Princess Cruises selects cellular communications specialist MCP for the new Royal Princess and her sister ship

Princess Cruises' latest contract with Maritime Communications Partner (MCP) means that passengers on the new vessels can stay connected while onboard with global roaming capabilities for voice, text and mobile internet conveniently billed to their home carrier.

Additionally, the contract includes the provision of CrewSIM, a service which allows crew members to make and receive voice calls, texts and mobile internet at discounted rates.

The new vessels, due for delivery in 2013 and 2014, will get a future-proof, state of the art modern antenna network enabling an eventual migration to 3G and future technologies.

"We've been working with MCP for over three years now and are very pleased with their level of service and commitment to excellence," says Tony Kaufman, Princess Cruises' senior vice president of commercial affairs.   "It is clear that MCP is focused on future growth and future technologies. Having a partner like MCP that we can trust to handle this aspect of our operations allows us to provide exceptional service to our passenger and crew, reflecting our commitment to being the Consummate Host."

The speed of technology development in the communications industry is unparalleled.  "It is important to deliver solutions that take advantage of the latest, smartest technologies without compromising on reliability or flexibility, in order to move forward into the future," says Fred Sorensen, MCP's Managing Director for MCP in the Americas.  "Adding these new vessels to our family of ships is definitely a welcomed development and is the direct result of MCP's entire staff working hard to deliver the optimal results from all facets of our business.  It is encouraging to see that when we live up to our core beliefs and principles, "Make it easy, Be inspiring, Keep promises, and Be respectful", our customers and the market place does take notice."

About Princess Cruises

One of the best-known names in cruising, Princess Cruises first set sail in 1965 with a single ship cruising to Mexico. Today, the line has grown to become the third largest cruise line in the world, renowned for innovative ships, an array of onboard options and an environment of exceptional customer service. A recognised leader in worldwide cruising, Princess offers approximately 1.3 million passengers each year the opportunity to escape to the top destinations around the globe, aboard a fleet of 16 modern vessels.

For more information about Princess Cruises, please visit:  www.princess.com

About Maritime Communications Partner:

MCP is the leading onboard communications partner. The company has developed unique technical solutions, providing mobile telephony coverage for people onboard major cruise ships and ferries world-wide, delivering a premium service to MCP's customers. Our modern offices are located centrally in Arendal, Norway and Miami, (FL) USA. MCP is fully owned by Telenor ASA, one of the world's major mobile operators. Through Telenor, MCP has access to a wide range of competence and resources within market, product, innovation and content development.

For more information about MCP, please visit:  www.mcp.com

Contact:

Egon Vik
Market Communications Manager, MCP
egon.vik(at)mcp.com
+47 90 97 44 77