Tuesday January 6, 7:00 am Eastern Time
Company Press Release
Ramp Networks Inks $6 Million Deal to Sell Fast Internet Access Products in the People's Republic of China
SANTA CLARA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 6, 1998--Ramp Networks Inc., a leading provider of easy-to-use, fast Internet access devices, today announced that the company has received a $6 million order to sell WebRamp(TM) M3 and WebRamp M3t products in the People's Republic of China (PRC) over the next three years.
As China begins to lay the foundation for its technology infrastructure, Ramp products will play a significant role in providing easy to use, fast Internet access to government agencies, businesses and other organizations. WebRamp M3 is the first Internet access device to allow users to browse Web pages on the Internet up to three times faster than previously possible while using existing analog phone lines.
The WebRamp M3t is an easy and affordable solution for people who need access to both the Internet and to shared files on a company or governmental LAN, from any remote location. Ramp's entire line of WebRamp M3 products will be distributed by Hong Kong-based Synergy Computers & Communications Ltd.
The PRC is expected to see tremendous growth in Internet use, but Internet access has been hampered due to the lack of a digital network support system. To date, Internet access in the PRC has been through single access dial up modems at low speeds.
The WebRamp M3 family of products will allow agencies and companies to immediately increase the number of users who will have access to the Internet from any location and will triple the Internet access and Web download speeds for those connecting to the Internet.
The company expects the M3 product family to be used for e-mail, web site hosting, general Internet access, web browsing, and remote access to corporate or governmental resources.
''It's exciting to know that Ramp will be helping to knock down the barriers to information access and helping millions of Chinese computer users connect to the world via the Internet,'' said Mahesh Veerina, founder and president of Ramp Networks.
''Even though telecommunications services in most Asian-Pacific countries are limited to analog technologies, most governments -- including the PRC -- have pledged to develop Internet backbones in order to create information societies in these countries. We have the incredible opportunity to make this possible with the WebRamp M3 family of products.
''WebRamp M3 and M3t are the perfect solutions for the PRC because they use regular phone lines and modems to connect multiple computers to the Internet. These products save users time and money by delivering Web browsing speeds close to those of digital technologies, and enabling multiple users to access the Internet through a single-user account.''
Synergy Computers & Communications intends to sell WebRamp M3 and WebRamp M3t products to Internet Service Providers, government agencies, corporate Internet users and the small office/home office market through more than 100 resellers and system integrators throughout the PRC including Beijing, Guangzhou, Shanghai, Chengdu, Shenyang, Guiyang, Chongqing, Tianjin, Wuhan, Harbin, Xian, Nanjing, Wenzhou, Zhengzhou, Fuzhou, and Xiamen.
''We are excited about selling the WebRamp M3 product family not only because they are extremely affordable, but because they provide ISDN-like data transmission speeds and are easy-to-use and configure,'' said Francis Fong, vice president of sales and marketing at Synergy Computers & Communications. ''It's exciting to see the historic difference we can make in this explosive, developing market.
''We will help increase the number of people who will have access to information throughout the world via the Internet and we'll drastically increase the productivity of million of users.''
''While the technology industry is constantly singing the praises of the latest advances in communications technology, the fact remains that most of the world connects to the Internet via analog telephone lines,'' said Tim Bajarin of Creative Strategies. ''Many people don't want the pain or expense of installing ISDN, yet accessing the Internet over standard telephone lines can be painfully slow.
''That's why I believe that WebRamp M3 and M3t are important advancements. Whether you're in Beijing or Sioux City, both products let anyone significantly increase the speed by which they access and download from the Internet.''
About Ramp Networks Inc.
Founded in 1993, Ramp Networks Inc. offers a family of easy to use, fast Internet access devices for growing small businesses. Ramp Networks' award-winning WebRamp products are designed to meet the low cost and ease of use requirements of the more than five million small offices in the U.S. and abroad that are planning to leverage the Internet as a strategic marketing tool.
Headquartered in Santa Clara, Calif., Ramp Networks is privately held and backed by more than $21 million in corporate and venture capital funding.
Synergy Computers & Communications Ltd. was founded in 1989 and has focused on both Remote Access System (RAS) and Electronics Point of Sales System (ePoS) in Hong Kong and the PRC. With over 300 installation sites in Hong Kong alone for both RAS and ePoS, Synergy is the master distributor of Ramp Networks products in the Asia-Pacific region. |
