HTC Invests In Digital Media Delivery Specialists Saffron Digital; HTC Sense To Get Games, Music, More?

HTC's digital media ambitions continue to progress, with the company picking up investing in digital multimedia delivery specialists Saffron Digital. According to HTC CEO Peter Chou, the "ability to deliver optimised content in the future will be a key asset," and HTC will use the company's skills to "increase our global service delivery capabilities and expertise." The news follows suggestions that HTC saw its Sense experience spreading to the living room and other areas.

Saffron Digital already supplies – and will continue to support – Nokia, Sony Ericsson, HTC, LG and Samsung with DRM-encrypted media products, and has existing contracts with Sony Pictures, NBC Universal, Paramount, 20th Century Fox, Sky, T-Mobile and Vodafone. The company already has plans to offer games and music services.

Press Release:

HTC MAKES STRATEGIC INVESTMENT IN SAFFRON DIGITAL, A LEADER IN DIGITAL MULTIMEDIA DELIVERY

Taoyuan, Taiwan, Feb 7, 2011 – HTC, a global leader in mobile innovation and design, today announced it is making a strategic investment in London-based Saffron Digital, a global leader in digital multimedia delivery.

"Saffron Digital has developed an incredible expertise in mobile multimedia delivery. This ability to deliver optimised content in the future will be a key asset as content becomes more and more complex and localised, " said Peter Chou, CEO of HTC Corporation. "We are excited to be working with Saffron to increase our global service delivery capabilities and expertise."

Saffron Digital has experienced a phenomenally successful year with its innovative technology integrated into products and services in Europe by HTC, LG, Paramount Digital Entertainment, Sony Ericsson, T-Mobile and Nokia, among others, and in the US by Samsung. It has entered into partnerships with industry-leading companies such as Microsoft, and Widevine, to ensure that customers are given the best possible video experience across a range of devices.

"HTC's investment increases our global expansion capabilities and provides us with an opportunity to expand into new markets like Asia and new sectors like games and music delivery," says Shashi Fernando, CEO of Saffron Digital. "We have grown Saffron Digital into one of the best and most exciting digital service providers in the world and this enables us to take digital content delivery to a new level for our customers around the world."

Saffron Digital will continue to provide its cutting edge media and content services to its third party partners, which include device manufacturers, network operators and content providers in 26 countries. The company's headquarters will remain in London and Los Angeles while its management team will continue unchanged.

About Saffron Digital

Saffron Digital is a global mobile delivery platform company, whose products and services are live in 26 countries and 14 languages. Its proprietary technologies, which include the ability to support multi-device media delivery, superfast encoding and Domain Based DRM, have been integrated into products by clients including Nokia, Sony Ericsson, HTC, LG and Samsung, as well as services for Sony Pictures, NBC Universal, Paramount, 20th Century Fox, Sky, T Mobile and Vodafone. Shareholders in the company include Beringea, NewSmith Capital and Duet Asset Management.

Saffron Digital is listed in the Deloitte Technology Fast 50 and Technology Fast 500 EMEA for 2010, and also won the Best Video Service Provider at this year's Mobile Entertainment awards.

About HTC

HTC Corporation (HTC) is one of the fastest growing companies in the mobile phone industry. By putting people at the center of everything it does, HTC creates innovative smartphones that better serve the lives and needs of individuals. The company is listed on the Taiwan Stock Exchange under ticker 2498. For more information about HTC, please visit www.htc.com.