Conversa Launches Into International Markets With the Commencement of European Operations; Expansion Allows Company to Cultivate Demand for Its Award-Winning Voice-Recognition Technology.

REDMOND, Wash.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 1, 1999--Conversa (pronounced "con-ver-say") Monday announced that it has commenced operations in Europe to grow the presence of its voice technology in several major language markets, meeting the growing demand for reliable speech technology in the PC and telecommunications markets for retail and corporate customers.

A German version of Conversa(R) Web, the company's award-winning, voice-driven Web browser will be released to the European market in late Q2 1999. Localization of other European languages, as well as additional product offerings, will follow throughout 1999.

Kari Paukkeri has been appointed president, European Operations. He and his staff will initially focus on developing relationships with distributors and partners for Conversa's products in the European retail and corporate channels.

Paukkeri brings 15 years of experience in international business, management and business development to Conversa. He has held senior management positions in Nokia's multimedia display and mobile phone divisions and launched Nokia's New Business Unit in the Americas helping it become the leader in cell phones. Most recently, he headed user equipment operations at Teledesic.

Paukkeri holds a master's degree in industrial management and marketing from the Tampere University of Technology in Finland. A recognized leader in wireless communications, Paukkeri was selected by Wideband Magazine as one of "The Influentials in Telecommunications" in 1997.

"We see a tremendous opportunity to extend the influence and reach of Conversa's technology to promote the concept of Conversational Computing(tm) by expanding our efforts into the European markets," said Conversa Chief Executive Officer Steve Rondel. "Until now, Europeans have had limited exposure to speech technology products, generally through dictation software.

"In keeping with our vision, we're striving to familiarize the European market with the concept of Conversational Computing and the high accuracy of Conversa's voice recognition, preparing them for the many ways the technology will apply to their everyday lives. We are thrilled to have such a well-known European marketer as Kari Paukkeri heading up the effort."

Paukkeri noted: "Conversa's vision goes far beyond simple distribution of its products. Conversational Computing can change how people interact with information in a very positive way.

"By allowing people to address their computing needs with the most natural and direct interaction -- human language -- our technology has the potential to significantly increase personal productivity. Europe represents an exciting and demanding market for speech products."

Office locations in the Netherlands are currently under consideration. In the meantime, Paukkeri may be reached via Conversa's Web site or at Conversa's corporate headquarters.

About Conversa

Established in 1994, privately held Conversa (Conversational Computing Corp.) develops and markets cutting-edge voice recognition software for PC, server and embedded applications. Conversa's technology, Conversational Computing, allows users to interact with their environment intuitively and naturally with speech.

The company's award-winning products -- designed for personal computers, network servers and non-PC platforms -- use spoken natural language, continuous speech and speaker-independent technology to help the user complete tasks.

Conversa's runtime environment, tools and applications address a wide range of computing activities such as managing e-mail and voice messages over the telephone, using voice to surf the Web, and speech-driven information and transaction processing. Conversa's core speech engine, response and processing engines, as well as client server and development tools, are proprietary and based on several patents pending.

Conversa has corporate headquarters at 8522 154th Avenue NE, Redmond, Wash. 98052. Phone: [phone] or toll-free at 888/487-4373. FAX: [phone]. URL: http://www.conversa.com.

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