News release |
 |
Zi and Viable Korea combine forces for rapid handset deployment
Marketed by Toplux, Viable Korea's new VG100 is already available for sale in Hong Kong
CALGARY, AB (March 18, 2002) - Zi Corporation (NASDAQ: ZICA) (TSE: ZIC), a leading provider of intelligent interface solutions, announced that on the heels of signing a new licensing agreement, the company's latest Korean partner has completed development of the VG100, a GSM handset incorporating Zi's eZiText® predictive text input technology in English, Simplified and Traditional Chinese, which is now available for sale in Hong Kong.
The agreement, which represents Zi's 13th licensing agreement in the Korean market, licenses eZiText to Viable Korea, which specializes in lithium-ion batteries and GSM mobile equipment, for implementations in English and Chinese as well as Arabic, Danish, Dutch, French, German, Greek, Hebrew, Indonesian, Italian, Korean, Malay, Norwegian, Portuguese, Spanish, Thai and Turkish. The VG100 GSM handset is being marketed under the Toplux brand name.
"We believe that Zi's eZiText technology is the strongest choice in the market for Chinese input and is a way for us to enhance the user experience and features we offer with our handsets," said Mr. Steve Won, Executive Vice President for Viable Korea. "Once we had signed the licensing agreement with Zi, we were able to very quickly integrate eZiText into our handset design and meet our own time-to-market deadlines. Our decision to use Zi was largely based on the ability to meet our deployment schedule as well as their proven expertise in character-based languages and their establishment of strong customer support for Korean manufacturers."
"eZiText, Zi's predictive text input technology, operates in over 32 written languages and is suitable for a variety of devices where fast and efficient text input is required," said Gary Mendel, vice president, Sales and Marketing, Zi Corporation. "This agreement with Viable Korea builds on the momentum we have built in the Korean, Chinese, Taiwanese and Japanese handset markets and places Zi in an enviable position. In addition to our experience with predictive text input methods, we have demonstrated our ability to address the time constraints placed on outsourced Asian manufacturers by handset developers as they attempt to meet the consumer needs of the steadily growing mobile market."
About Zi Corporation
Zi Corporation is a market-driven technology company delivering intelligent interface solutions to enhance the user experience of wireless and consumer technologies. The company's core technology product, eZiText® connects people to short messaging, e-mail, e-commerce, Web browsing and similar applications in almost any written language. Zi supports its strategic partners from offices in Calgary, Beijing, Hong Kong, London, San Francisco, Shenzhen and Stockholm. A publicly traded company, Zi Corporation is listed on the NASDAQ National Market (ZICA) and the Toronto Stock Exchange (ZIC).
-30-
For more information:
|
Media Inquiries: Shawn Kelly Zi Corporation Corporate Communications Manager Phone: 403 537 9770 skelly@zicorp.com www.zicorp.com |
Investor Inquiries: Dale Kearns Zi Corporation Chief Financial Officer Phone: 403 233 8875 investor@zicorp.com www.zicorp.com |