Les chemins de fer hollandais remportent le prestigieux prix Cisco Networkers avec une solution sans fil nouvelle g?n?ration de Appear Networks

LŽintergiciel Appear IQ Mobile améliore le service clientèle et lŽefficacité opérationnelle des chemins de fer aux Pays-Bas

Cannes, France - 8 février 2007 - Appear et Nederlandse Spoorwegen (NS), lŽadministration nationale des chemins de fer hollandais, ont annoncé aujourdŽhui que leur déploiement de la solution sans fil aux employés avait reçu le très convoité prix "Best Mobility and Wireless Project of the Year" (meilleur projet sans fil et mobilité) lors de la conférence Cisco Networkers Europe 2007.

Les prix de lŽinnovation Cisco Networkers sont une importante initiative récompensant les réalisations remarquables et les organisations qui adoptent véritablement les nouvelles technologies avancées. Les récompenses reconnaissent les activités à la pointe du déploiement et de la mise en œuvre réussie de technologies innovantes et distinguent les entreprises qui parviennent le mieux à en obtenir des bénéfices réels et tangibles.

Dutch Rail Wins Prestigious Cisco Networkers Award with Next Generation Wireless Solution from Appear Networks

Appear IQ Mobile Middleware Enhances Rail Customer Service and Operational Efficiency in The Netherlands

Cannes, France - 8 February 2007 - Appear and Nederlandse Spoorwegen (NS), the National Dutch Rail Authority, announced today that their joint wireless employee deployment had received the coveted "Best Mobility and Wireless Project of the Year" award at Cisco Networkers Europe 2007.

The Cisco Networkers Innovation Awards are a major initiative honouring outstanding achievement and rewarding organisations that truly embrace new and advanced technology. The awards recognise those businesses at the forefront of deploying and successfully implementing innovative technologies, rewarding companies leading the field in delivering real and tangible benefits as a result.

Customer satisfaction and ease of use for employees placed Dutch Rail and Appear at the top of the judgesŽ list. The judges were also impressed with the scale of the project and the short return on investment. NSŽ introduction of the Appear IQ platform has generated an efficiency gain of 25 minutes per employee, per shift, saving an estimated 8 million Euros per year.

"NS has clearly taken the lead in the wireless space with this deployment and is moving quickly towards its 2020 vision of pervasive wireless services in the transportation system" said Kostas Gerogiannis, Chief Information Officer, NS.

"This is only the beginning of a massive roll-out of context-aware wireless services to passengers and employees" adds Paul Diercks, Director, Smart Connection at NS. "In the next 18 months, 1500 trains and 400 stations will be equipped with similar technology, allowing passengers and employees to receive relevant information in real-time via the local Wi-Fi network".

"Appear has shown outstanding ability in harnessing the business impact of wireless technology to deliver location-based services to Dutch Rail, thereby improving customer service and the efficiency of its operations" commented Richard Roberts, Director of Sales Business Development at Cisco. "Appear's achievement provides us all with an excellent example of wireless mobility best practice, IT leadership and business process creativity."

About Appear: Appear is the leading provider of context-aware software infrastructure designed to power the next generation of mobile applications and services. Using situational information (context), the AppearIQ suite of products transforms ordinary wireless data networks into rich multimedia channels that deliver information, voice, video and messages to mobile computer users. By collecting and sharing context, Appear's solutions eliminate information overload and ensure users have exactly the information they need, when and where they need it. With Appear software, devices and applications react in real-time to users' changing needs. Industry leaders in transportation, retail, telecommunications and government use AppearIQ. Appear has an extensive partner network including industry leaders Cisco and Intel who along with vertical market specialists work to deliver innovative, end-to-end wireless and mobile solutions. The company is privately held with offices in Europe, North America and South America. For further information please visit www.appearnetworks.com

About the Dutch Rail project: NS has wirelessly enabled 50 stations throughout the Netherlands with Cisco Systems end-to-end Wi-Fi networks, and equipped its 10,000 frontline employees with Windows Mobile powered handheld devices for instant access to these networks. For the first time, while working on the platform, train conductors and drivers, customer service representatives and other staff can now wirelessly access business-critical data such as traffic information, schedules, shift rosters, maintenance information and temporary speed limits. The AppearIQ platform, based on the Appear Context Engine, pushes or synchronizes personalized information over the wireless network whenever the user enters or moves between authorized wireless zones, depending on the specific location, user profile and available network (context).

Press Contacts: Mia Falgard, +46 8 545 91 370, [email protected]

Appear is a registered trademark of Appear Networks. All other trademarks and copyrights are the property of their respective owners.