Aether Systems Reports Third-quarter Revenue Growth.OWINGS MILLS, Md.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 17, 1999-- Aether aether: see ether, in physics and astronomy. Aether god of whole atmosphere. [Gk. Myth.: Jobes, 42] See : Air Systems, Inc., (Nasdaq: AETH), a leading provider of wireless data services, reported a 152-percent increase in third-quarter revenue to $1.5 million, compared with $592,276 in the 1998 period. The results include revenue from subscriptions of wireless financial data services, which grew to $411,002 from $184,576 during the same period last year. Engineering services revenue rose to $1.1 million from $407,700 in the same period of 1998. The company reported a third quarter operating loss operating loss The excess of operating expenses over revenue. As with operating income, operating losses exclude revenues and expenses from operations that are not considered a regular part of the business. Also called deficit. Compare operating income. , adjusted for the impact of certain non-cash charges Non-Cash Charge A charge off, made by a company against earnings, that does not require an initial outlay of cash. Notes: Non-cash charges are typically against the depreciation, amortization, and depletion accounts on a company's balance sheet. , of $0.07 a share compared with $0.07 a share operating loss in the year ago period. The per share net loss was $0.14 compared to $0.07 in the same period a year ago. Revenue from third quarter results include two days of operations of Mobeo Inc., which Aether acquired on September September: see month. 28, 1999. "We are pleased with these results, which reflect our successful progression progression, in mathematics, sequence of quantities, called terms, in which the relationship between consecutive terms is the same. An arithmetic progression is a sequence in which each term is derived from the preceding one by adding a given number, d, to a subscriber subscriber, n the person, usually the employee, who represents the family unit in relation to the prepayment plan. Other family members are dependents. Also called certificate holders or enrollees. based enterprise wireless data services company, while continuing to build the facilities and technology capabilities that are necessary for us to be the leading provider in our industry," President and Chief Executive Officer David Oros said. For the nine-month period, Aether reported a 98-percent increase in revenue to $2.3 million from $1.2 million a year earlier. Subscriber revenue increased to $1.0 million from $309,152 a year ago, while engineering service revenue rose to $1.3 million from $843,790 in the first nine months of 1998. The company reported an operating loss, adjusted for the impact of certain non-cash charges, of $0.23 a share for the nine months ended September 30, 1999, compared with an operating loss of $0.22 a share in the comparable 1998 period. The per share net loss was $0.36 compared to $0.22 in the comparable 1998 period. Aether also completed its IPO (Initial Public Offering) The first time a company offers shares of stock to the public. While not a computer term per se, many founders, employees and insiders of computer companies have found this acronym more exciting than any tech term they ever heard. in October October: see month. , raising net proceeds Net Proceeds The amount received after all costs are deducted from the sale of a piece of property or security. Notes: In the case of an investor selling a security, net proceeds represent the proceeds from the sale minus any trading costs (i.e. commissions). of $102.7 million. A portion of that was used to fund the acquisition of Mobeo, a provider to foreign exchange traders Traders Individuals who take positions in securities and their derivatives with the objective of making profits. Traders can make markets by trading the flow. When they do this, their objective is to earn the bid/ask spread. of real-time 1. real-time - Describes an application which requires a program to respond to stimuli within some small upper limit of response time (typically milli- or microseconds). Process control at a chemical plant is the classic example. quotes and news on wireless handheld handheld: see personal digital assistant. devices. "Aether's goal is to be the premier provider of wireless data services, and with the successful completion of our IPO we are extremely well-positioned to provide wireless solutions to new customers in a broad range of industries. We will expand our spectrum of services, widen wid·en tr. & intr.v. wid·ened, wid·en·ing, wid·ens To make or become wide or wider. wid  en·er n. our capabilities with the expansion of our network operations
center See NOC. Network Operations Center - (NOC) A location from which the operation of a network or internet is monitored. Additionally, this center usually serves as a clearinghouse for connectivity problems and efforts to resolve those problems. and enhance our marketing and sales efforts," Oros said.
THIRD QUARTER HIGHLIGHTS
- Agreement with Charles Schwab, the leading online broker, to
provide a wireless trading platform for its customers. Trial
phase is underway.
- Launch of TradeRunner service, which allows customers of Morgan
Stanley Dean Witter Online to trade stocks and get financial
information using Palm connected organizers and other wireless
handheld devices.
- Formation of OmniSky (formerly OpenSky), a venture between Aether
and 3Com Corp. that will mass-market wireless Internet access and
e-mail through handheld devices. OmniSky unveiled its first
service offering with AT&T Wireless Services on November 15.
- Strategic alliance with Ericsson Wireless Internet Solutions to
co-market and develop innovative wireless data services.
Aether Systems Inc. is a leading provider of wireless data services and systems that enable the use of wireless handheld devices for real-time data Real-time data denotes information that is delivered immediately after collection. There is no delay in the timeliness of the information provided. Some uses of this term confuse it with the term dynamic data. communications and transactions. Aether offers a broad range of wireless data services, including real-time stock quotes and financial data, stock trading, Internet access See how to access the Internet. and e-mail. Headquartered in Owings Mills, Md., Aether also has offices in New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of , Illinois Illinois, river, United States Illinois, river, 273 mi (439 km) long, formed by the confluence of the Des Plaines and Kankakee rivers, NE Ill., and flowing SW to the Mississippi at Grafton, Ill. It is an important commercial and recreational waterway. and Florida Florida, state, United States Florida (flôr`ĭdə, flŏr`–), state in the extreme SE United States. A long, low peninsula between the Atlantic Ocean (E) and the Gulf of Mexico (W), Florida is bordered by Georgia and . Visit Aether's web site at http://www.aethersystems.com. This press release includes forward-looking statements forward-looking statement A projected financial statement based on management expectations. A forward-looking statement involves risks with regard to the accuracy of assumptions underlying the projections. based on our current expectations and projections about future events. These forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions about Aether that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in such forward-looking statements. Potential risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, Aether's limited operating history with subscriber based services, Aether's historical losses and potential larger future losses, the infancy infancy, stage of human development lasting from birth to approximately two years of age. The hallmarks of infancy are physical growth, motor development, vocal development, and cognitive and social development. of the wireless data industry where there is no established market for our products and services, Aether's ability to adapt to rapid technological change, Aether's dependence on wireless networks owned and controlled by others and Aether's reliance on a small number of customers. These risks and other risk factors are described in Aether's Form prospectus under the caption, "Risk Factors" filed pursuant to Rule 424(b) with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Aether undertakes no obligation to update the forward looking statements contained in this press release.
Aether Systems, LLC
Consolidated Statements of Operations
(unaudited)
Quarter Quarter Nine Months Nine Months
Ended Ended Ended Ended
Sept. 30, Sept. 30, Sept. 30, Sept. 30,
1999 1998 1999 1998
------------ ------------ ------------ ------------
Subscriber revenue $ 411,002 $ 184,576 $ 1,009,812 $ 309,152
Engineering service
revenue 1,079,963 407,700 1,268,237 843,790
------------ ------------ ------------ ------------
Total revenue 1,490,965 592,276 2,278,049 1,152,942
------------ ------------ ------------ ------------
Cost of subscriber
revenue 357,040 211,627 887,863 411,186
Cost of engineering
revenue 425,997 88,299 545,826 259,111
------------ ------------ ------------ ------------
Total cost of
revenue 783,037 299,926 1,433,689 670,297
------------ ------------ ------------ ------------
Gross profit 707,928 292,350 844,360 482,645
------------ ------------ ------------ ------------
Operating expenses:
Research and
development 414,106 322,461 1,416,213 911,609
General and
administrative 1,224,229 699,296 2,806,829 1,972,485
Selling and
marketing 382,266 312,829 937,694 626,604
Depreciation and
amortization 114,509 67,064 308,032 190,884
Unit option and
warrant expense 935,280 8,145 2,198,430 24,435
------------ ------------ ------------ ------------
3,070,390 1,409,795 7,667,198 3,726,017
------------ ------------ ------------ ------------
Operating loss (2,362,462) (1,117,445) (6,822,838) (3,243,372)
------------ ------------ ------------ ------------
Other income (expense):
Interest income
(expense), net (47,909) (32,263) 92,844 (25,228)
Proportionate share
of losses in
investee (440,000) - (440,000) -
------------ ------------ ------------ ------------
Net loss $ (2,850,371)$ (1,149,708)$ (7,169,994) $ (3,268,600)
============ ============ ============ ============
Pro forma net
loss per share -
basic and
diluted(1) $ (0.14) $ (0.07) $ (0.36) $ (0.22)
============ ============ ============ ============
Pro forma weighted
average shares
outstanding -
basic and
diluted(1) 19,953,675 16,013,364 19,903,406 14,857,883
============ ============ ============ ============
Reconciliation to net
operating loss:
Net loss $ (2,850,371)$ (1,149,708)$ (7,169,994) $ (3,268,600)
Add back non-cash charges:
Unit option and
warrant expense 935,280 8,145 2,198,430 24,435
Proportionate share
of losses in
investee 440,000 - 440,000 -
------------ ------------ ------------ ------------
Adjusted operating
loss $ (1,475,091)$ (1,141,563)$ (4,531,564) $ (3,244,165)
============ ============ ============ ============
Pro forma net
operating loss
per share -
basic and
diluted $ (0.07) $ (0.07) $ (0.23) $ (0.22)
============ ============ ============ ============
Note: (1) Prior to the closing of the Company's initial public offering, each member of the Company contributed its membership units in the Company to Aether Systems, Inc. in exchange for 2.5 shares of common stock of Aether Systems, Inc. Following such contribution, the Company merged with and into Aether Systems, Inc., as a result of which all assets and liabilities of the Company were transferred to Aether Systems, Inc. CONTACT: PR21 Investor inquiries: Mark Smith, 312/396-9718 Media inquiries: Laura Margolis Margolis is a surname, and may refer to:
Aether Systems Increases Investment in Omnisky Corporation OWINGS MILLS, Md.--Nov. 17, 1999--Aether Systems, Inc., (Nasdaq: AETH), a leading provider of wireless data systems and services, today announced it has exercised its option to increase its investment in OmniSky Corporation, a new privately held company privately held company A firm whose shares are held within a relatively small circle of owners and are not traded publicly. that provides wireless Internet Internet Publicly accessible computer network connecting many smaller networks from around the world. It grew out of a U.S. Defense Department program called ARPANET (Advanced Research Projects Agency Network), established in 1969 with connections between computers at the and e-mail service See Internet e-mail service. to multiple handheld devices and wireless data networks. Aether, which is a joint principal owner of OmniSky with 3Com Corp., invested an additional $2.5 million, increasing its stake in the company from 26 percent to 33 percent. "This is a key strategic move for us," said Aether President and Chief Executive Officer David Oros. "As the first true wireless Internet service provider Internet service provider (ISP) Company that provides Internet connections and services to individuals and organizations. For a monthly fee, ISPs provide computer users with a connection to their site (see data transmission), as well as a log-in name and password. , OmniSky is an important part of Aether's strategy to be the leading provider of wireless data systems and services to enterprise customers." OmniSky on Nov. 15 announced the beta launch of its first Web and e-mail service, to be provided jointly with AT&T Wireless Services. Aether is providing the engineering development, hosting, network operations management Operations management is an area of business that is concerned with the production of goods and services, and involves the responsibility of ensuring that business operations are efficient and effective. and technical support for the service. Aether also plans to bundle To sell hardware and software as a combined product or to combine several software packages for sale as a single unit. Contrast with unbundle. See bundled software and bundling. OmniSky Web and e-mail services with customized wireless applications that Aether is developing and delivering for enterprise customers, including stock trading and financial information. Aether Systems Inc. is a leading provider of wireless data services and systems that enable the use of wireless handheld devices for real-time data communications and transactions. Aether offers a broad range of wireless data services, including real-time stock quotes and financial data, stock trading, Internet access and e-mail. Headquartered in Owings Mills, Md., Aether also has offices in New York, Illinois and Florida. Visit Aether's web site at http://www.aethersystems.com. This press release includes forward-looking statements based on our current expectations and projections about future events. These forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions about Aether that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in such forward-looking statements. Potential risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, Aether's limited operating history with subscriber based services, Aether's historical losses and potential larger future losses, the infancy of the wireless data industry where there is no established market for our products and services, Aether's ability to adapt to rapid technological change, Aether's dependence on wireless networks owned and controlled by others and Aether's reliance on a small number of customers. These risks and other risk factors are described in Aether's Form prospectus under the caption, "Risk Factors" filed pursuant to Rule 424(b) with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Aether undertakes no obligation to update the forward looking statements contained in this press release. |
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