Subject: [NEXTEL-1] Launch MyMobilePix -- First Java-Based Photo Sharing Application for Mobile Phones

From: Marcel <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 11 Feb 2003 17:49:31 -0500

Tira Wireless and Photogra Team to
Launch MyMobilePix -- First Java-Based Photo Sharing Application for Mobile Phones

Business Editors & High-Tech Writers

TORONTO & NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 11, 2003--Tira Wireless, a full
service publisher of wireless Java applications for mobile phones, and Photogra
(www.photogra.com), a leading provider of online digital imaging solutions, today
announced
MyMobilePix(TM), the first wireless Java (J2ME)-based software application available in
North
America for viewing and sharing photos on Java-enabled mobile phones. MyMobilePix,
developed
exclusively for Tira Wireless by MuskokaTech, a developer of next generation mobile
applications,
leverages Photogra's back-end, Web-based service, which enables consumers to upload,
store,
share, and print digital images.
MyMobilePix is the first photo application to capitalize on J2ME's ability to run
applications locally
on a phone: the application allows users to download and store photos on their mobile
phones, and
then view them without connecting to the network. As MyMobilePix is also multimedia
messaging
services (MMS) compatible, users can edit and add text messages to their favorite photos
and send
them to friends via MMS if MMS services are available from their carrier. Users can also
share their
favorite photos with friends and family by sending an email link to a PC.
Through the next five years, industry analysts, industry-leading carriers, and handset
manufacturers
predict strong growth in revenues from the sharing of digital images across wireless
networks. By
offering MyMobilePix, operators can boost their revenues from image sharing even if they
have not
deployed MMS or have customers without camera enabled phones. MyMobilePix can also
increase
revenues for handset manufacturers by driving demand for upgrades to new, high-end, color
mobile
phones.
"With imaging products poised to shape and lead the next wave in mass market mobile
communications, MyMobilePix presents winning opportunities for both mobile network
operators
and their subscribers," said Tony Davis, founder and CEO of Tira Wireless. "For network
operators
in particular, this application enables them to introduce and benefit from high profit
premium services
that maximize the potential of this category's explosive growth. They can now offer new
services that
boost customer loyalty, increase airtime usage and revenue, and provide a point of
differentiation."
"MyMobilePix enables Photogra to provide digital imaging services that go beyond the Web,"
said
Michael Barlow, president of Photogra. "By working together with Tira Wireless, we also
have an
opportunity to tap directly into one of the fastest growing consumer markets."
With MyMobilePix and an online account at Photogra.com, consumers can view, edit, store,
share
and print photos from their mobile phones -- without the need for a camera phone or
MMS-enabled
wireless service. Once photos are uploaded onto the Photogra Website, they can then be
downloaded directly onto a user's mobile phone. MyMobilePix enables users to run a slide
show on
their phone; or turn on a `share' feature, which allows friends to download pictures
directly from their
online photo album. Photos can also be sent directly from a mobile phone to PC e-mail
clients, or to
another phone along with text by using MMS (if available). In the near future, subscribers
will also be
able to use a short message service (SMS) to send a wireless application protocol (WAP)
link so
non-Java phone users could view the images via their WAP browser.
Mobile subscribers using a MyMobilePix account with Photogra can also instantly order
prints,
gifts and other novelty items anytime, day or night. Comprehensive online photo editing
tools create a
wireless darkroom so users can rotate, flip, alter the color and "autofix" photos with
just a few key
clicks on the handset before requesting prints.
As part of the value-added services Tira offers to mobile operators and wireless portals,
all
published Tira applications, including MyMobilePix, bear the Mobile Assure trustmark. The
Mobile
Assure (www.mobileassure.com) certification program comprises more than 250 tests across
multiple devices and networks to ensure that every Tira Studios branded application meets
stringent
standards for security, usability, and copyright ownership.
MyMobilePix (www.mymobilepix.com) will be available on February 17, 2003 on the AT&T
mMode network and through other Tira channels, including the Java Jumpstart program
offered by
Tira and Handango. The application is certified for deployment on the Motorola T720, Nokia
7210,
7650, 3650 and Nextel's iDEN i95cl. MyMobilePix will be certified for deployment across
other
devices in the near future.

About Photogra
Photogra is a leading provider of digital imaging solutions to the event photography
industry. The
company's professional services enable its partners to extend their operations easily and
cost-effectively to the Internet allowing them to realize additional revenue and marketing

opportunities. Consumers not only enjoy the freedom of being able to view and order their
professionally captured picture from home, but are also introduced to Photogra's online
photo
service-the easiest way to start doing more with your photos online. Photogra is located
at 192
Lexington Avenue, Suite 502, New York, NY, 10016. Tel: (212) 252-1780.

About Tira Wireless
Tira Wireless is a full-service publisher of a portfolio of trusted Wireless Java
applications
supporting the diverse needs of today's mobile subscribers. Tira Wireless offers mobile
operators and
developers a "full-service" publishing model that ensures the delivery of trusted wireless
Java
applications to mobile subscribers through Tira's Mobile Assure certification and its
stringent
standards for security, usability, and robustness. Tira Wireless is a privately held
company funded by
Brightspark Ventures of Toronto and Flagship Ventures of Cambridge. For more information
visit
www.tirawireless.com.

NOTE: Tira Wireless is a registered trademark. Java and J2ME are trademarks or registered
trademarks of Sun Microsystems, Inc. in the United States and other countries. All other
company
and product names may be trademarks of their respective owners. All Rights Reserved.

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