AVESAIR BRINGS MARKETING AND COMMERCE TECHNOLOGY TO CARRIERS AND WIRELESS NETWORKS
Company Secures $16 Million in First Round of Venture Capital led by Nokia Venture Partners and New Things
Research Triangle Park, NC, December 19, 2000 - Today, Avesair, Inc., the premier provider of advanced carrier class technology focused on delivering advertising and marketing messages to wireless devices, announced their plans to capitalize on the explosive wireless market. Avesair has secured $16 Million in its first round of financing led by Nokia Ventures Partners as part of the $500 Million fund to invest in mobile Internet companies and New Things, a New York-based venture capital group.
Avesair delivers highly scalable technology and infrastructure that allows global carriers to maximize revenues in wireless and mobile environments through advertising, marketing, content, and commerce services. Avesair, formed as a strategic initiative with Engage, Inc., (Nasdaq: ENGA), a leading enterprise marketing software and interactive media company, will build on the core technology and infrastructure provided by Engage to vault into the expanding wireless market.
"We look forward to working with Nokia Venture Partners, New Things and Engage to create the leading global provider of decision and targeting infrastructure focused on the wireless market," said Kimo Kong, President of Avesair.
Nokia predicts that there will be more web-connected mobile handsets than PCs in the world as early as 2002. In addition, Interactive advertising across various platforms is expected to grow dramatically over the next several years. "This is an incredible revenue opportunity that wireless carriers and networks must recognize," Kong continues. "Avesair enables these companies to take advantage of these alternate revenue streams while maintaining control of their data and technology infrastructure."
"Carriers are looking for ways to provide their subscribers with advanced, personalized services, but they are also looking for ways to generate more revenue," said Peter Buhl, Partner, Nokia Venture Partners. "Avesair is well positioned with the most advanced decision engine technology available to develop a set of solutions that address both of these needs."
"As carriers offer new services beyond voice calls they become media companies, and advertising must inevitably follow. Avesair's technology will ensure that carriers get an important new source of revenue, by delivering targeted marketing messages to their subscribers at the right time and right place," said Martin Puris, Partner, New Things Ventures.
According to Tony Nuzzo, president and CEO of Engage, "The combination of Nokia Venture Partners' expertise with Engage's technology, experience, and former employees make Avesair a company to watch in the wireless market. With Engage as a partner in the technology foundation, Avesair will accelerate interactive marketing solutions into new markets."
Editor's Note:
For more information on the $500 Million fund led by Nokia Venture Partners, please visit www.nokiaventurepartners.com/release120400.html. For more information on New Things' venture fund, please visit www.newthingsvc.com.
About Avesair:
Avesair, Inc., is a privately held company focused on developing technology and infrastructure that will allow global telecommunication carriers to increase revenues in wireless and mobile environments. These services range from advertising and marketing messages to targeted commerce and promotions to personalized content. Funded by Nokia Venture Partners, and New Things, Avesair was formed as a strategic initiative with Engage, Inc. For more information on Avesair, please visit www.avesair.com or email info@avesair.com.
About Nokia Venture Partners:
Launched in 1998, Nokia Venture Partners is a leader in mobile Internet investments. Backed by Nokia, Goldman Sachs, CDBWebTech, BMC Software and others, the USD$500 million fund builds partnerships with leading edge wireless technology companies targeting high-growth market opportunities around the world. Nokia has invested in the fund with the intent to gain exposure to markets and technologies beyond the reach of Nokia's current business unit strategies. Nokia Venture Partners has a strong track record of leveraging the firm's combined resources, experience and contacts to help build successful businesses. For more information, visit www.nokiaventurepartners.com
About New Things:
New Things is a New York-based venture group focused on catalyzing the next generation of wireless devices, mobile computing, services, and media. Companies and ideas of particular interest to New Things are those where the infusion of sophisticated marketing, branding and consumer insight will add greatly to their odds of success. From Compaq to Schweppes, from UPS to Club Med, Unilever to BMW, New Things' founding partners have invented, launched, re-launched, and branded literally hundreds of the world's best businesses. Founded in 2000 by Ammirati Puris Lintas founder and former Chairman, Martin Puris, and ex-Wired editor David S. Bennahum, New Things intends to invest its capital in wireless-related companies over the next three years. For further information, contact info@newthingsvc.com.
About Engage®:
Engage, Inc. (Nasdaq: ENGA) is a leading enterprise marketing software and interactive media company. A majority-owned operating company of CMGI, Engage enables companies to harness the power of interactive marketing to create more loyal customers, maximize revenue, and increase their brand's visibility and recognition. Based in Andover, Massachusetts, Engage has European headquarters in London and offices worldwide. For more information on Engage please call 877-U-ENGAGE or visit www.engage.com. |