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MIRAPOINT INTRODUCES NEW TECHNOLOGY THAT CREATES THE WORLD’S FIRST WIRELESS MESSAGING SERVER APPLIANCE
First Vendor to Embed the WAP Standard into Its Internet Messaging Server

SUNNYVALE, CA, October 9, 2000 – Building upon its Global Open Access strategy, Mirapoint Inc., a leading provider of Internet messaging infrastructure products, today unveiled a new technology for service providers and enterprises that creates the world’s first wireless messaging server appliance. This new technology, WAPmail Direct, provides embedded WAP (Wireless Application Protocol) support that allows service providers and enterprises to offer wireless messaging services much faster and more cost-effectively than ever before.

"The goal of our Global Open Access strategy is to empower users with fast and convenient access to messages regardless of the device or protocol being used," said Satish Ramachandran, chairman and CEO of Mirapoint. "The introduction of WAPmail Direct further demonstrates our commitment to providing customers with the latest message access technology. With WAPmail Direct we have made it extremely easy for our customers to satisfy the need for WAP-based message access with the efficiency and performance of a server appliance.

With WAPmail Direct, service providers can increase revenues and reduce subscriber turnover by offering their customers the convenience of having a single inbox to access all types of messages from a standard WAP-enabled mobile phone, PDA, or other handheld device. In addition, end users can access the same inbox from traditional e-mail clients or the Web without having to synchronize multiple different mailboxes.

The market for wireless messaging is exploding. Cahners In-Stat Group, a leading research firm based in Newton, Mass., estimates that worldwide wireless subscribers will reach one billion by 2002 and nearly two billion by 2004. In addition, research from the ARC Group predicts that by 2004, over 65 percent of wireless subscribers will be mobile messaging users.

"ISPs, ASPs and enterprises are looking for ways to offer wireless messaging services as quickly and as cost-effectively as possible," said Ray Jodoin, group manager and principal analyst, Wireless Technology, Cahners In-Stat Group. "Mirapoint has taken a complex issue and made it extremely easy for providers to begin offering these services at a low cost. The beauty of Mirapoint's WAPmail Direct is that it opens up wireless access to messages faster than ever before."

How WAPmail Direct Works
To use WAPmail Direct a user has to establish an account for WAP services from a wireless provider. The user then enters their service provider’s URL or company Web site address into a WAP-enabled device to begin accessing their messages. Through a Web interface, the user may establish optional mail filters to prioritize and organize messages. The user is then able to perform typical e-mail functions, such as reading messages in their inbox, composing messages, replying to and forwarding messages, and gaining access to all folders. Other features include address book shortcuts to address and compose messages quickly and a message header scan so users can preview new messages before opening them.

WAPmail Direct eliminates the need for installation services and additional administrative expenses. Customers simply turn on the WAPmail Direct functionality on a Mirapoint Internet Message Server -- allowing for an accelerated time-to-market. There is no need for customers to invest in a gateway or other hardware in order to begin offering WAP-based wireless message access to end users. For existing Mirapoint customers, WAPmail Direct can be enabled immediately by purchasing a license and performing a software update over the Internet to their system.

"Space4Rent.com is dedicated to providing products that help simplify our customers' lives, and WAPmail Direct fits our business model extremely well," said Lance Broell, director of marketing at Space4Rent.com, a Carlsbad, Calif.-based provider of dedicated-hosting and managed IT services for e-businesses. "By enabling WAPmail Direct from the Mirapoint Internet Message Server, we can maintain a single administration point for managing all of our messaging infrastructure. Our customers benefit because they can use their WAP-enabled device to access all of their messages without having to synchronize their mailbox every time they log in. Nothing could be easier for us and our customers."

Mirapoint’s Internet Message Servers with WAPmail Direct allow more users to access their messages than other solutions because Mirapoint removes a bottleneck caused by translating from one protocol connection to another. All other WAP-based implementations must convert messages from the Post Office Protocol (POP) or Internet Mail Access Protocol (IMAP), which pose limitations on scalability and require additional hardware and software.

By supporting direct WAP access to Mirapoint's patent-pending MessageBase message store, WAPmail Direct allows administrators and end-users to retain many of the benefits of POP and IMAP-based services, without the performance degradation associated with protocol translation. Mirapoint is the first vendor to truly embrace the WAP standard as a means for accessing messages because of this embedded implementation.

WAPmail Direct is available now on Mirapoint Internet Message Servers shipping in North America, Europe and Asia. Pricing is based on the number of users. It is part of a new Mirapoint software release, Version 2.7. Other features in this release include:

• advanced messaging management functions for administering a cluster of Mirapoint servers and routers;
• content filtering capabilities which allow administrators to reject or quarantine incoming messages based on the contents of a message;
• Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) Transport Layer Security (TLS) for secure message transmission;
• backup support using the Network Data Management Protocol (NDMP) standard;
• user suspension services which allows service providers to suspend services for users without deleting their mailbox; and
• dynamic user move services which allows administrators to easily move users from one Mirapoint system to another for capacity planning purposes.

About Mirapoint
Founded in 1997, Mirapoint designs and manufactures specialized, dedicated Internet messaging solutions optimized for next-generation Internet messaging and fast deployment for service providers and enterprises worldwide. Mirapoint's cost-effective outsourcing solutions and partnerships provide customers with high performance, high reliability, built-in security and easy integration with legacy messaging infrastructure. The company is headquartered in Sunnyvale, Calif., with offices throughout North America, Europe and Asia/Pacific. For more information on Mirapoint, call 800.937.8118 or visit its Web site at http://www.mirapoint.com.

2007 Mirapoint, Inc.  All rights reserved. All company and product names mentioned herein may be trademarks of their respective companies.

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