Hamburger Abendblatt launches WAP portal

The Hamburger Abendblatt is the first German daily newspaper to launch a cross-network WAP portal for cell phones. The new portal provides free access to results and information on the soccer World Cup as well as other news from the worlds of business, politics, sport and local affairs. "We will gradually expand the WAP portal into a comprehensive mobile guide for Hamburg," said Florian Kranefuss, Managing Director of the publishing house, in a press release. Further free features are planned, such as a telephone directory and pharmacy emergency services, as well as free download services for photos and audio files.
The technology behind the portal is new: access to the Hamburger Abendblatt's mobile service is provided via a free telephone number and therefore works independently of the network operator. With the free call via cell phone, the phone number and cell phone type are identified and the user receives a personal link via SMS as access to the WAP portal.