MESG up in premarket : Company Press Release
Cisco Selects MessageMedia as Its E-messaging Solutions Provider
Cisco and MessageMedia Join Forces to Enhance Customer and Channel Communications
BOULDER, Colo.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 9, 1999-- MessageMedia Inc. (Nasdaq: MESG - news), a leading provider of marketing and customer relationship management services, announced today it has been selected by Cisco Systems, Inc. (Nasdaq: CSCO - news), the worldwide leader in networking for the Internet, to provide outbound and inbound e-messaging services for Cisco customers, resellers and partners worldwide.
Cisco selected MessageMedia for its scalable e-mail solutions and its customer relationship management expertise. Under the terms of the agreement, MessageMedia will deliver the following turnkey e-mail services on behalf of Cisco:
High-volume, personalized, graphically enriched e-mail newsletters and announcements
Customer intelligence gathering e-surveys to monitor and analyze channel partner and customer perceptions
Management of incoming e-mail from Cisco channel partners and customers from around the world including company inquiries, service issues, unsubscribe requests and bounce-backs
Assistance in defining customer profiles for further targeting of audiences.
''Our relationship with MessageMedia gives us the tools to streamline our communications with both our dealer base and our channels organization,'' said Eric Bauer, Manager, Marketing Communications, for Cisco Systems, Inc. ''As the worldwide leader in networking for the Internet, we are committed to showcasing the business possibilities of the Internet and the effective use of e-messaging is a component of this strategy. MessageMedia will be a great partner in helping us fulfill our goals as we continue to grow.''
''Cisco Systems is the world's recognized leader driving Internet expansion and development,'' said Liz Wallace, senior vice president of sales and service for MessageMedia. ''With MessageMedia, Cisco is leveraging that leadership position with a strong e-mail-centered business-to-business and business-to-consumer dialog management process so that their e-messaging activities reflect the same leading-edge thought as their technology products.''
New strategies made by companies like Cisco, who recognize the value of customer relationships, are leading the next phase of e-commerce. Forrester Research, a leading industry analyst firm, projects the business-to-business e-commerce market to climb from $43 billion in 1998 to $1 trillion by 2003. The business-to-consumer market is expected to grow from $7.8 billion to $108 billion during the same period.
About MessageMedia Inc.
MessageMedia (Nasdaq: MESG - news) is the leading provider of e-mail-based customer relationship management and direct marketing services. The Company offers a comprehensive suite of outsource messaging services for information delivery, e-commerce services, permission-based direct marketing, ongoing customer communications and real-time customer feedback solutions using industry standard Internet protocols. MessageMedia's customer portfolio includes clients from the financial services, publishing, direct marketing, retailing, software and electronic commerce industries. Clients include E*TRADE, AOL, Apple, Yahoo!, Microsoft, GeoCities, Intuit, CMP Media, Barclays Bank, EDS, CNBC, Universal Studios and Bertelsmann.
Investors in MessageMedia include SOFTBANK and its affiliates, which constitute the world's largest investors in the Internet and Pequot Capital Management, a Connecticut-based research-intensive investment firm.
''Safe Harbor'' Statement Under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act. With the exception of the historical information contained in this release, the matters described herein contain forward-looking statements that involve risk and uncertainties. These risk factors include, but are not limited to, the integration of a new senior management team, MessageMedia's limited operating history, the integration of recent acquisitions, risks associated with pending and future acquisitions, the anticipated fluctuations in operating results, the uncertain acceptance of new services being offered, and undeveloped and rapidly changing market and other factors detailed in MessageMedia's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 1998, and its most recent Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q. All companies and product names are trademarks of their respective owners. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date hereof. MessageMedia undertakes no obligation to release publicly the result of any revisions to these forward-looking statements that may be made to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.
Note to Editors: The asterisk between the ''E'' & ''TRADE'' in the paragraph underneath the subhead ''About MessageMedia'' may not transmit properly into some systems.
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