SOFN with news. SoftNet's Intellicom Unveils Breakthrough Satellite-Based Services, Bringing Internet Connectivity to Remote Ends of the World
Intellicom's SkyPOP(TM) and K.I.D.S.(TM) Set New Standard for Internet Deployment Services With Unparalleled Reach and Scalability
LIVERMORE, Calif., Sept. 19 /PRNewswire/ -- SoftNet System's (Nasdaq: SOFN - news) wholly owned subsidiary, Intellicom, a leading provider of two-way satellite-based Internet services for Internet Service Providers (ISPs), telecommunications carriers, corporations and schools, today unveiled SkyPOP(TM) and K.I.D.S.(TM), two new turnkey solutions that make reliable Internet service available and affordable for end users in areas that are currently unserved or under-served by landline data communications systems. With today's announcement, Intellicom expands its suite of satellite-based solutions to deliver scalable, competitively priced, high-speed Internet connectivity and services to ISPs, businesses, corporations and schools in even the most remote geographical locations worldwide.
Thousands of ISPs, businesses, corporations, and schools have turned to satellite technology to access the Internet because landline systems are either unavailable, unreliable, or too expensive. Through its sophisticated two-way satellite communication technology, Intellicom enables widespread availability of affordable, reliable, high-speed Internet connectivity. Intellicom's advanced system circumvents the high cost and long deployment times generally associated with leased high-speed local telephone lines, providing efficient two-way Internet access at significant cost savings to the end-user. This makes Intellicom a viable solution for providing state-of-the-art Internet and Intranet capabilities to budget-conscious educational systems, businesses and corporations.
``Today's announcement allows us to meet the customer's demands for a turnkey package for ISPs, businesses, corporations and schools as we continue to expand our market reach into these regions that are still many years from having terrestrial Internet connectivity,'' said Carol Sorrick, president of Intellicom. ``Customers in all parts of the world have been demanding this reach and scalability of service, but until today, many had to live without the power of the Internet. The Intellicom solution eliminates the physical barriers to Internet access and provides a level playing field for ISPs, businesses, corporations and schools in even the most remote areas.''
SkyPOP -- An Instant Internet Backbone
SkyPOP is a complete turnkey solution that provides an instant Internet backbone complete with an intelligent IP gateway and Web-casting capabilities. SkyPOP is configured with services specifically tailored to ISPs, corporations and businesses to enable them to offer their customers a wide range of Internet and private data communications services, including Web hosting, Web content, routing, e-mail, User Database Authentication and Accounting, Domain Name Service (DNS), File Transfer Protocol (FTP), and Telnet.
``As a distributor of Intellicom's state-of-the-art, turnkey SkyPOP system, we are enabling our rural electric cooperatives to put the Internet at the fingertips of their customers nationwide for the first time,'' said Greg Kelly, vice president of marketing for Ceva (Central Virginia Services, Inc.). ``Before Intellicom, these cooperatives had little or no chance of rallying the capital and resources necessary to enter the ISP market. Now, they can provide their customers with unprecedented, reliable high-speed Internet access at a fraction of the time and cost.''
Bringing the Internet to the Network Edge
Intellicom's technology is truly unique in its ability to literally bring the Internet to the edge of the network. With estimates of approximately 80 percent of all Web requests going to only 20 percent of Web sites, SkyPOP optimizes the IP gateway by caching the majority of the Web's most popular sites, bypassing Internet backbone congestion.
Using the Intellicom EdgeConnector, SkyPOP eliminates redundant data by moving a substantial amount of the Web, FTP, and NNTP traffic from the Internet backbone to the ``network edge'' via a local cache system at the VSAT site. By caching the most frequently accessed Web sites, Intellicom dramatically improves the speed at which the user downloads information. In addition to providing caching capabilities, the EdgeConnector also serves as a multicast receiver, providing users with access to a multicast content portal and enabling the transport of content on one file transfer to multiple recipients.
K.I.D.S. -- Connecting Students with the World
K.I.D.S. (K-12 Internet Delivery System) is a turnkey solution that allows students, parents, teachers, administrators, and the community to enhance communications, exchange knowledge, and obtain distance-learning content that can be effectively customized and readily updated for specific grade levels or types of schools. K.I.D.S. is easily provisioned at the school site and can be customized to the school's needs within a matter of hours.
For even the most remotely located educational facilities, K.I.D.S. delivers a complete Internet gateway service that provides one-hop access to the U.S. Internet backbone. In addition to providing high-speed satellite-based connectivity, K.I.D.S. provides advanced, customizable Internet and Intranet services to students, teachers, and administrators, which are available to them at school or at home. By having online access to informational databases on classroom activities, schedules, specific assignments, and resources, students gain advantages critical to their academic development. School administrators also reap the benefits of secure centralized database capabilities, which enable them to consolidate multiple databases that are currently maintained and recorded manually.
K.I.D.S. also includes Intellicom's EdgeConnector caching and multicasting capabilities. This access to multicast content enables K.I.D.S. customers to maximize the benefits of the Internet by allowing access to a multimedia instructional database and expanded distance learning opportunities.
``Intellicom's K.I.D.S. is poised to completely revolutionize the way every public school in our country operates,'' said Carl Carlson, chief operating officer for TRICOM, a leading integrated communications service provider in the Dominican Republic. ``600,000 students will have a whole new world opened to them. They will be able to exchange knowledge and share information, not just with each other, but with students and faculty in more than 300 other public schools in the Dominican Republic. Having fast, reliable access to the Web allows teachers to incorporate the most up-to-date information available into their lesson plans to prepare our students to achieve their maximum potential.''
The SkyPOP and K.I.D.S. solutions include a satellite modem, router, server, and software -- all packaged in a slim cabinet with an uninterrupted power supply (UPS) built in. Intellicom provides the satellite bandwidth and connection to the Internet backbone at speeds comparable to a terrestrial T1 or E1 connection, including a 2 Mbps downlink and a scalable 19.2 to 256 Kbps uplink. Intellicom is the only answer for many organizations seeking affordable, reliable high-speed connectivity and networking. Systems can be deployed quickly, usually in 45 days or less, from the time of the order.
Practical Details
SkyPOP and K.I.D.S, configured with Intellicom's EdgeConnector server and services, are currently available in North, Central, and South America, and the Caribbean. Intellicom anticipates opening markets in Asia in 2001.
About Intellicom
Intellicom, a wholly owned subsidiary of SoftNet Systems, Inc., combines Internet services with sophisticated two-way satellite technology to deliver a turnkey solution for ISP, schools, corporations and businesses. Since 1995, Intellicom has provided two-way satellite Internet access using a proprietary network optimizing technology. Intellicom utilizes state-of-the-art wireless technologies, broadband delivery, data-push and satellite-based Internet access caching products to provide its customers with fast access to information and efficient utilization of existing network capacity. Headquartered in Livermore, California, Intellicom operates over 400 earth stations in the United States, Latin America and the Caribbean, as well as a 24-hour-a-day, seven-day-a-week Network Operations Center, Internet Data Center and Customer Support Center to provide unparalleled reliability and support for customers. For more information, visit Intellicom's Web site at intellicom.net , or phone 925-245-8888.
This press release contains forward-looking statements concerning the company's anticipated future operating results, future revenues and earnings or adequacy of future cash flow. (These forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements containing the words ``expect,'' ``believe,'' ``will,'' ``may,'' ``should,'' ``project,'' ``estimate'' and like expressions, and the negative thereof.) These statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from the statements, including the risks attendant to a growing business in a new industry as well as those risks described in the company's Quarterly or Annual Report.
CONTACT: Heidi Boettcher of Bairey & Bedford Public Relations, LLC, 303-932-6249, or heidi@b2pr.com, for Intellicom; or Gloria Parrish of SoftNet Systems, Inc., 415-365-2514, or gparrish@softnet.com; or Jean Phillips of Intellicom, or 925-245-4105, or jphillips@vsat.net.
SOURCE: SoftNet Systems, Inc. |
