SAN DIEGO - May 24, 1999 - Wireless Knowledge LLC, a joint venture company between Microsoft® Corporation (NASDAQ: MSFT) and QUALCOMM Inc. (NASDAQ: QCOM) , and Metricom, Incorporated (NASDAQ: MCOM), the leading provider of mobile data networking and technology, today announced expected the Summer availability of Wireless Knowledge's premier wireless data access service, the Revolv SM service via Metricom's Ricochet 28.8 kbps service. The companies also announced plans to jointly develop additional services applications for the upcoming Ricochet 128 kbps service that is currently undergoing field trials.
"Today's busy professionals can't afford to be tethered to their desks," said John Major, president and CEO of Wireless Knowledge. "Mobility and unrestricted access to corporate information and Internet content is key for those who need to be as productive on the road as they are in the office. This partnership allows us to leverage Metricom's proven mobile data network access technology to expand the speed of delivery and accessibility of the Revolv service for mobile professionals."
"Metricom provides mobility to professionals who want the added productivity of replicating their office desktop in a wireless environment, with access to personal, competitive, industry and corporate data anytime, anywhere," said Roger Nolan, vice president of strategic alliances at Metricom. "Our alliance with Wireless Knowledge will allow both companies to concentrate on their core competencies to provide mobile professionals with high-performance access to key corporate data and applications like Microsoft® Exchange."
Wireless Knowledge is focused on accelerating the adoption of wireless communications and computing by providing mobile professionals with secure access to key corporate information from any wireless or mobile device, over any airlink, and from anywhere they travel. The Revolv service is the first offering in a series of services that will enable mobile professionals to remotely tap into their Microsoft® Exchange collaborative environment and have immediate access to email, contacts, calendar, news and other important data.
Metricom's technology will expand and enhance the Revolv service by offering it via Ricochet, which combines wireless modems, radio frequency transmission, and a packet-switched network running at the highest available speeds available for wireless data access. Ricochet offers users a flat "all you can use" monthly fee with no roaming fees or charges, and "always on" connections to the Internet and corporate LANs.
"Metricom provides mobility to professionals who want the added productivity of replicating their office desktop in a wireless environment, with access to personal, competitive, industry and corporate data anytime, anywhere," said Roger Nolan, vice president of strategic alliances at Metricom. "Our alliance with Wireless Knowledge will allow both companies to concentrate on their core competencies to provide mobile professionals with high-performance access to key corporate data and applications like Microsoft® Exchange."
Ricochet currently serves 27,000 customers in the San Francisco Bay Area, Seattle, Washington, D.C., and parts of NYC. The service is also accessible in 12 national airports. Commercial end-user availability of the Revolv service through Metricom's Ricochet and from Wireless Knowledge's first wireless carrier partners is expected in Summer 1999.
The Revolv service is available now on an OEM basis to wireless carriers, mobile data providers and strategic partners. Wireless Knowledge has working relationships with a portfolio of leading wireless carriers and is currently pursuing other strategic alliances with computing, software and telecommunications companies. Commercial end-user availability from the first carrier partners is expected in summer 1999.
About Wireless Knowledge Wireless Knowledge LLC, a Microsoft® Corporation and QUALCOMM Incorporated company based in San Diego, enables wireless carriers to deliver on the convergence of wireless communications and information technology with the delivery of productivity and information services in an airlink- and device-independent environment. Microsoft® is the worldwide leader in software for personal computers. QUALCOMM is a leader in developing and delivering innovative digital wireless communications products and services based on the Company's CDMA digital technology. For more information on Wireless Knowledge, visit the website at http://www.wirelessknowledge.com.
About Metricom Metricom, Inc. is the world's leading provider of mobile data networking and technology. The Company's Ricochet service provides mobile professionals with high-performance, cost-effective untethered access to the Internet, private Intranets, local-area networks, e-mail, and other online services. Ricochet is generally available in the greater San Francisco Bay Area, Seattle, and Washington, D.C. metropolitan areas; in select areas of New York City; on corporate campuses; and at gate areas at major airports throughout the United States. For more information, call 1-800 Go-Wireless, or visit Metricom's Web site at http://www.metricom.com.
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