Redmond, WA, January 30, 1999: Wireless messaging on the SkyTel network has grown from 200,000 messages per month in March 1996 to more than 3.4 million per month in the later part of 1998. According to John T. Stupka, SkyTel's president and CEO, this is a trend which "should not only continue but accelerate as more and more people discover the power of mobile messaging." At the same time, it is estimated that more than 70 million Americans are using e-mail and view it as their messaging tool of choice. As evidenced by the explosive growth of wireless text messaging, it is apparent that mobile professionals want to be able to gauge the importance of incoming e-mail in "real-time" while they are away from their PC's.
The alliance between The Software Labs and SkyTel will take advantage of the marketing and positioning strengths of both companies to expand the use of wireless messaging. The Software Labs' PageAbility Mail-Link is the only software product available that completely integrates e-mail and wireless messaging. PageAbility's unequalled compatibility and benefits to individuals as well as corporations provides SkyTel with a superior end-to-end wireless messaging solution.
According to Paul J. O'Dell, Director of Marketing for The Software Labs, "The key to wireless messaging lies not only in making message sending easier, but also in allowing recipients complete control over the selection and formatting of messages that are sent to their wireless devices. Pagers and PCS phones were never designed to be e-mail readers, so e-mail forwarding software must be very 'intelligent' in the way regular e-mail messages are forwarded to those devices."
Until now sending a message to a wireless device has involved loading, configuring and using specialized 'page-sending' software on a computer; knowing a specific web-site URL for the user's carrier and knowing the user's wireless PIN or wireless e-mail address; or sending messages to a different and often complicated wireless device e-mail address. Since the information is unique for each individual user, keeping track of and supporting all of the various message-sending methods is difficult.
PageAbility Mail-Link eliminates all of the complications of message sending and allows anyone in the world to send text to a user's message-ready wireless device simply by sending an e-mail message to the users regular e-mail address. PageAbility Mail-Link works with the user's regular e-mail account to monitor and filter incoming messages. Important messages are copied and forwarded to the user's wireless device, while other messages and SPAM are ignored. All original messages are unaffected and remain in the user's e-mail in-box. PageAbility Mail-Link delivers unified text messaging by allowing the user to consolidate all of his text and data messaging through a single e-mail account.
PageAbility Mail-Link also offers a complete range of formatting and control features for those messages that are forwarded to the user's wireless message-ready device. Smart message breaking intelligently adjusts the amount of information that is sent to the wireless device based not only on the limitations of the device and service but also on message content. Message transmission can be confined to any set time window, allowing, for example, the user to limit business messaging to business hours. Multiple e-mail accounts can be monitored, eliminating the complicated and confusing task of forwarding e-mail from one account to another. Pager Shorthand reduces messaging costs by abbreviating words and phrases. Group messaging allows users to share information with other wireless subscribers.
Users of SkyTel's 2-Way paging services can instantly reply to important e-mail messages and use PageAbility Mail-Link's 'Remote Control' feature to wirelessly configure the program's key functions from a remote location. As a development partner with SkyTel and Motorola, The Software Labs is already working on integrated software packages for the PageWriter 2000 and other supported devices that will add even more two-way functionality and enhanced wireless data capabilities.
PageAbility Mail-Link also allows users to receive timely reminders of their important meetings and daily schedules. Working with Symantec, Microsoft, GoldMine and others, The Software Labs has included in PageAbility Mail-Link the functionality to automatically monitor a user's Personal Information Manager (PIM). Detailed appointment reminders are automatically sent directly to the user's wireless device without the need to synchronize software in their PC's with software in their wireless devices.
The Software Labs, Inc. is an industry leader in wireless messaging and connectivity applications and has provided software solutions to over five million customers worldwide since 1986. The company has developed and published award-winning products that leverage state-of-the-art technology to enhance corporate and end-user productivity. With over a dozen years of experience in software development, publishing, private labeling, package design, duplication, order fulfillment and retail, corporate and direct mail sales, The Software Labs is well positioned to offer its corporate clients complete turnkey solutions. Information on the company and its products can be obtained by calling (425) 869-6802 or at http://www.softwarelabs.com.
SkyTel is a leader in wireless messaging, serving almost 1.7 million customers. Since 1989, SkyTel has led the industry toward true nationwide messaging through a series of innovations that culminated in SkyTel two-way interactive messaging service. This enables customers to exchange messages with the Internet and other pagers, receive messages via email and the Internet, and send messages to any telephone in the United States. SkyTel is headquartered in Jackson, Miss., and had 1998 revenue of $518 million. More information is available by calling 800/643-0323 or by visiting the Web site at www.skytel.com.
