Teleca to Partner with Apple in European Media Distribution

Euro pean telecom firm Teleca AB has announced a "system integration relationship" with Apple Computer, Inc. According to a statement released by the company, the deal will make Teleca "a preferred system integrator of Apple media creation and delivery solutions in the European telecommunications market."

Telecais role in the relationship appears to focus on the delivery and playback of media on mobile handsets, which may mean the deal roughly parallels the Apple-Motorola partnership in the US.

Apple, however, is publicly approaching the deal as a way merely to promote Apple technologies. The companyis senior director of product marketing for Mac OS X Audio and Video, Frank Casanova, said in the statement, "We?re thrilled to be working with Teleca to drive the adoption of QuickTime and other Apple technologies including Mac OS X, Xserve and Xsan in the European telecom marketplace." Neither company has explicitly acknowledged the deal will involve music distribution.

The relationship was announced at the 3GSM World Congress in Cannes, France. Stockholm-based Teleca has more than 3,000 employees and operations in 15 countries in Asia, Europe and North America.