Comunicano

Emerging Communications (eComm) Conference 2008 To Be Held March 12-14 at Computer History Museum in Mountain View, Calif.

Global Industry Visionaries, Entrepreneurs, Investors and Digerati Expected to Attend

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif.–Jan. 23, 2008—The Emerging Communications (eComm) Conference 2008, to be held in the Computer History Museum here from March 12 to March 14, promises to be the “must attend” event of the year for the leading thinkers, entrepreneurs and developers in global communications and convergence.

“eComm is the venue for those interested in the radical transformation of the trillion dollar telecommunications industry,” said Lee S. Dryburgh, conference organizer and chair. “The industry has already started down the path that the homebrew computer took three decades ago. eComm is tracking, highlighting and promoting the people and technologies driving this new wave of democratization of telecommunications.

“eComm brings out the visionaries, emergent technologies, real-world startups, cutting-edge academic projects and the VC’s funding these companies, along with views offered by the incumbent telecom players and garage-based hacks to stir the required policy debates and create the ultimate three-day conversation.

“On a personal level, we’re extremely pleased to see the enterprising spirit, enthusiasm and passion that filled last year’s Emerging Telephony (eTel) conference being carried into this year’s Emerging Communications Conference,” Dryburgh said. “We wanted that same energy and enthusiasm to continue, so I’m very pleased that the best people in this space have agreed to speak.”

Speakers for eComm 2008 represent widely diverse points along the spectrum of communications transformation, from household names such as Google, Yahoo!, BT, Twitter, Vodafone, Orange-FT, Intel, Motorola and Skype, to small new entrants such as Thomas Howe Company, Truphone, Vringo, Mobivox, Fonolo and Embarq. 

Sponsors include Voxbone, Ribbit, Six Apart, Wireless Grids Corporation, MIR3, NMS Communications and Voxeo.

Attendees may register online at http://www.eCommMedia.com/, where full details about the conference are available.

“eComm is shaping up to be three days of high-energy, jam-packed content from the people who are setting the course to transform the trillion dollar telecommunications industry,” Dryburgh said.  “Attendees can expect to participate in the most exciting, groundbreaking communications event this year.”

The Advisory Board assisting Dryburgh in selecting content and speakers for eComm includes:
• Imran Ali, founding partner in Carbon Imagineering;
• Dean Bubley, founder of Disruptive Analysis;
• Michel Bauwens, founder of the Foundation for Peer to Peer Alternatives;
• Martin Geddes, chief analyst at technology consultancy STL Partners;
• Norman Lewis, chief strategy officer at Wireless Grids Corporation;
• Sheldon Renan, principal in technology consultancy Vision & Strategy, LLC;
• Brough Turner, senior VP, chief technology officer and co-founder of NMS Communications; and
• Phil Wolff, CEO of Reef9 Media and managing editor of Skype Journal.

The Computer History Museum is located at 1401 N. Shoreline Blvd. in Mountain View.

Established in 1996, the museum is a public benefit organization dedicated to preserving and celebrating computing history. It houses one of the largest collections of computing artifacts in the world, a collection of more than 13,000 objects, 20,000 images, 5,000 moving images, 4,000 linear feet of cataloged documentation and 5,000 titles or several hundred gigabytes of software. The mission of the Computer History Museum is to preserve and present for posterity the artifacts and stories of the information age.

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ALWAYSON SELECTS VRINGO AS ONMEDIA TOP 100 WINNER

Cited as an emerging technology company creating new business opportunities

NEW YORK–Jan. 22, 2008—Vringo™ today announced it has been chosen by AlwaysOn as one of the OnMedia 100 winners. Inclusion in the OnMedia 100 signifies the designees’ major developments in the creation of marketing tools, services and venues, as well as advertising, branding and public relations campaigns.

Vringo was specially selected by the AlwaysOn editorial team and other industry experts spanning the globe based on five criteria: innovation, market potential, commercialization, stakeholder value and media buzz.

Vringo and the OnMedia 100 Top Private Companies will be honored at the OnMedia conference scheduled for January 28-30 at The Mandarin Oriental Hotel in New York. This two-and-a-half day executive event will feature technology CEOs from Silicon Valley leading presentations and high-level debates with the global advertising and media establishment, about disrupting user behavior and creating new opportunities in marketing, branding, advertising and public relations.

Fifty of the top CEOs from the OnMedia 100 will present their market strategies to a panel of industry experts in a “CEO Showcase.” 

“The OnMedia 100 winners have excelled in key strategic areas in the advertising, marketing, public relations and promotion industry,” said Tony Perkins, founder and CEO of AlwaysOn. “We congratulate them for their success in introducing new tools, services, and venues for marketers to have at their fingertips and for use to take their business to the next level in innovation.”

The OnMedia 100 was selected from hundreds of companies nominated by a panel of industry experts in the online ad service, technology, community platform, mobile advertising, marketing and Web analytic sectors from around the world.

Vringo was nominated for inclusion in the OnMedia 100 because it is ushering in the era of Mobile Personalization 2.0. Vringo gives users the ability to individualize and enrich their mobile experience by taking any content from anywhere and turning it into visual ringtones. Vringo then enables users to share this content during every phone call. Vringo has combined all aspects of online sharing and community with the central part of the mobile experience—the call. 

A full list of all the OnMedia 100 winners can be found on the AlwaysOn Web site at http://www.alwayson.goingon.com/.

“We’re extremely pleased that AlwaysOn has recognized Vringo’s leadership in pioneering the sharing of video ringtones,” said Vringo CEO Jonathan Medved. “AlwaysOn has had an uncanny ability to select and highlight game changing companies when they are still young, and we are delighted to have been chosen as one of these companies.”

About Vringo
Vringo is creating the world’s first video ringtone sharing community. The company is making Personalization 2.0 a reality by enabling users to experience rich media ringtones on a wide variety of mobile devices and for the first time to share that media with others within a community. Vringo is backed by Warburg Pincus and by private investors. More information can be found at www.vringo.com.

About AlwaysOn
AlwaysOn ignited the open-media revolution in early 2003 by being the first media brand to launch a community blog network.  In 2004, AlwaysOn continued to lead the industry in innovation by engaging its bloggers in a social network. AlwaysOn is also revolutionizing the media business by applying its open-media principles to its executive event series (OnMedia NYC, Venture Summit East and West, On Hollywood, The Broadband Digital, Stanford Summit, and Going Green) and quarterly print “blogozine.” No other media brand has dared to create such open interaction with its readers and event participants.

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SIGHTSPEED HELPS FOCUS THE NATION ON GLOBAL WARMING SOLUTIONS

Industry leader in Internet video communication connects Congress to largest teach-in in U.S. history

BERKELEY, Calif., JAN. 22, 2008 – SightSpeed Inc., the leading provider of Internet video communications, announced today that it has become a corporate sponsor of Focus the Nation, a non-partisan, grass-roots educational initiative that will educate close to 1 million youth on global warming solutions Jan. 31, 2008.

Focus the Nation will be the largest teach-in in U.S. history¬—creating a solutions-based dialogue at more than 1,400 colleges, universities, high schools, middle schools, places of worship, civic organizations and businesses.

“Our intent is to move America beyond fatalism to a determination to face up to this civilizational challenge,” said Dr. Eban Goodstein, project director for Focus the Nation. “The most important relationships to forge are those between Congress and today’s youth who are inheriting this crisis.”

The cornerstone component of Focus the Nation’s teach-in is called Green Democracy, connecting civic leaders with campuses. Thousands of government leaders across the country have been invited to participate in this solutions-oriented round-table dialogue with students. For members of Congress who cannot attend in person, SightSpeed technology will connect these leaders and students via live Internet video communications.

One round trip flight from coast to coast creates approximately 2.46 metric tons of CO2. With SightSpeed’s help, members of Congress not in their home district can still participate in Focus the Nation—creating the most carbon-friendly conversation between Congress and their constituents ever.

“As a former wind energy engineer and now, as a member of Congress, I know that climate change is one of the greatest challenges we face as a nation. We can solve this problem, but we need the skills, creativity, and commitment of today’s youth to make change a reality,” said Rep. Jerry McNerney (D-Calif.). “I am thrilled to participate in Focus the Nation and I am excited that we’re using new, carbon-friendly technology that will make it convenient and easy for many more elected officials to take part in the discussion.”

SightSpeed CEO Peter Csathy said: “We’re very pleased to sign on as a corporate sponsor of Focus the Nation because we agree with its goals 100 percent, and FTN’s Green Democracy event on January 31 offers a perfect way for Internet video communications to assist in a national debate on global warming by bringing together concerned citizens with elected officials. Internet video communications also exemplifies the power of technology to offer solutions that each of us can use to make a difference—in this case, reducing the need to travel and each individual’s carbon footprint.”

Under its partnership agreement, SightSpeed will provide technical support for Focus the Nation’s Green Democracy initiative, working to assure trouble-free video communication between Congressional offices and college campuses on Jan. 31.

Further, SightSpeed will assist colleges, universities, and other organizations in downloading SightSpeed’s free software that enables its award-winning, full-color, full-motion video communication service.

SightSpeed also will recommend webcams and headsets that allow individuals to optimize their experience using SightSpeed, and will support a demonstration of its Internet video-communication service to the administrative staff of the U.S. House of Representatives.

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About SightSpeed

SightSpeed Inc. is the award-winning provider of Internet video communications for both the consumer and business user. The company offers the broadest portfolio of industry-leading Internet video communications services, including SightSpeed Light, SightSpeed Free and SightSpeed PLUS, the most widely praised consumer-focused video chat services, which turn a PC or Mac into an easy-to-use video phone to communicate with friends and family around the world; and SightSpeed Business, the world’s first high-quality, cost-effective and hardware-free videoconferencing service for all businesses (including SMBs). SightSpeed's services are SIP-based and standards-compliant. The company’s revolutionary human perception-based technology is patented and based on more than ten years of research and development originating out of Cornell University.

Founded in 2001 and based in Berkeley, Calif., SightSpeed is a privately held company funded by The Roda Group, best known for launching Ask Jeeves and PolyServe. For more information about SightSpeed, visit www.sightspeed.com.

About Focus the Nation

Focus The Nation is an unprecedented educational initiative on global warming solutions for America occurring at more than 1,100 universities and colleges and in all 50 states on Jan. 31, 2008. As the largest teach-in in U.S. history, Focus The Nation is preparing millions of students to become leaders in the largest civilizational challenge any generation has faced. For more information, please visit www.focusthenation.org.

CLIPS FROM CARTOON NETWORK AND ADULT SWIM NOW AVAILABLE AS VRINGO RINGTONES IN EMEA

Vringo Users From 9 to 99 Can Now Personalize Their Ringtones With Cartoons Like Foster’s Home for Imaginary Friends and Dexter’s Laboratory

NEW YORK and LONDON–Jan. 16, 2008—Vringo, the pioneer in video ringtone sharing, and Turner Broadcasting System Europe today announced an agreement that will enable Vringo subscribers to download clips from Turner’s Cartoon Network and Adult Swim as video ringtones.

Using Vringo, mobile phone users in Europe, the Middle East and Africa can now seamlessly download selected Cartoon Network and Adult Swim clips onto their mobile handsets from the Vringo Web site. When a call is placed, the video clip appears on the recipient’s phone screen as a video ringtone, or “Vringo.”

Cartoon Network content available on the Vringo Web site includes Foster’s Home for Imaginary Friends and Dexter’s Laboratory as well as content from Adult Swim, Turner’s animation and cult comedy brand that is designed to appeal to a grown-up sense of humor.

“Animation appeals to people of all ages,” said Joe Braman, director of mobile sales at Turner Broadcasting. “Through this agreement with Vringo, people of all generations will be able to enjoy well-known cartoons in yet another way—as video ringtones that they can share with their friends, young and old.”   

With the alliance between Vringo and Turner Broadcasting System, Vringo subscribers can use their buddy lists to deliver 2- to 10-second animated cartoon clip announcing the caller to the person being called—or to identify an incoming caller. Users select their personal Vringo clips through their mobile handsets or online. Vringos can also be shared with any subscriber in the Vringo community with a compatible wireless phone.

Vringo services are now available on a wide variety of mobile handsets, including devices made by Nokia, Motorola, Sony Ericsson, Samsung and others (see full list of Vringo-compliant handsets).

“Through this agreement with Turner Broadcasting System, Vringo users can personalize their mobile calling with amusing and enjoyable cartoon ‘Vringos,’” said Andrew Perlman, general manager–Vringo America. “Having Cartoon Network and Adult Swim content available gives our users lots of fun ways to express themselves—no matter what their age.”

Turner Broadcasting System joins a growing list of content providers now partnering with Vringo, including Discovery Channel and Universal Music Group.

About Turner Broadcasting System Europe

Turner Broadcasting System (TBS) Europe delivers some of the world’s most successful and well-known news and entertainment brands – including CNN International, Cartoon Network, TCM (Turner Classic Movies), Boomerang, and [adult swim]– across approximately 100 countries in Europe, Africa and the Middle East. Alongside its TV channels, TBS Europe is at the forefront of developing its brands through the internet, broadband, wireless, DVD, e-commerce, merchandising, cinema, publishing and every other available platform. TBS Europe Limited is a Time Warner Company.

About Adult Swim

Adult Swim launched in the US in 2001 and in the UK in 2006 on TV and online.  Adult Swim features non-conformist programming aimed at adults 18-34 including a broad mix of humour and unconventional, surreal animation which has earned it a discerning and loyal following. Original and acquired animated comedy and action is also available via a UK broadband site www.adultswim.co.uk.  Adult Swim is available in the UK through the channel website, Bravo TV, BT Vision, Mobi TV, 02, Sky Mobile, YouTube, Joost, Bebo and Daily Motion; in South Africa on GO; Russia on Channel 2 x 2 and Germany on Maxdome VOD/SVOD.

About Cartoon Network

Cartoon Network is home to some of the funniest and most exciting new cartoons. It delivers the best range of kids’ entertainment 24 hours a day with hit shows including Ben 10, Robotboy, Foster’s Home for Imaginary Friends, My Gym Partner is a Monkey, Codename: Kids Next Door, Ed, Edd n Eddy, Skatoony and Xiaolin Showdown. Cartoon Network can also be experienced through its multi-award winning website www.cartoonnetwork.co.uk, on broadband www.supercartoonnetwork.co.uk, via games on digital cable and satellite, through VOD, and on mobiles.  Since launching as a pan-European channel in 1993, Cartoon Network now has localised services throughout Europe, the Middle East and Africa where it is available in 14 languages and in over 46 million homes.  Cartoon Network is operated by Turner Broadcasting System Europe, a Time Warner Company.

SKY 601; Tiscali TV 312; Virgin TV 704.  Also available on: Top Up TV Anytime; BT Vision; Sky Anytime; Virgin Central; Tiscali TV on-demand 310.

About Vringo

Vringo is creating the world’s first video ringtone sharing community. The company is making Personalization 2.0 a reality by enabling users to experience rich media ringtones on a wide variety of mobile devices and for the first time to share that media with others within a community. Vringo is backed by Warburg Pincus and by private investors. More information can be found at www.vringo.com.

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VRINGO NAMES RALPH SIMON AND JEFF BELK AS FIRST TWO MEMBERS OF ITS BOARD OF ADVISORS

Global Wireless Industry Leaders to Lend Their Expertise in Guiding Vringo

NEW YORK–Jan. 14, 2008—Vringo, the pioneer in video ringtone sharing, announced today that two leading figures in global mobile telephony—Ralph Simon and Jeff Belk—have become the first members of the company’s new board of advisors.

“As Vringo gathers momentum, we’re extremely fortunate to have visionaries like Ralph Simon and Jeff Belk add their collective industry expertise, experience and entrepreneurship to our video ringtone-sharing endeavor,” said company CEO Jonathan Medved. “We’ve been growing in usage, in attracting venture capital, in recruiting content partners and in forging strong bonds with handset providers and wireless carriers; now we have two of mobility’s brightest lights to help guide us.”

Ralph Simon is recognized as one of the founders of the modern mobile music and entertainment business in the United States and Europe. He is the founder and chairman emeritus of the Mobile Entertainment Forum–Americas, the principal global trade association and leading advocate for the mobile entertainment industry established to represent the commercial interests of content, application and service providers and telephone companies.

Simon also is president & CEO of The Mobilium Group, the respected mobile strategic advisory firm that guides U.S. and international media companies, networks and brands to grow revenues and market share from mobile content, mobile entertainment properties and technologies.

His involvement in the global mobile entertainment and content business since its inception brings together a vast array of skills acquired from a distinguished career in the music, music publishing and the mobile technology industry. Simon has proven expertise in strategic company development, content & copyright usage, mobile rights architecture, super-distribution, mobile platforms and mobile business development.

Simon co-founded and funded the first ringtone company in the U.S., U.K. and Europe—Yourmobile/Moviso. Prior to starting the mobile entertainment revolution, he co-founded the Zomba Group and Jive Records, which grew to become the world’s most successful independent record and music publishing company.

He currently advises prominent companies, entertainment properties and artists in the U.S. and internationally on ways to maximize and develop their mobile businesses and revenues, and create significant commercial opportunities on a global basis.

Simon will chair Vringo’s advisory group, Medved said, adding that he expects to name additional members to the board of advisors.

Jeffrey Belk is a principal in ICT168 Capital, LLC, a newly formed entity focused on developing and guiding global growth opportunities in the information and communications technology space. Formerly, Belk spent almost 14 years at Qualcomm Inc., where prior to his departure in early 2008, he was Qualcomm’s senior vice president of strategy and market development, focused on examining changes in the wireless ecosystem and formulating approaches to help continue driving mobile broadband adoption and growth. 

From 2000 until 2006, Belk was senior vice president of global marketing, leading a team responsible for all facets of the company’s corporate messaging, communications and marketing worldwide. In 1999-2000, Belk was senior vice president and general manager of Qualcomm Eudora Products, Qualcomm’s award-winning e-mail client. In 1997, Belk was named vice president–marketing of Qualcomm Consumer Products, and initiated the company’s global branding and distribution efforts.

Prior to his time at Qualcomm, Belk spent 10 years in the early growth stages of the personal computer industry, primarily with Proxima Corporation, which developed and manufactured multimedia projection systems. Belk joined Proxima in 1983, when the company had fewer than 25 employees, and was with the company in several key distribution, product-management and international roles through its IPO in the early 1990s.

Belk is known globally as a commentator and writer on wireless, mobile broadband and technology evolution. 

Vringo subscribers now have access to a wide variety of video ringtones ranging from comedy to sports to cartoons and more. Vringo’s content partners include Agence France-Presse, Discovery Channel and Universal Music Group for video content, as well as Meez and WeeWorld for animated avatars, and others.

Vringo recently received two significant industry awards—a special recognition award for “Best Use of Phone Functionality” from Sony Ericsson, and an award for “Best Mobile Service for Social Community & User Generated Content” at the 23rd Annual MIPCOM conference in Cannes, France.

For further details about Vringo, to preview video ringtones or to see a list of supported handsets, please visit www.vringo.com.

About Vringo

Vringo is creating the world’s first video ringtone sharing community. The company is making Personalization 2.0 a reality by enabling users to experience rich media ringtones on a wide variety of mobile devices and for the first time to share that media with others within a community. Vringo is backed by Warburg Pincus and by private investors. More information can be found at www.vringo.com.

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“USING DIGITAL CHANNELS—THE CRITICAL QUESTIONS”

Entriq to Lead the Debate at Upcoming Digital Sport 2008, January 15-16, Hotel Okura, Amsterdam

AMSTERDAM–Jan. 10, 2008—Entriq, Inc., the world’s leader in digital pay media, will lead a key debate in the world of digital sports content when Senior Vice President–Strategic Business Development Ciaran Quinn chairs the panel “Using Digital Channels—The Critical Questions” at the upcoming Digital Sport conference in Amsterdam.

The panel discussion will take place Tuesday, January 15, 10 a.m., at the conference venue, Hotel Okura. Digital Sport focuses on sports clubs, rights holders and broadcasters that are at the forefront of sports entertainment.

Entriq was invited by conference organizers to assemble a panel of top caliber experts. As a result, Quinn will be joined by an international group of senior sports executives representing various segments of the industry, including Carsten Schmidt, Chief Sports and New Business Officer, Premiere, Germany; Kai Henniges, Associate Director, Business Development, Infront Sports & Media, Switzerland; Chris Ott, Director, Sports Division, MediaZone, United States; and Daniel Marion, ICT Enterprise Solutions, UEFA Media Technologies.

Among the issues to be discussed by the panel are:
• Content security and rights protection;
• The problems presented by distribution rights, and how to overcome them;
• Getting it right the first time, providing the fan excellent quality of service;
• The emerging picture in terms of user consumption data.

“These are some of the key topics in the industry today,” said Quinn. “I’m not promising we’ll have all the answers, but I believe this panel will provide a range of thought-provoking arguments that will be of interest to anyone concerned with future of digital sports content.”

To arrange a meeting with Entriq during Digital Sport, please send an email to Vanessa.vigar@entriq.com.

About Entriq

Entriq powers new media business models by providing patented solutions for protecting, selling and delivering content over broadband PC, mobile and TV worldwide. Entriq enables content and service providers to manage, protect and monetise the media assets they wish to distribute, track and/or sell online, via Internet TV or via mobile phones. Entriq’s clients include some of the world’s largest media companies and sports organisations, including UEFA, Infront Sports & Media,, RTL, MTV Networks, World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE), NBC Universal, Viacom, Foxtel (Australia), Channel 4 (U.K.), BT Media and Broadcast, and Intel. Entriq is headquartered in Carlsbad, Calif., and has offices in Los Angeles and New York City, as well as in the U.K., France, Germany, the Netherlands, Australia and China. Entriq is a division of MIH Ltd., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Naspers (NASDAQ: NPSNY). For more information, visit www.entriq.com.   

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SightSpeed and Junction Networks Receive INTERNET TELEPHONY® Magazine’s 10th Annual Product of the Year Award

SightSpeed 6.0 and onSIP Recognized for Outstanding Innovation

New York and Berkeley, Calif.–Jan. 7, 2008—SightSpeed and Junction Networks announced today that Technology Marketing Corporation’s (TMC®) INTERNET TELEPHONY magazine has named both companies as a recipient of its 2007 Product of the Year Award.  INTERNET TELEPHONY has been the VoIP Authority Since 1998™.

SightSpeed, the leading provider of Internet video communications, launched version 6.0, a major release, in 2007. Version 6.0 was designed to be more flexible and functional, yet easier to use than ever before. One of the main features included the conversion to a SIP-based platform that would allow members to use SightSpeed to make Internet calls to, and receive Internet calls from, SIP-enabled hardware devices like telephones, video phones and even mobile phones.

“We’ve worked hard to make SightSpeed 6.0 the best personal video service and overall communications suite available anywhere, and it’s gratifying to be recognized by INTERNET TELEPHONY for our efforts.” said Peter Csathy, SightSpeed CEO. “The SIP conversion has opened up a whole new world of interoperability and is consistent with our unique open and standards-based approach to Internet video communications.”

Unlike typical PBX hosts, which offer all-or-nothing feature bundles and charge $20, $30 or $40 per user line per month, Junction Networks charges its customers only for calling minutes that go off its network, at low voice-over-IP rates. One monthly $39.95 network fee covers the entire “onSIP Complete” plan, including a comprehensive suite of advanced features.   

“Being chosen for this award is an honor and solidifies that the three-year investment in developing and testing the onSIP service was well worth the wait,” said Robert Wolpov, Junction Networks president. “We take this award seriously and will continue to keep innovation top of mind as the onSIP service evolves to fill the changing needs of SMBs.”

“Junction Networks and SightSpeed have proven they are committed to quality and excellence while addressing real needs in the marketplace. INTERNET TELEPHONY is pleased to grant a 2007 Product of the Year Award to SightSpeed 6.0 and onSIP,” said Rich Tehrani, TMC president and editor-in-chief of INTERNET TELEPHONY magazine.  “We’re proud to honor their hard work and accomplishments and look forward to more innovative solutions from SightSpeed and Junction Networks in the future.”

A full list of Product of the Year winners will be published in the February, 2008 issue of INTERNET TELEPHONY magazine. For more information about TMC, please visit www.tmcnet.com.

About SightSpeed
SightSpeed Inc. is the award-winning provider of Internet video communications for both the business user and consumer. The company offers the broadest portfolio of industry-leading Internet video communications services, including  SightSpeed 6.0 and new SightSpeed Light, the most widely praised consumer-focused video chat services, which turn a PC or Mac into an easy-to-use video phone to communicate with friends and family around the world; and SightSpeed Business, the world’s first high-quality, cost-effective and hardware-free videoconferencing service for all businesses (including SMBs). SightSpeed's services are SIP-based and standards-compliant. The company’s revolutionary human perception-based technology is patented and based on more than ten years of research and development originating out of Cornell University.

Founded in 2001 and based in Berkeley, Calif., SightSpeed is a privately held company funded by The Roda Group, best known for launching Ask Jeeves and PolyServe. For more information about SightSpeed, visit www.sightspeed.com.

About Junction Networks
With more than 3,500 customers, Junction Networks is one of the largest providers of business-class VoIP services to small and medium-sized enterprises. Using the most innovative applications available, Junction Networks provides high-end, multi-functional, Internet-based communications options that are easily adaptable to the needs of the growing business. Junction Networks' unsurpassed ability to leverage open standards, such as SIP, enables it to seamlessly integrate new functionalities into existing, scalable platforms. In this way, it can offer the benefit of enterprise-class broadband voice and data communications at a fraction of the typical cost. For more information, visit www.junctionnetworks.com.
 

About INTERNET TELEPHONY magazine
INTERNET TELEPHONY has been the VoIP Authority since 1998™. Since the first issue in February of 1998, INTERNET TELEPHONY magazine has been providing unbiased views of the complicated converged communications space.  INTERNET TELEPHONY offers rich content from solutions-focused editorial content to reviews on products and services from TMC Labs. INTERNET TELEPHONY magazine has a circulation of 225,000 including pass-along readers.  For more information, please visit www.itmag.com.

About TMC
Technology Marketing Corporation (TMC) publishes Customer Interaction Solutions, INTERNET TELEPHONY, Unified Communications, and IMS Magazine. TMCnet, TMC's Web site, is the leading source of news and articles for the communications and technology industries. Ranked in the top 6,000 most visited Web sites in the world by alexa.com*, TMCnet serves as many as three million unique visitors each month. TMC is also the first publisher to test new products in its own on-site laboratories, TMC Labs. In addition, TMC produces INTERNET TELEPHONY Conference & EXPO, and Call Center 2.0 Conference. For more information about TMC, visit www.tmcnet.com. (*alexa.com is an amazon.com company that ranks Web sites by their traffic levels. Neither alexa.com nor amazon.com is affiliated with TMCnet.) For more information about TMC, visit www.tmcnet.com.

SIGHTSPEED INTRODUCES VIDEO-CHAT WIDGET FOR OPENSOCIAL WEB SITES

“SightSpeed Light” Will Provide Simple, No-Download Version Entry Point to Award-Winning SightSpeed Services

Will Run on OpenSocial Sites Like MySpace, Salesforce.com, Hi5, LinkedIn, etc.

BERKELEY, Calif. – Jan. 7, 2008 – SightSpeed Inc., the leading provider of Internet video communications, has announced it is developing a new addition to its award-winning portfolio of services: an easy-to-use, no-download version of its video chat service, called “SightSpeed Light,” that will run on a variety of online social networks, including those based on Google’s forthcoming OpenSocial platform.

SightSpeed developers are creating the application using Adobe Flash, one of the most widely adopted multimedia viewing and creation tools, making SightSpeed Light simple to integrate on a variety of platforms and enhancing its accessibility and usability.

Furthermore, in anticipation of greater opportunities for cross-application collaboration through  OpenSocial, SightSpeed is inviting other developers who are building new applications with Google’s APIs to work with SightSpeed to create a fully immersed video experience within the applications they are developing.

SightSpeed Light will offer free video chat and integrated video mail between members of the same social network or anywhere on the Web. Because it’s built entirely using Flash, SightSpeed Light will work on any computer through any standards-based Web browser, with no downloads or installation required. Chatting with friends using video—and recording and sending them video messages—will literally be one click away.

SightSpeed plans to implement SightSpeed Light on MySpace, LinkedIn, Salesforce.com, Plaxo, Orkut, Hi5 and many other OpenSocial social networking sites.

According to Google, OpenSocial is currently being developed in conjunction with members of the Web community. The project’s ultimate goal is for any social Web site to be able to implement common APIs and host third-party social applications. As those APIs are released, SightSpeed Light will add them, as appropriate, to provide benefit to users.

“With SightSpeed Light, we’re expanding our portfolio to make it easier than ever for people to get started with video chat or to send and receive video messages,” said SightSpeed CEO Peter Csathy. “As growing numbers of people participate in online social-network sites, and with the proliferation of embedded webcams in PCs, Macs, mobile phones and other devices, video communications is quickly moving to the forefront of the social-networking experience. And because no one understands or delivers Internet-based video communications better than SightSpeed, you can expect that our widget—just like our other services—will raise the bar in terms of ease of use and overall performance.”

SightSpeed Light joins the full range of video communication services from industry leader SightSpeed. Offering additional capabilities, the full-featured SightSpeed 6.0 delivers consumers best-in-class 30-frames-per-second video calling and high-quality video mail with a virtual inbox. Also available are VoIP-based phone service with phone-in and phone-out capability, custom click-to-call-me buttons, video community access with privacy features, unlimited text messaging and up to four-party video conferencing.

For the business user, SightSpeed now offers SightSpeed Business—the company’s first business-focused videoconferencing service, providing a full suite of administrative and call-management options and collaboration tools that are essential for the business user.  SightSpeed Business is the first high-quality, cost-effective and hardware-free videoconferencing solution accessible to every business.

All SightSpeed’s award-winning services, including SightSpeed Light, are fully SIP-based and standards-compliant, which is essential for interoperability, security, stability and overall user flexibility and utility.

About SightSpeed

SightSpeed Inc. is the award-winning provider of Internet video communications for both the business user and consumer. The company offers the broadest portfolio of industry-leading Internet video communications services, including SightSpeed Light, SightSpeed Free and SightSpeed PLUS, the most widely praised consumer-focused video chat services, which turn a PC or Mac into an easy-to-use video phone to communicate with friends and family around the world; and SightSpeed Business, the world’s first high-quality, cost-effective and hardware-free videoconferencing service for all businesses (including SMBs). SightSpeed's services are SIP-based and standards-compliant. The company’s revolutionary human perception-based technology is patented and based on more than ten years of research and development originating out of Cornell University.

Founded in 2001 and based in Berkeley, Calif., SightSpeed is a privately held company funded by The Roda Group, best known for launching Ask Jeeves and PolyServe. For more information about SightSpeed, visit www.sightspeed.com.