Acision & SPH Search Win 2009 Global Telecoms Business Innovation Award

READING, England - Nationwide Mobile Location-Based Directory Search Solution is Awarded “Best Consumer Innovation” Award

Acision, the world’s leading messaging company, is pleased to announce it has won the Best Consumer Innovation Award at last night’s Global Telecoms Business Innovation Awards, in conjunction with SPH Search, the company behind rednano.sg, Singapore’s local search and directory engine. The prestigious award was presented to Acision and SPH Search, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Singapore Press Holdings Limited (SPH), Southeast Asia’s leading media organization, in recognition of the part the partnership played in the deployment of Rednano Locate, Singapore’s first cross-telco mobile, location-based search application offered by Rednano Mobile, the mobile touchpoint of rednano.sg.

With Rednano Locate, users can obtain localised keyword search results at their fingertips anytime, anywhere. Beyond just getting directory information from more than 120,000 businesses, users can do more: they can view a map of the location they are looking for, or directly dial the given contact number of the retailer. SPH Search conceptualised the free service utilising its comprehensive content repository while Acision designed and implemented the backend infrastructure as well as the client user interface on the handsets, in collaboration with Seeker Wireless for its leading-edge location-based technology.

Judges of the Global Telecoms Business Innovation Awards 2009 recognised Rednano Locate as a truly innovative consumer-focused mobile marketing solution. Editor of Global Telecoms Business, Alan Burkitt-Gray, said: “We were impressed by the quality and number of nominations this year - the most we have ever had - so it was a special triumph for Acision and SPH to be one of the winners this year. This was an outstanding project and well deserves its award. This project stood out, even though the competition was strong, and it just had to be one of the winners. Well done to all involved. The industry is seeing a wave of innovation which is making a huge difference - to the companies working in the industry and to all of us in business and as consumers. Congratulations to all the award winners.”

Rory Buckley, Chief Executive of Acision, commented “We are thrilled at the recognition that winning this award brings. Working with SPH Search, Acision has successfully delivered the first innovative search solution to the mobile handset. This award further endorses that we are at the forefront of service innovation, delivering superior quality value and the best mobile experience to consumers.”

Paul Jansen, Chief Executive at SPH Search, said: “This is a major achievement for us. Thanks to the help of our partners Acision and Seeker Wireless, we were able to launch Rednano Locate quickly, to meet Singaporeans’ demand for information about products and services in their immediate vicinity. We are working to make it an integral part of the daily lifestyle of Singaporeans, helping them make convenient choices whether at work or for play. With our combined expertise, we are proud to deliver an innovative service that aims to bring location-based search to the mass market.”

NOTES TO EDITORS

About Acision

Acision is the world’s leading messaging company, providing communication solutions for over 300 network operators and service providers globally. www.acision.com

About SPH Search

SPH Search was born of collaboration between two media powerhouses: Singapore Press Holdings Ltd (SPH) and Schibsted ASA. The two companies, listed and headquartered in Singapore and Norway respectively, have long been in the business of giving people information, and significantly, in the context which makes the information more useful.

Both companies have also established reputations as trusted sources, each over more than a century, with their continuous delivery of accurate information speedily. The platforms on which they do this have changed over the years and have, since the 90s, included the World Wide Web.

Their joint venture, SPH Search, aims to provide the premier online tool for anyone seeking information about Singapore; its people and its businesses. It intends to respond to queries speedily. Most importantly, it plans to make relevance the hallmark of its answers.

Visit www.sphsearch.sg or www.rednano.sg/mobile/ for more information.

Source: Acision

Press Contacts: Jennifer Ballard, Marketing Communications Manager, Acision, Tel: +44(0)118-965-9407, Email: jennifer.ballard at acision.com; Annette Leach, Hotwire PR, Tel: +44(0)207-608-2500, Email: acision at hotwirepr.com