LONDON -- mmO2 today announced multimedia messaging (MMS) interconnect with Orange and T-Mobile in the UK, enabling customers to send and receive full multimedia messages in much the same way as SMS today.These are the first such announcements in the UK, and an important step towards full interconnection between network operators. It is believed that this will facilitate the widespread adoption and use of multimedia messaging and camera phones. O2 Germany customers have had interconnect with both T-Mobile and Vodafone from December 2002. Talks with other operators are well underway and the company expects to make more announcements shortly. With immediate effect, O2 UK customers can send and receive full multimedia messages - incorporating pictures, sounds and text - to O2, Orange and T-Mobile subscribers. This applies to all O2 accredited media messaging handsets on the O2 UK network. For customers of operators with which interconnect agreements are not yet in place, the recipient will receive a text message informing them that they have been sent an O2 media message and should visit the given website address to view it.Kent Thexton, chief marketing and data officer at mmO2, said: "Our goal is to make MMS as easy to use as SMS. As part of our commitment to provide a compelling customer experience for MMS, we have been instrumental in driving the market towards interconnect. We will continue to work with industry players such as the Mobile Data Association1 and the GSM Association2 to grow the range of MMS-based services available in the UK and globally." mmO2 announced O2 media messaging during October, and research conducted on behalf of O2 UK highlights that 75% of O2 media messaging users are likely to recommend MMS to others, and 60% have already done so. mmO2 plc Orange UK T-Mobile (UK)