PHOENIX, May 4, 2000 (PRIMEZONE) -- Peragis, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Points North Digital Technologies, Inc. (CDNX:PNS), today announced that it has entered a joint marketing agreement and software development alliance with TravCom, a longtime leader in back-office systems for travel agencies. Together, the two companies will jointly develop Peragis ClientWizard 1.1, a comprehensive marketing database system for retail travel agencies that will integrate TravCom's full back-office support system with the functionality of Peragis Professional's front-end interface.
"This agreement truly represents a crucial step towards creating a system that addresses issues exclusive to the travel agency," said Jack Revel, President of TravCom. "TravCom's integration into Peragis ClientWizard will provide agencies with technology that gives them the capability to manage their own accounts and conduct target database marketing, essentially creating a money-making opportunity by replacing systems that have historically had negative effects on the agencies' bottom line."
Founded by Jack Revel in 1976, TravCom is the premier provider of marketing, management and accounting technology for the retail travel industry and the official preferred supplier for the American Society of Travel Agents (ASTA). With this joint agreement and the development of Peragis ClientWizard 1.1, TravCom's 7,000-agency user-base will gain access to the B2B technology developed by Peragis, Inc. In turn, TravCom's marketing database, collected over the course of a quarter century as a leader in travel technology systems, will be made available to agencies that implement the Peragis Professional B2B platform. The over 24,000 desktops currently using TravCom's software represent $250 million in potential revenue from installation and network integration. Internal survey data currently indicates an average of $1 million in travel bookings per user per year.
"We're delighted about this joint agreement with TravCom, a company with an established reputation for technological innovation in the travel industry," said Glen Kerby, CEO of Points North Digital Technologies, Inc. "Our company has developed the ultimate Internet-facilitated solution for the travel industry in Peragis. With the integration of TravCom's system into the Peragis platform, we're providing agencies with a complete turnkey solution that combines an easy to use interface, end-to-end marketing functions and seamless integration with leading GDS systems."
Peragis ClientWizard 1.1, the marketing component of the Peragis platform, will provide a significant advantage over existing systems by incorporating crucial marketing functions into the travel agent's desktop. The technology will enable agencies to mine raw data, including client profiles and credit information, and store it within the agency. This information has traditionally been available only through GDS systems. Travel agencies using the system will have direct access to information such as customer buying patterns, travel histories, future travel plans and preferences, as well as the capability to track personalized client events such as birthdays and anniversaries, allowing for preemptive target marketing to a highly pre-qualified audience.
"This joint endeavor is born of both Peragis' and TravCom's dedication to provide travel agencies with tools that facilitate their operations, increase their customer service capabilities and create efficiencies that benefit their bottom line," said Mr. Kerby.
About TravCom
A global leader in travel technology, TravCom has helped travel agencies succeed in business for nearly a quarter of a century. TravCom, an ASTA Marketing Services Inc. (AMSI) preferred vendor, is widely used in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Japan and 14 other nations. Over 4,500 agencies use TravCom's Windows-based accounting system and TravCom meets the accounting and information management needs of over 7,000 travel agencies, including large and small offices, single or multi-branch operation, retail, corporate or leisure focus.
About Peragis, Inc.
Peragis, Inc. is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Points North Digital Technologies, Inc. (CDNX:PNS), a Canadian public company specializing in the development and implementation of technology systems designed for the travel industry. The Peragis travel solution offers buyers and sellers of travel products unique real-time, business-to-business e-commerce solutions. Points North Digital Technologies, Inc. has formed strategic alliances and business relationships with leading reservations systems and travel suppliers such as Sabre, Galileo, Sprint Canada, Inc., Compaq Financial Services Canada and EDS Innovations, Inc. Peragis, Inc. and Points North Digital Technologies, Inc. offices can be found in the US: Arizona and North Carolina; and in Canada: Saskatchewan, Alberta and Ontario, respectively.
This release contains forward-looking statements including discussions on Peragis' position, growth opportunities and strategies. These forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, which may cause our actual results and performance to be materially different from the future results and performance stated or implied by the forward looking statements. Some of the risks you should consider include Peragis' ability to negotiate and enter into new client engagements and whether those engagements will be on terms favorable to Peragis' ability to realize its anticipated growth rates, and how Peragis manages its growth and integration of acquired businesses and personnel.
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