WWE(R) and Volantis Join Forces To Enable Launch Of New WWE Mobile(TM) Platform
LAS VEGAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 5, 2006--World Wrestling Entertainment(R) and Volantis today announced a new, multi-year, strategic partnership to help launch a new WWE mobile portal worldwide, supported by Volantis' Mobile Content Framework and Storefront solutions.
WWE is set to launch a slate of original mobile specific content later this spring, including programs and services that feature dedicated, exclusive video content and other one-of-a-kind material. It introduced its first offering, WWE Mobile Alert, an exclusive SMS subscription package, in March.
The demand for WWE content outside of its popular television programming has been growing, particularly online. WWE has seen monthly unique visitors to WWE.com increase to more than 13.6 million in February 2006, an increase of 92 percent from the prior year, as it has made its website more news oriented.
"WWE views developing and supplying content to the mobile industry as a strategic growth opportunity. The agreement with Volantis is a critical part of our plans to take advantage of the mobile market, and gives us the technology and tools we need to build a robust infrastructure and solid foundation to run our mobile business both on and off portal," said David Knise, WWE Vice President, Interactive Development. "Volantis offers a global presence, an established network of carrier partners worldwide, and domain expertise that will help accelerate bringing our products to market in the U.S. and ultimately worldwide. It provided the scaleable platform we need to support an integrated offering of mobile content from WWE that is integrated with existing WWE marketing programs and business initiatives."
WWE undertook a long and detailed analysis of Volantis and how the company fits WWE's future mobile plans. After a rigorous market survey and competitive product analysis, Volantis Mobile Content Framework and Storefront, along with Professional Services, was chosen as the best in class for content development and distribution. Said Knise, "The pros at Volantis were professional and easy to work with throughout the process, even if some of our due diligence went beyond what Volantis would normally expect in a process like this."
Knise noted that the strategic partnership with Volantis is the first of several new technologies and applications that will be introduced over the next several months.
"Volantis is thrilled to collaborate with WWE for the global deployment of their mobile platform. WWE's established global presence will benefit from the launch of a dynamic, creative portal powered by Volantis that helps capture the core personality of WWE," said Matthew Harris, Chief Executive Officer of Volantis. "WWE, with its commitment to its tens of millions of loyal fans worldwide, is a perfect fit with Volantis. WWE's desire to make cool content available wherever and whenever fans want it was exactly what we had in mind with our Storefront product and services."
Volantis (
www.volantis.com) is the world's leading supplier of Intelligent Content Adaptation(TM) solutions for the mobile Information Age, providing applications, tools and platforms that solve the complexity of delivering optimized services to any mobile device.
Volantis extensive experience of serving content providers, mobile network operators, and enterprises, along with its standards leadership, enable a unique position for Volantis to create innovative technology for the Mobile Information Age that is more useful and more useable than the PC Internet of today.
Volantis is used around the world by organizations such as 3, Hearst, Accenture, Channel 4, Cingular, CSC, Discovery, eBay.co.uk, FT.com, HP, IBM, lastminute.com, MobileOne, Orange Poland, Reuters, Telefonica Moviles, Telecom Italia Mobile and Telenor Mobil. Volantis also Chairs the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) Device Independence Working Group and is a Founding Member of the W3C Mobile Web Initiative.
Volantis global headquarters are in Seattle, USA, with international offices in London, UK, Hong Kong, China, Madrid, Spain and Krakow, Poland. Volantis is privately held with investors Accel Partners, Kennet Venture Partners, and SOFTBANK Europe Ventures.
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. (NYSE: WWE), is an integrated media and entertainment company headquartered in Stamford, Conn., with offices in New York City, Los Angeles, Toronto and London. Additional information on the company can be found at WWE.com and corporate.wwe.com.
Trademarks: The names of all World Wrestling Entertainment televised and live programming, talent names, images, likenesses, slogans and wrestling moves and all World Wrestling Entertainment logos are trademarks which are the exclusive property of World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
Forward-Looking Statements: This news release contains forward-looking statements pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, which are subject to various risks and uncertainties. These risks and uncertainties include the conditions of the markets for live events, broadcast television, cable television, pay-per-view, Internet, entertainment, professional sports, and licensed merchandise; acceptance of the Company's brands, media and merchandise within those markets; uncertainties relating to litigation; risks associated with producing live events both domestically and internationally; uncertainties associated with international markets; risks relating to maintaining and renewing key agreements, including television distribution agreements; and other risks and factors set forth from time to time in Company filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Actual results could differ materially from those currently expected or anticipated. In addition to these risks and uncertainties, our dividend is based on a number of factors, including our liquidity and historical and projected cash flow, strategic plan, our financial results and condition, contractual and legal restrictions on the payment of dividends and such other factors as our board of directors may consider relevant.
