Cingular Steps Up As First To Launch Hispanic Wireless Internet Portal.

Cingular Wireless announced the launch of “Mi Ventana Movil,” the first Hispanic wireless Internet portal offered by a wireless carrier in the United States. Capitalizing on the increasing demand for Spanish-language Internet services in the United States, “Mi Ventana Movil” offers the same access in Spanish to on-demand personalized information as Cingular’s “My Wireless Window” provides its English-speaking customers. The wireless portal, accessible from a mobile phone or personal computer, includes calendar, shopping, e-mail, address book and instant messaging. Approximately 48 percent of Hispanics in the U.S. have a mobile phone, which is equal to approximately 16 million people, according to Cheskin Research.

Through strategic relationships with StarMedia Network, Inc. and InfoSpace, Inc., ‘Mi Ventana Movil’ is the first wireless portal designed exclusively for the U.S. Hispanic market by a U.S. carrier. InfoSpace will provide the platform and applications for the new service, and StarMedia will provide Spanish language content, community applications and Hispanic marketing expertise.

“With Cingular’s Mi Ventana Movil portal and wireless Internet service, customers can access valuable information, in Spanish, whenever and wherever they want it — without any of the clutter and confusion commonly associated with other wireless services,” said Stephen Krom, Cingular vice president of data and Internet services. “Cingular is in nine of the top ten Hispanic markets nationwide, and we wanted our customers to be equipped to use Cingular’s service to express themselves in Spanish, as well as in English.”

Building on the success of Cingular’s English-language wireless Internet service, My Wireless Window portal (www.mywirelesswindow.com), ‘Mi Ventana Movil’ offers Spanish speakers new ways to shop, communicate and manage their lives through their mobile device. Empowering people with information “on the fly,” Cingular Wireless Internet service uses WAP (Wireless Application Protocol), enabling wireless devices to transform into Internet portals that deliver streamlined content tailored to the smaller display screens of wireless phones.

Beginning today, customers can use the Mi Ventana Movil portal to do the following in Spanish:

* Personalize the information they receive on their phones

* Send and receive emails with their own “@mycingular.com” email address or using an existing email address that is compatible

* Receive automatic alerts with the latest information on stocks, sports, weather, news, lottery, horoscopes and more

* Get directions on their phone while on the road

* Access Yellow Pages and White Pages information on their phone including local or national entertainment

* Create a calendar and address book to access “on the go”

In the second quarter 2001, customers are also expected to be able to:

* Receive promotions and discounts on their phones from national retailers, E-tailers and local merchants

* Send instant messages to other wireless devices in real time

* Shop online safely through the phone or desktop PC using their stored credit card information

* Use a desktop portal to help manage and personalize their information

“As pioneers in the U.S. Hispanic Internet space, we are delighted to bring our experience and expertise to this groundbreaking initiative, and to offer our superior product to Cingular’s Spanish-speaking users,” said Adriana Kampfner, StarMedia’s Senior Vice President, Global Sales and Business Development. “This relationship further demonstrates our ongoing commitment to the U.S. Hispanic community and reinforces our strong position in this market.”

“As the development of wireless technology makes the world smaller, our carrier partners are increasingly looking for solutions that can be rolled out across borders and in multiple languages,” said Naveen Jain, chief executive officer of InfoSpace. “InfoSpace’s highly flexible, robust wireless platform and application suite can be deployed worldwide in any language and we are pleased to be powering Cingular Wireless as the first U.S. carrier with a Spanish language wireless Internet portal.”

Customers need a compatible handset to access the wireless Internet service. Cingular is offering a variety of handsets to meet local service needs as the service rolls out nationwide. Mi Ventana Movil can be added to Cingular customers’ rate plans for $6.99 per month. The web minutes used are billed as regular airtime. As an introductory offer until March 31, 2001, Cingular is waiving the monthly fee during the first three months of service.

The service is immediately available in major U.S. markets, including Los Angeles, San Francisco, Dallas, Tulsa, San Antonio, Chicago, Detroit, Saint Louis, Boston, Washington/Baltimore, and Philadelphia, and will be rolled out to all Cingular markets by early April.