Centigram and InfoInterActive Announce Joint Development and Distribution Agreement.Business and Technology Editors SAN JOSE San Jose, city, United States San Jose (sănəzā`, săn hōzā`), city (1990 pop. 782,248), seat of Santa Clara co., W central Calif.; founded 1777, inc. 1850. , Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 18, 2000 Leading Advanced Communications Firms Reveal Partnership to Further Data/Voice Convergence, Develop Next-Generation Unified Communications The real time redirection of a voice, text or e-mail message to the device closest to the intended recipient at any given time. For example, voice calls to desk phones could be routed to the user's cellphone when required. Products Centigram cen·ti·gram n. A metric unit of mass equal to one hundredth (10-2) of a gram. centigram one-hundredth of a gram; abbreviated cg. Communications Corporation (NASDAQ NASDAQ in full National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations U.S. market for over-the-counter securities. Established in 1971 by the National Association of Securities Dealers (NASD), NASDAQ is an automated quotation system that reports on : CGRM CGRM Computer Graphics Reference Model (ISO) ), a leading global provider of unified communications solutions, and InfoInterActive Inc. (TSE See Tokyo Stock Exchange. TSE 1. See Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE). 2. See Toronto Stock Exchange (TSE). : IIA (1) (Information Industry Association, Washington, DC) In 1999, IIA merged with SPA (Software Publishers Association) to become the Software & Information Industry Association. See SIIA. ), the leading application service provider of Internet call management services, today announced a joint development and distribution agreement. The companies are collaborating on products that will deliver InfoInterActive's industry-leading and patented Internet call management services to Centigram's global customer base via the proven Series 6 unified communications platform along with a program of future product development activity. Both companies are industry leaders in developing advanced, easy-to-use communications products that leverage voice / data convergence in innovative ways. Working together, InfoInterActive and Centigram will be able to evolve services and create new products targeted at wireline and wireless Internet customers--especially those subscribers equipped with WAP-enabled devices. Beta trials and market testing for new products are expected to begin in the spring of 2000. Centigram has been a strategic investor in InfoInterActive since September 1999. Centigram is a long-time supplier of advanced messaging and communications products to telecommunications carriers and service providers worldwide. Late last year the company announced a new line of products that integrate email, fax and voicemail, voice and Internet, and wireless and landline telephone services. By partnering with InfoInterActive, Centigram expects to advance its development of convergence products and broaden its unified communications offerings. InfoInterActive's flagship Internet Call Manager (ICM ICM Intercom ICM Integrated Crop Management ICM International Congress of Mathematicians ICM Information Classification and Management ICM Intelligent Contact Management (Cisco) ICM International Creative Management ) uses sophisticated IP call management technology to let subscribers surf the Internet without worrying about missing important phone calls. If a subscriber is online when a call comes in, an "incoming call" pop-up window pop-up window n (Comput) → Popup-Fenster nt will appear on the subscriber's monitor. This window displays pertinent information on the incoming call, such as the caller's name and telephone number, so subscribers can see who's calling. Subscribers can then choose to disconnect from the Internet and answer the call, have the call transferred to a cellular phone or to a different phone line, play a courtesy message, send the call to voicemail, or ignore the call completely. This innovative service does not require Caller ID A telephone company service that sends the caller's telephone number between the first and second ring of the call. If the calling number is not blocked, the calling number is displayed on the handset or base station of the called party. or Call Waiting, and it can be provisioned at a fraction of the cost of a second telephone line. "InfoInterActive's widely deployed IP messaging products are leading the way in harnessing the Internet to help people communicate in more creative and effective ways," said Bob Puette, 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. and President of Centigram Communications. "Our distribution relationship with IIA and our joint development will provide a very effective, highly useful integrated solution with ICM and the Centigram Series 6. Working with InfoInterActive, we can help Service Provider customers further increase the return on investment in their installed base of Centigram Series 6 systems by providing exciting new applications for their customers." "Our partnership with Centigram greatly expands the market for InfoInterActive's call management technology and IP-enabled messaging products," said Bill McMullin, CEO of InfoInterActive. "With its vast sales, distribution and support network, Centigram has a stake in virtually every major telecommunications market worldwide. Moreover, Centigram's Series 6/C-SMSC is one of the industry's leading unified communications platforms. We are delighted to be partnering with Centigram and look forward to creating new Internet-oriented products with them." "In the increasingly competitive telecommunications carrier market, advanced services take on more importance every day. They are a key revenue source, and they have a major impact on the bottom line," said John Rhoads, Marketing Director at Cincinnati Bell Cincinnati Bell is the dominant telephone company for Cincinnati, Ohio and its nearby suburbs in Ohio, Indiana and Kentucky. The parent company is named Cincinnati Bell Inc. Telephone. "InfoInterActive's Internet Call Manager has been a successful value-added service A value-added service (VAS) is a telecommunications industry term for non-core services or, in short, all services beyond standard voice calls and fax transmissions. offering for Cincinnati Bell for more than a year now. From the application and network management point of view, ICM has been very low impact. And InfoInterActive's back office support is every bit as impressive as their cutting-edge data/voice convergence technologies." "In addition to providing new revenue streams, IP-based solutions such as Internet call waiting Internet Call Waiting is a technology that allows you to accept incoming calls while connected to a 56k Internet dialup connection. While online, a software application displays users the Caller ID of the incoming call, and gives users the opportunity to screen the incoming enable service providers to differentiate their offerings, attract new customers, and encourage subscriber loyalty," said Dana Thorat, senior research analyst at IDC. "The integration of InfoInterActive's Internet Call Manager with Centigram's unified messaging Having access to e-mail, voice mail and faxes via a common computer application or by telephone. For example, unified messaging may send faxes and digitized voice mail to a mail server that turns them into e-mail attachments. products further expands the potential for advanced consumer messaging solutions." InfoInterActive InfoInterActive (TSE: IIA), is the industry leader in the development and deployment of network-based enhanced services combining telephone, Internet and wireless technologies. In 1997, the company launched Internet Call Manager (ICM), the world's first service to allow Internet users to monitor and manage calls while their phone lines are busy engaged on an Internet session. IIA globally markets ICM directly to end users, and through telephone companies, Internet Service Providers 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. , Enhanced Service Providers and other value-added channels. The company holds US and Canadian patents for the relevant technology and has patents pending in 26 other countries worldwide. See www.infointeractive.com for further details. Centigram Communications Corporation Centigram Communications Corporation (NASDAQ: CGRM) is a leading global provider of Internet-enabled call management, WAP-based messaging and unified communications services to mobile and landline telecom service providers. Leveraging its expertise in voice messaging, call processing and IP-enabled multimedia messaging, the company is delivering next-generation communications services that enable the transmission of voice, text, and multimedia content to wireless and wireline phones, PCs and WAP-enabled devices. The Company delivers these services on the highly integrated Series 6 platform and the Centigram Short Messaging Service Center. Centigram is headquartered at 91 East Tasman Drive, San Jose, Calif., 95134. Phone 408-944-0250, fax 408-428-3732, or Web http://www.centigram.com. Centigram has sales and support offices in North America, Europe, Asia, Latin America, and Australia. Centigram is a registered trademark of Centigram Communications Corporation. All other trademarks and registered trademarks are the property of their respective owners. |
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