AsiaInfo Wins SMS Software Solution Contract from China Mobile — Shanghai
BEIJING & SANTA CLARA, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–June 26, 2003–AsiaInfo Holdings, Inc. (Nasdaq:ASIA), a leading provider of telecom network and software solutions in China, today announced that it has signed a contract with Shanghai Mobile, a China Mobile subsidiary, to upgrade the carrier’s Internet Short Message Gateway (ISMG).
Shanghai Mobile selected AsiaInfo to deploy its original ISMG in early 2002. Since its initial implementation, the system has supported two million messages on average per day and about three million per day during peak times. Faced with increasingly demanding customers as well as rapidly growing traffic, the carrier recently contracted AsiaInfo to upgrade its ISMG and improve the system’s functionality and reliability.
China’s Short Message Services (SMS) market was valued at US$ 234 million in 2002. This year, the amount is expected to triple to approximately US$ 750 million. In terms of number of messages, in 2002 China Mobile’s subscribers sent more than 80 billion short messages, and the carrier expects 120 billion short messages be sent via its network in 2003. China Mobile’s SMS based Monternet (Mobile Internet) service can support various value-added services including, amongst others, downloadable ring tones and pictures, interactive mobile games, and mobile QQ chat facilities. By effectively increasing the carrier’s Average Revenue Per User (APRU), SMS has become an important revenue driver for China Mobile.
“AsiaInfo is delighted to work in partnership with Shanghai Mobile to upgrade its SMS service capabilities,” said Xingsheng Zhang, President and Chief Executive Officer of AsiaInfo. “Although China’s telecommunications carriers remain cautious about increasing capital expenditures this year, they are clearly shifting their investment focus to areas that will increase their efficiency and profitability, such as value-added services. We are glad to partner with carriers to improve their SMS service provisioning with our advanced messaging solutions, while further strengthening our position in this high-growth market.”
About AIISMG
AsiaInfo Internet Short Message Gateway (AIISMG) software solution is capable of handling thousands of SMS messages per second. It enables short messages to flow securely and fluidly between the Internet and different mobile networks, including GSM, CDMA, PHS (Personal Handyphone System), and 3G. AIISMG has so far been deployed in eight China Mobile subsidiaries, including Beijing, Shanghai, Tianjin, Guangzhou, Jiangsu, Hebei, Sichuan and Tibet to provide effective, stable and around-the-clock operational support to carriers’ SMS businesses.
About AsiaInfo Holdings, Inc.
AsiaInfo Holdings, Inc. (Nasdaq:ASIA) is a leading provider of telecom network integration and software solutions in China. The company provides high-quality software and solutions to China’s telecom carriers, meeting the demanding needs of a fast-growing industry. AsiaInfo’s products and services cover network infrastructure services including design, implementation, operation and optimization, customer management and billing solutions; decision support systems; and service applications encompassing messaging, broadband, wireless and other advanced applications.
Organized as a Delaware corporation, AsiaInfo has constructed national backbones and provincial access networks for all of China’s major national telecom carriers since 1995, including China Telecom, China Mobile, China Unicom and China Netcom. Since 2000, the company has successfully shifted its focus from Internet infrastructure construction to the provision of a full suite of telecom software solutions.
For more information about AsiaInfo, please visit http:/www.asiainfo.com.
This release contains projections and other forward-looking statements regarding future events and the future financial performance of AsiaInfo that involve risks and uncertainties. Readers are cautioned that these forward-looking statements are only predictions and may differ materially from actual future events or results. Readers are referred to the documents filed by AsiaInfo with the SEC, specifically the most recent reports on Form 10-K, 10-Q and 8-K, each as it may be amended from time to time, which identify important risk factors that could cause actual results to differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements. The financial information contained in this release should be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements and notes thereto included in AsiaInfo’s most recent reports on Form 10-K and Form 10-Q, each as it may be amended from time to time. Any projections in this release are based on limited information currently available to AsiaInfo, which is subject to change.