Alcatel-Lucent and Verizon Wireless Showcase Connected Retail Experience Using Mobile Commerce at CES 2012

LAS VEGAS and BASKING RIDGE, N.J., Jan. 10, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- At this year's International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, Verizon Wireless and Alcatel-Lucent (Euronext Paris andNYSE: ALU) are teaming to showcase how a new breed of mobile commerce applications can help consumers save money while also benefitting retailers.  Using a series of interconnected demos, the connected retail shopping experience, which combines 3D telepresence, video conferencing, cloud computing and ultra-high bandwidth connectivity over 4G LTE, is taking place in the Verizon booth (Las Vegas Convention Center, South Hall, Booth #30259). 

Mobile commerce stands to revolutionize the way in which retailers and consumers interact, particularly when it comes to redeeming coupons and other money-saving offers.  Using Near Field Communications technology and intelligent devices to deliver coupons over the network directly to the consumer's mobile device, mobile commerce creates an experience that is customized and personal for the shopper and also provides retailers with valuable redemption information that can be used in a variety of ways, including support for loyalty programs and more accurate inventory management. 

The Alcatel-Lucent and Verizon Wireless demonstration illustrates how merging mobile commerce with other applications can help create new retail business models, both at store locations and at home.  As part of the CES demo, a consumer receives a coupon through a Near Field Communications-enabled device which can then be redeemed via an interactive Virtual Personal Stylist (VPS) kiosk.

The Virtual Personal Stylist is a concept from the ng Connect Program, founded by Alcatel-Lucent now with more than 125 member companies.  The 2012 CES demo includes new technology and cloud-based processing from CradlePoint, Systech, TelePresence Tech, [TC]2, Vidyo and VisionMAX – along with Alcatel-Lucent and Verizon Wireless – to create a complete end-to-end personalized shopping experience.

Robert Vrij, president of the Americas region for Alcatel-Lucent, said, "In today's digital economy, connectivity has become as important as any utility for consumers.  At CES, we are working with Verizon Wireless to highlight the new breed of applications and capabilities – such as mobile commerce – that were once viewed as futuristic, but are now becoming possible based on the power, reliability and ubiquity of today's mobile networks."

Verizon Wireless leads the way in 4G with the largest 4G LTE network and most reliable 4G network in the United States, which now covers more than 200 million people in 190 markets.

Following CES, the demos will be featured in the Verizon LTE Innovation Center in Waltham, Mass.

Verizon established its Innovation Program to encourage collaboration and help advance the 4G LTE ecosystem.  The company's LTE Innovation Center and its Application Innovation Center in San Francisco were created to inspire, enable and develop non-traditional devices, services and applications that take advantage of Verizon Wireless' industry-leading wireless networks.  Through the Innovation Program, Verizon seeks to expand the possibilities of 4G LTE by working with diverse companies, from start-ups to established players, in industries representing a broad range of verticals.

For more information about Verizon at CES, visit www.verizonwireless.com/ces or follow Verizon Wireless news on Twitter at @VZWnews.  

About Verizon Wireless

Verizon Wireless operates the nation's largest 4G LTE network and largest, most reliable 3G network. The company serves 107.7 million total wireless connections, including 90.7 million retail customers.  Headquartered in Basking Ridge, N.J., with nearly 83,000 employees nationwide, Verizon Wireless is a joint venture of Verizon Communications (NYSE, NASDAQ: VZ) and Vodafone (LSE, NASDAQ: VOD).  For more information, visit www.verizonwireless.com. To preview and request broadcast-quality video footage and high-resolution stills of Verizon Wireless operations, log on to the Verizon Wireless Multimedia Library at www.verizonwireless.com/multimedia.   

About Alcatel-Lucent (Euronext Paris andNYSE : ALU)

The long-trusted partner of service providers, enterprises, strategic industries and governments around the world, Alcatel-Lucent is a leader in mobile, fixed, IP and Optics technologies, and a pioneer in applications and services. Alcatel-Lucent includes Bell Labs, one of the world's foremost centres of research and innovation in communications technology.

With operations in more than 130 countries and one of the most experienced global services organizations in the industry, Alcatel-Lucent is a local partner with global reach. The Company achieved revenues of Euro 16 billion in 2010 and is incorporated in France and headquartered in Paris.

For more information, visit Alcatel-Lucent on: http://www.alcatel-lucent.com, read the latest posts on the Alcatel-Lucent blog http://www.alcatel-lucent.com/blog and follow the Company on Twitter: http://twitter.com/Alcatel_Lucent.

SOURCE Verizon Wireless