Orange set to launch HD Voice in 2010

Orange is set to roll out the new HD service in 2010

Mobile network operator Orange today announced that it will be rolling out new high-definition voice capabilities to its customers next year in a bid to offer improved call quality.

The HD Voice service, which France Telecom-owned Orange is claiming will be the first of its kind in the UK, will only be available to customers with HD Voice enabled handsets, but could represent a new era for mobile communications, according to the firm.

"Orange is proud to be leading the industry into the next decade by announcing a new standard in voice innovation that will transform the mobile experience for customers in the UK," said Orange UK chief executive Tom Alexander.

"HD Voice really does inject a level of innovation into mobile phone calls, making it sound as if callers are actually in the same room. Once people have tried it, they won't want to go back."

HD Voice uses the Wideband Adaptive Multi-Rate speech codec, which Orange claims will provide improved audio quality due to a wider speech bandwidth of 50–7000Hz compared to the current narrowband speech codec of 300–3400Hz.

It also manages this without using up any extra network resources, said the firm.

The announcement wraps up a busy year for Orange which saw it successfully complete its merger with ailing T-Mobile UK, which will make it the largest operator in the UK with a combined market share of around 37 per cent.