America Online, Inc. Announces Acquisition of Wildseed, Ltd.DULLES, Va. -- Announces Formation of Expanded AOL (A division of Time Warner, Inc., New York, NY, www.aol.com) The world's largest online information service with access to the Internet, e-mail, chat rooms and a variety of databases and services. Wireless Group and Updates Mobile Strategy to Address Expanding Sector Opportunity America Online See AOL. , Inc., the world's leading interactive services company, today announced that it has increased its investment in the wireless services sector by acquiring Wildseed, Ltd. - a leading provider of advanced wireless technologies - and also by forming an expanded AOL Wireless group. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. The company was previously privately held. Wildseed was founded in June 2000 and is based in Kirkland, Washington Kirkland is a city in King County, Washington, United States. It is a suburb of Seattle located on the Eastside (of Lake Washington). As of April 1, 2005, the city had an estimated population of 45,740, making Kirkland the eighth largest city in King County and the eighteenth , with offices in London, UK. The company is best known for its SmartSkin(TM) interactive accessories, which ran on its debut product, the Curitel Identity(TM) handset. Wildseed's critically acclaimed technologies provide the industry's richest mobile Linux-based Operating System operating system (OS) Software that controls the operation of a computer, directs the input and output of data, keeps track of files, and controls the processing of computer programs. solution, which includes support for Game Boy(TM) Advanced style games, MP3 and Video playback, remote device management, and a fully 'skinnable' User Interface for delivering both branded and themed user experiences. Many of the components that form Wildseed's mobile Linux solution can be sold separately to non-Linux based feature phones. "Data-related mobile technologies are on the cusp of mainstream adoption. We see it everyday in the explosive growth of our mobile AIM traffic. The wireless industry is focused on bringing additional rich media experiences and a new generation of interactive services to the mobile consumer, and we are committed to being a leader in that arena," said John McKinley John McKinley (May 1, 1780 – July 19, 1852) was a U.S. senator from the state of Alabama and an associate justice of the United States Supreme Court. Born in Culpeper County, Virginia, his family moved to Kentucky when he was an infant. , Chief Technology Officer and President, Digital Services, America Online, Inc. "With the combination of Tegic and Wildseed, we can offer our carrier and OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) The rebranding of equipment and selling it. The term initially referred to the company that made the products (the "original" manufacturer), but eventually became widely used to refer to the organization that buys the products and partners the best-in-class platform they need to deliver these rich and engaging mobile experiences and help drive innovation and growth in the industry." The expanded AOL Wireless division, which encompasses the AOL Mobile, Tegic and Wildseed groups, will speed the delivery of community and convenience to mobile users with an array of software solutions, communications and content services supported by the top wireless carriers and handset manufacturers. AOL Wireless will be led by Craig Eisler, General Manager & Senior Vice President, AOL Wireless, America Online, Inc. Wildseed employees and operations will be integrated into AOL's current Seattle offices and Wildseed's CEO (1) (Chief Executive Officer) The highest individual in command of an organization. Typically the president of the company, the CEO reports to the Chairman of the Board. Eric Engstrom will become AOL Wireless' Senior Vice President, Wireless Products. "Wildseed's advanced technologies will help AOL enhance the value of its wireless properties, and speed the development and deployment of new applications and solutions that address the wants and needs of consumers and carriers," said Craig Eisler. "We are extremely excited to welcome the Wildseed team into AOL Wireless and look forward to working with our carrier and OEM partners to deliver innovative services and must-have content to their subscribers." Wildseed has been recognized by the industry for its unique and cutting-edge technology. Accolades include: 2004 and 2005 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) Design and Engineering Showcase Award honoree; TechTV's 2003 Best of CES Finalist; Andrew Seybold's Outlook 4Mobility 2002 Innovation Award at Comdex. The Wildseed transaction is AOL's second major corporate acquisition in 2005 - since AOL's purchase of Xdrive, Inc. was announced last week. AOL also acquired Mailblocks, Inc. and Advertising.com in the summer of 2004. For more information on Wildseed, Ltd., please visit www.wildseed.com. Wildseed and the Wildseed corporate logo are trademarks of Wildseed, Ltd. About America Online, Inc. America Online, Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary Wholly Owned Subsidiary A subsidiary whose parent company owns 100% of its common stock. Notes: In other words, the parent company owns the company outright and there are no minority owners. of Time Warner Inc. (NYSE NYSE See: New York Stock Exchange : TWX (TeletypeWriter eXchange Service) A U.S. and Canadian dial-up communications service that became part of Telex. In 1971, the Bell System sold TWX to Western Union. TWX transmitted 5-bit Murray code or 7-bit ASCII code at up to 150 bps. See Telex. ). Based in Dulles, Virginia Dulles, Virginia is an unincorporated census-designated place located in Loudoun County, Virginia, part of the Washington Metropolitan Area. The headquarters of AOL, Orbital Sciences Corporation and ODIN technologies and the former headquarters of MCI Inc. are located in Dulles. , America Online is the world's leader in interactive services, Web brands, Internet technologies and e-commerce services. |
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