's CEO, Yossi Wellingstein said he is satisfied with the implementation of his company's strategy: penetrating and retaining the developing Asian market, which has a very high growth potential. "We are very proud that China Unicom, one of the biggest mobile operators in the world, has chosen our system to interact with its subscribers and boost value added service revenues. After completing our agreement with all of Hutchison-India's seven mobile operators to install the widely publicized launch of the Celltick system throughout the Indian subcontinent, we see great importance in penetrating the largest emerging market in the world: China. Using our system, China Unicom will be able to intensify subscriber exposure to its many information services and to increase its value added service income significantly."