InfoSpace Launches Next Generation Mobile Portal Services Platform for Cingular Wireless | MMA Global

InfoSpace Launches Next Generation Mobile Portal Services Platform for Cingular Wireless

January 16, 2006


InfoSpace Launches Next Generation Mobile Portal Services Platform for Cingular Wireless

BELLEVUE, Wash., Nov 17, 2005 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- InfoSpace Inc. (NASDAQ: INSP), a leading provider of mobile content, applications and infrastructure, today announced that its innovative mobile portal services platform is powering the newly enhanced MEdia Net service from Cingular Wireless. The new MEdia Net will give more than 30 million Cingular customers with data-capable handsets quicker access to relevant and personalized information.

InfoSpace was selected to build the new MEdia Net based on its knowledge and expertise in portal services. MEdia Net users can create a home page on their Cingular phones with content from up to 16 categories (weather, sports, stocks, etc.) that is presented to them when they launch their mobile browser. Additionally, with the new MEdia Net, customers can also find information, ringtones, wallpaper and other genres of wireless content all in one easy-to-navigate dashboard. The search tool can also be personalized using a zip code feature to find the nearest gas station, ATM, hotel or even a store that sells umbrellas in case of an unexpected storm.

"Mobile access to content provides a huge opportunity for carriers, both in terms of improving customer satisfaction and increasing revenues. Yet, because the user experience has been so cumbersome, adoption rates have not reached their full potential," said Steve Elfman, Executive Vice President of Technology and Operations, InfoSpace. "By breaking down the many mobile content silos that exist, we are simplifying access to information and removing major barriers that have slowed mobile data use."

The InfoSpace mobile services platform provides a simplified back-end infrastructure to help reduce ongoing maintenance costs, improve customer service and satisfaction, and find new opportunities for revenue. These components include:

-- Carrier Tools - allows the carrier to more effectively manage the portal look and feel: create their own publications, change deck structures, manage promotions
-- Unified Storefront - tighter integration and promotion across all purchasable content
-- API and Development Tools - open APIs and tools for carrier and content providers to conceptualize and manage onboard content
-- Reports - business intelligence on how user is using the service and what can be done to boost usage
-- Self-care customer service, parental control
-- Search - search across all carrier assets and beyond and obtain only the most relevant results

Recent research by mobile market measurement firm M:Metrics found that 42 percent of mobile subscribers now use their handsets for mobile data services, representing a growing population of consumers interested in mobile applications.

"Consumers want to take full advantage of everything their handsets have to offer but, until now, the wireless Web had not been delivering on its promise of easy access," said Mark Donovan, M:Metrics vice president of products and senior analyst. "Users have often been separated from their desired content by several time-consuming clicks. But as the technology evolves to streamline the mobile browsing experience, with the help of companies like InfoSpace, mobile carriers have a significant opportunity to provide applications that allow their subscribers to truly take the mobile Web with them."

Availability
The InfoSpace solution for Cingular is available today. Over the next several weeks, it will be offered to more than 30 million Cingular subscribers who have data capable mobile phones.

About InfoSpace
InfoSpace, Inc. is a leading global provider and publisher of mobile content, products and services that enhance the wireless experience, making it easier for consumers to find and enjoy information, personalization and entertainment on the mobile phone. The company distributes its applications and services through mobile operators, including Cingular Wireless, T-Mobile, Verizon Wireless, Sprint Nextel, Virgin Mobile, Vodafone, O2, Orange, 3, TIM and Telefonica Moviles. InfoSpace also uses its unique metasearch technology to power a portfolio of branded Web sites and provide private-label search and online directory services through Dogpile (www.dogpile.com), Switchboard (www.switchboard.com), WebCrawler (www.webcrawler.com), InfoSpace (www.Infospace.com), MetaCrawler (www.metacrawler.com) and WebFetch.com (www.webfetch.com). More information can be found at www.infospaceinc.com.

SOURCE: InfoSpace Inc.
InfoSpace
Jeff Hasen, 425-201-8618
[email protected]

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Weber Shandwick
Kryssa Guntrum, 212-445-8110
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