Availability – television and the Internet – for everyone, everywhere • Raport Społecznej Odpowiedzialności Grupy Polsat Plus za rok 2020

Polsat Plus Group is the biggest media and telecommunications group in Poland and the leading provider of multi-play multimedia services. Our mission is to ensure as broad availability of our services as possible. Thanks to the unique combination of competence of the companies from our Group, we are able to develop and deliver to our customers the programming content they expect through a variety of reliable distribution channels using diverse technologies.

By providing TV services relying on IPTV, OTT and satellite technologies we exploit the possibilities offered by the Internet, thanks to which the TV content is available to our customers in many ways, on diverse devices and at the time of their choice. Upon connecting Cyfrowy Polsat’s STB’s to the Internet customers can use innovative TimeShift, reStart and CatchUP functions which enable watching favorite shows at a different time than when these shows are originally aired, i.e. when we have time to watch them. These functions offer flexibility and freedom of watching TV, in a manner which to a great extent is independent of the actual TV programming schedule. While using the TimeShift function you can stop and rewind selected shows for up to 3 hours – you can once again watch a selected scene or part of a match. ReStart means watching selected shows from linear TV channels from the beginning, which means we do not have to worry about being late for the beginning of our favorite TV series, movie or entertainment show. CatchUP, in turn, enables returning to a selected program, even up to 7 days back from the original broadcasting date, without the need for recording it. These functions are available both in the set-top boxes which support IP and OTT technologies, e.g. EVOBOX IP and EVOBOX STREAM, as well in the satellite TV STB’s, namely EVOBOX HD and EVOBOX Lite.

In the same way as the programming offer of TV Polsat and Cyfrowy Polsat’s TV packages reach millions of homes nationwide, it is also the Internet access service provided by our Group’s companies that has become a “window to the world” for many Polish families. And not only in big cities, where fiber-optic access offers can be purchased from Plus or Netia, but above all in small towns and villages where Mobile Internet Access – also in the form of the LTE Home Internet Set - offered by Plus can be used, thus substantially increasing the service coverage and signal strength.

We also offer to our customers the possibility of buying offers with fixed-line Internet access in Plus, including fiber-optic connection featuring data transfer speeds of even up to 1 Gbps. This ultra-fast Internet sent via a fixed link, based on the Netia’s and Orange’s infrastructure, will meet the expectations of even the most demanding users and will ensure stable connection and high quality of the Internet, even if all members of the household use it simultaneously.

5G network capabilities

While responding to the needs of our customers and of the changing environment, in May Plus launched the first 5G network in Poland using the spectrum from 2600 MHz TDD frequency band.

Safety

Smart cities

AR/VR and Artificial Intelligence

Remote learning and work

Autonomous vehicles and smart roads

New dimension of entertainment

Telemedicine

Good practice

New 2020
5G network roll out

Plus has been the leader of development of state-of-the-art Internet access technologies for years. In May 2020, Plus launched the first in Poland 5G network using the spectrum from 2600 MHz TDD frequency band. As network roll out continues dynamically, our 5G network is currently the biggest, in terms of coverage, and the fastest in Poland, offering maximum data speeds of up to 600 Mbps. The network covers a territory inhabited by more than 7 million of Poland’s inhabitants in all provinces of the country. In line with the operator’s plans, still in 2021 the total number of people who will be able to enjoy the service will exceed 11 million in total. 5G in Plus is developed based on the state-of-the-at infrastructure delivered by Nokia and Ericsson.

5G means:

access to the Internet at maximum technological data speeds of up to 600 Mbps,
use of TDD technology (Time Division Duplex), which allows for providing data transmission services while using one, common fragment of frequency band for time division downlink/uplink transmission,
development of even better home entertainment and state-of-the-art solutions which enable offering access to coverage of sports events, news and programs in high resolution (4K and even 8K), as well as choice of angle (camera) from which the picture is shown on screen. Thanks to virtual and augmented reality, in a moment we can move to the center of sports and musical events, just if we were in a stadium or at a concert of our favorite group,
smooth streaming of games in high quality. Gaming fans will surely appreciate the speed at which new productions can be downloaded to a smartphone or to a computer, though thanks to the development of cloud-based gaming platforms this will soon become unnecessary,
the driving force for the new possibilities offered by the Internet of Things. Along with its dynamic development, the latest generation 5G network will be able to serve as many as even a million devices per square kilometer.

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Continuation
Development of LTE technology

LTE Mobile Internet access is universally available in our country. At present nearly 100% of Poland’s inhabitants live within the coverage area of LTE Plus network, with 93% living in the areas covered by a network offering even higher transmission parameters - the LTE Advanced. Connection speed and stability depend to a great degree on the frequency band used for LTE transmission.

We use the following frequency bands:

2600 MHz TDD, that is the basis of the 5G network currently built by us;
2600 MHz FDD and 2100 MHz used for building the capacity of LTE network;
1800 MHz, that is key frequency band of LTE, ensuring both high capacity and broad coverage;
900 MHz used for building LTE coverage in less populated areas of the country.

Data transfer rate in this standard can be maximum 300 Mbps (downlink) and 50 Mbps (uplink). The response time (ping) is ~10 ms in the best case.

LTE Internet access offers an alternative to fiber-optic lines whose installation still remains impossible in many Polish rural areas and small towns. 4G mobile Internet access enables fast and convenient browsing of the internet, watching of films, downloading of files, making video calls, uploading photos, or even streaming or playing online games.

In Plus we continuously develop the LTE technology so that the high speed Internet access can be enjoyed by as many of the country’s inhabitants as possible.

Digital services offered by our companies are available nationwide and can be used by practically every inhabitant of Poland. The extensive coverage of our network enables us to indulge in actions which popularize new technologies as well as support innovation and education. The Copernicus Science Centre, which we have been supporting for 10 years now, is an example of this exceptional combination of the world of science and latest technologies, providing information on scientific and technological developments while using the latest technical solutions.

Good practice

Continuation
10th Anniversary of the Copernicus Science Centre

Since the very beginning of activity of the Copernicus Science Centre (CSC) Plus network has been the Supporting Partner of this most advanced institution in Europe which combines popularization of science and culture. Plus, which since the beginning of its operations has been putting stress on advanced and innovative methods of communication, offers the Centre’s visitors access to a free Wi-Fi network – both indoors as well as in the Discovery Park.

In November 2020 CSC celebrated the 10th anniversary of its operations. The anniversary celebrations were supported by the advertising campaign developed by Plus which was present in TV Polsat and in social media. Special benefits were prepared for Plus network subscribers on the occasion of the anniversary, including 1000 anniversary vouchers. Due to the pandemics the planned attractions were available on-line. However, at the beginning of 2020 nearly 1000 Plus subscribers could observe, experience, ask questions and seek answers during “Visit the Copernicus Science Centre After Hours action”.

Bearing in mind all inhabitants of Poland and equal access to our services, we also provide help in the situations in which ordinary solutions do not work or other technologies are not available. We would like to make a broad portfolio of our services available to every person in Poland and to all families. Therefore, we have been consistently developing our proposals and opening to new markets.

Service availability

Utilizing online capabilities, we have launched cable IPTV and online television relying on a set-top-box (OTT). EVOBOX Stream set-top-box, dedicated to the OTT online television, enables access to television packages on the territory of Poland and in the European Union wherever the user takes it and connects to the Internet, thanks to which television may be adapted to the user’s individual needs. LTE Plus Home Internet set, our unique, proprietary solution, can considerably enhance the coverage area and signal power of the LTE Internet. We have been successfully offering this set in several, upgraded editions since 2014. The set consists of an outdoor LTE modem and an indoor WI-FI router. The modem can be easily mounted outside on the building (e.g. on the roof or balcony) and connected to the existing TV antenna installation (satellite or terrestrial one). The latest 300 LTE Home Internet set supports the LTE Plus Advanced technology and enables data transmission with maximum speed of even up to 300 Mbps during download.

In addition, our subsidiary Aero2, in accordance with the terms of its license for purchase of spectrum from the 2.6 GHz TDD band, provides free Internet access with restricted parameters (the BDI offer).

Nearly six years after launching the program which offers access to multi-play services for homes and families, the smartDOM program continues to enjoy enormous popularity. The joint program of Cyfrowy Polsat and Plus is enjoyed by more than 2 million of our customers. As of today the smartDOM program is the biggest in Poland scheme of this type, offering access to a wide range of products. The possibility of having various products assembled in one set offers you convenience of use and ability to manage your bills. The program includes satellite TV, IPTV and OTT cable TV offers, DVB-T digital terrestrial TV service as well as mobile and home LTE Internet access, and also such services as Plus Fiber-optic Connection (Plus Swiatłowód), Plus Postpaid Service, fixed-line telephony, insurance services, electricity and gas supply, or monitoring service.

Acquisition of Interia, which took place in the second half of 2020, was a strategic decision for the Group’s development. Addition of an Internet service to its resources will help the Group assume an essential position in the Internet and e-commerce market. Interia.pl will also be an important distribution channel for the content offered by TV Polsat and the main area of marketing activities in the Internet for the entire portfolio of Polsat Plus Group’s services and products, including for Cyfrowy Polsat, Plus, TV Polsat, IPLA, Netia. For our customers Interia.pl is yet another source of information from very many spheres of life. Every day and at all times it offers access to news and information from Poland and from abroad, reports from such areas as sports, entertainment, automotive industry and business, as well as access to weather forecasts and e-mail from any device of one’s choice.