7/27/00

Intuwave and Contact Networks Team Up to Bring Next-Generation Contact Management Systems to EPOC Based Wireless Smartphones

LONDON, UK and REDWOOD SHORES, Calif., July 27, 2000.
Intuwave, the innovative wireless solution provider, and Contact Networks, Inc., the developer and marketer of Internet-enabled, contact-management tools that serve as critical components of wireless platforms and devices, have formed a strategic partnership to bring the next generation of information exchange services with integrated communication and commerce systems to wireless devices based on the EPOC operating system developed by the Symbian consortium.

Under the terms of the agreement, Intuwave will use its m-NetworkTM wireless service delivery platform and intimate knowledge of the EPOC platform together with Contact Networks’ Internet-based contact management technology. As a result, users of the emerging EPOC based smartphones will have access to unprecedented rich, always updated and accessible personal information.

“We believe that in the next generation of mobile services, we will see more intelligence built into handsets and other mobile devices” says Adam Hertz, president and CEO of Contact Networks. “The EPOC client software we are developing with Intuwave perfectly complements our unique service offering, by providing an unprecedented level of convenience, usability and integration. Our users will access the same rich personal information as they do on the Web, WAP or desktop, but view it using an intuitive interface which is tailored for the new, powerful phones we will soon see in the marketplace.”

Mark Melling, CTO and managing director of Intuwave, explains that the new solution will also bring significant benefits to other players in the mobile telephony value chain. “Network operators particularly like the increased loyalty and handset usage that compelling mobile applications bring, while hardware manufacturers are naturally enthusiastic about the development of software applications that run on their handsets. Other mobile solution companies are excited about the service possibilities that having such rich personal information bring,” he added.

About Contact Networks
Contact Networks (www.Contact.com), a Silicon Valley-based global enterprise, focuses on personal information sharing and contact management as the critical component of wireless and Internet-enabled communication platforms and devices. Contact Networks works with wireless infrastructure providers, carriers and portals to establish the industry’s most advanced platform for interpersonal wireless services, and to leverage the powerful technology underlying the company’s unique and powerful address book services. At the center of these services – delivered through a variety of access points, including WAP (wireless application protocol), voice, desktop and the Web, are rich, timely contact information tools and integrated communication and commerce services providing unique customer benefits that make interactions among people simpler and more personal.

Founded in 1998, Contact Networks is privately funded and raised $13 million to date. Led by President and CEO Adam Hertz (former Excite@Home engineering vice president) and headquartered in Redwood Shores, Calif., the company’s staff includes a wireless and PC engineering team in Israel, a business center in London and a voice access and server services engineering team in the United States. Contact Networks was listed among “The Top 100 Web Sites” in the April 26, 2000, issue of PC Magazine. Additional information is available at www.contact.com.

About Intuwave
Intuwave enables and builds secure, personalized, m-Commerce and content-rich wireless services, enabling consumers to receive services relevant to their passions, interests and needs, and transact, in real-time, wherever they are. London-based Intuwave’s state-of-the-art m-NetworkTM platform and series of products enable highly interactive, secure and personalized wireless services to be delivered to rich-client wireless devices based on platforms including Symbian’s EPOC.

Through the development of strategic partnerships with cellular carriers, wireless device manufacturers and technology partners, Intuwave is making the wireless handset the commerce device of the future, and enabling service providers and product retailers to realize the huge opportunity in the wireless marketplace. Additional information is available at www.intuwave.com/.

m-Network is a trademark of Intuwave Ltd. All other trademarks are the properties of their respective companies.

Additional information is available at www.contact.com.

For press inquiries contact:
Omer Malchin, VP, Marketing
Tel: (650) 610 3115

Kent Holland, Plesser Associates
Tel: (212) 319-8383

Jason Chupick, Plesser Associates
Tel: (212) 319-8383