Devicescape Taps Into Wi-Fi Trends to Drive Company's Growth -- Membership Passes One Million User Milestone
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SAN BRUNO, CA, Jan 12 (MARKET WIRE) --
Devicescape Software, the leader in Easy Wi-Fi, celebrated a strong 2008,
thanks in large part to signed contracts with leading OEMs and service
providers as well as industry trends driving demand for Wi-Fi-enabled
devices. Also noted among Devicescape's 2008 successes are new product
releases and a foray into the iTunes App Store with its Easy Wi-Fi
application for iPhone and the iPod touch. These accomplishments enabled
the company to achieve a significant milestone -- Devicescape surpassed
the more than one million membership mark.
The demand for instant, secure and reliable Wi-Fi connectivity is on the
rise. In-Stat Senior Analyst Victoria Fodale said, "Wi-Fi has weathered
the current economic conditions better than many other technologies, and
In-Stat believes the momentum will continue. By 2012, cellular/Wi-Fi
phones are expected to grow at a compounded annual growth rate of almost
50%."
"The overwhelming success of new smartphones, such as the iPhone, has been
a true 'game changer' in terms of how service providers and OEMs regard
Wi-Fi," said Dave Fraser, CEO of Devicescape. "Smartphone users spend a
higher percentage of their time watching videos and downloading various
files with a resulting strain on the carriers' 3G network. This trend is
forcing OEMs and service providers to rethink the value of new networks
like Wi-Fi. A Wi-Fi network has a much lower cost for service providers
to carry all this new traffic."
In its July report, In-Stat noted that the fastest-growing embedded Wi-Fi
segment is smartphones, one that will overtake PCs as the biggest category
of Wi-Fi devices. With the growth of the smartphone market, smartphone
users have put a particularly big strain on the 3G network. OEMs are now
embedding Wi-Fi capabilities into new smartphones. Carriers are bundling
Wi-Fi into their cellular plans to help offload this new traffic from
expensive 3G networks to Wi-Fi networks. However, the Wi-Fi access needs
to be easy to use for customers to take advantage of this new network.
That is where Devicescape steps in. The company's Easy Wi-Fi for handsets
provides the technology needed for seamless access to Wi-Fi networks.
Based on these new worldwide Wi-Fi trends, Devicescape delivered customer,
partner and product achievements throughout 2008. Notable
achievements
include:
-- An introduction of three market-specific solutions -- Easy Wi-Fi for
Handsets, Easy Wi-Fi for PCs and Easy Wi-Fi for Devices. These products
were designed to meet the very specific Wi-Fi needs of manufacturers in
their markets.
-- In order to take advantage of the iPhone popularity, Devicescape made
Easy Wi-Fi available on the iTunes App Store in October. In December it
rolled out Easy Wi-Fi for AT&T, specifically designed for even easier
access to AT&T hotspots in the United States. Within days after its
availability, Easy Wi-Fi for AT&T was a top 10 application within the App
Store and the No. 4 utility overall, according to Apple.
-- Devicescape also secured global licensing deals with major new
customers in Europe, Japan and emerging markets. These companies included
HTC, Fujitsu, Defi Mobile, Slacker and Nintendo.
-- The company's membership surpassed more than one million users using
Devicescape.
A look toward 2009 reveals that Devicescape will continue selling
into the broader Wi-Fi-enabled-device market including handsets, PCs and
other enterprise and consumer devices, which In-Stat estimates will grow
from 294 million devices today to 1 billion by 2012. While handsets and
PCs remain the focal points for the company, Devicescape has already
begun making inroads into a variety of other device markets as well.
Devicescape is also looking at partnering with service providers from
around the world.
About Devicescape
Devicescape is the leader in Easy Wi-Fi. The company has worked with
original equipment manufacturers and service providers since its
inception. Its market-specific solutions -- Easy Wi-Fi for Handsets, Easy
Wi-Fi for PCs and Easy Wi-Fi for Devices, leverage critical Devicescape
technology to meet the specific Wi-Fi needs of manufacturers in their
respective markets. Devicescape's Easy Wi-Fi enables anytime, anywhere,
any network Wi-Fi access.
Headquartered in San Bruno, California, the company is privately held and
backed by leading venture capital companies including Kleiner Perkins
Caufield & Byers, August Capital, Enterprise Partners, and JAFCO. To learn
more, please visit www.devicescape.com.
Devicescape is a trademark of Devicescape Software, Inc. All other
registered or unregistered trademarks are the sole property of their
respective owners.
Media Contacts:
Kathleen Shanahan
BOCA Communications
Phone: 415-570-1405
Email Contact
Copyright 2009, Market Wire, All rights reserved.
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