News release |
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Zi licenses eZiText™ to leading outsource manufacturer, CEC Telecom
Calgary, AB (September 11, 2001) - Zi Corporation (NASDAQ: ZICA) (TSE: ZIC) continues to increase its penetration in the Chinese market through an agreement with CEC Telecom Science & Technology Co., Ltd. (CEC Telecom). Under the eZiText™ license agreement, Zi will receive a committed royalty from CEC Telecom over the first two years of the five year agreement. The first eZiText™ enabled product from CEC Telecom is expected to be available in China near the end of this year.
"With a reported 42 per cent increase in subscribers this year, it is the widely held view that China is the largest mobile market in the world. According to data released by the Ministry of Information Industries, China had over 120 million mobile subscribers in the month of July," says Kam Ching, director business development and sales, PRC, Zi Corporation. "Zi recognized the potential for mobile device growth in China early, and established the engineering expertise and local resources to support Chinese manufacturers. The strength of our position in China is evidenced by our agreement with one of China's leading manufacturers, CEC Telecom."
The number of mobile subscribers in China is expected to continue to increase in the next three years, making China a leading growth market. The Ministry of Information Industries have predicted a 20 per cent annual growth rate for mobile phone usage bringing the total number of subscribers in excess of 260 million by 2005.
"CEC Telecom is poised to capitalize on the tremendous growth in the mobile market in China as we continue to develop our own handset designs," said Larry Wang, senior vice president, CEC Telecom. "We sought out Zi's eZiText™ Chinese solution because it meets the demands of the China market with the best predictive input and most enhanced functioning available for mobile devices."
CEC Telecom was created in 2000, by the investment from six companies including China Electronics Corporation (CEC), China's largest electronics enterprise. Recently, CEC, through subsidiaries, announced a joint venture to produce all Philips handsets.
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 Services provides market-leading engineering design in Bluetooth, VoIP and man-machine interface. Zi supports its strategic partners from offices in Calgary, Beijing, Hong Kong, San Francisco, Shenzhen, Stockholm and Tokyo. A publicly traded company, Zi Corporation is listed on the NASDAQ National Market (ZICA) and the Toronto Stock Exchange (ZIC).
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For more information:
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Dale Kearns Zi Corporation Chief Financial Officer Phone: 403 233 8875 investor@zicorp.com www.zicorp.com |
Mr. Li JianHua CEC Telecom Manager, Manufacturing Department Phone: 8610 62501728 ext. 1658 lijianhua@cectelecom.com www.cectelecom.com |