LAGUNA NIGUEL, Calif., June 12, 2006 (PRIMEZONE) -- Bitfone Corporation (www.bitfone.com), a pioneer and a patent holder of firmware over-the-air (FOTA) update technology for mobile phones, today announced that Kyocera Wireless Corp., a leading global manufacturer of CDMA wireless phones and devices, has selected Bitfone's Device Management Client Suite to fulfill its requirements for OMA DM and FOTA support for its mobile devices.
The Suite is comprised of Bitfone's award-winning and patented mProve(tm) and Mobile Variance Agent(tm) solutions. With mProve, Kyocera has the flexibility to update a handset's core software and applications over-the-air in a fault-tolerant manner. This relationship opens the door for the delivery of new features and services, such as a multimedia component, to the device without the need to upgrade the phone. In addition, mProve's MACH 1x update technology provides the fastest update time on the market, exceeding market requirements and delivering a top-level user experience. The Mobile Variance Agent (MVA) is a comprehensive device-management client that provides support for standards-based OMA DM and OMA DL specifications and supports various use cases such as device provisioning, diagnostics, and end-to-end management of the FOTA update process.
"While the technology is complex, its benefits are simple; mProve helps us give our carrier partners and their customers an elegant and reliable tool for updating a handset's software over the air," said Jim Kelly, executive vice president and chief operating officer at Kyocera Wireless Corp. "There's very clear value to carriers in simplifying the management of subscriber devices, while consumers benefit from always having access to the latest and greatest software without having to visit service centers to update the phones."
"Kyocera strives to make the wireless experience simple and intuitive for its customers, which is why over-the-air software updating with mProve is a perfect fit," said Gene Wang, chairman and CEO of Bitfone. "We are very excited to work with Kyocera to provide device management solutions for both FOTA and OMA DM standards."
In conjunction with the customer announcement, Bitfone announced the launch of its next generation of update technology, mProve 6.0, which was selected by Kyocera Wireless for selected CDMA handsets likely to ship in the third quarter of 2006. Bitfone's latest release of mProve provides considerable enhancements focused on improving and refining the user experience including its new MACH 1x technology which cuts the update time to fractions of what was previously considered the industry norm.
mProve 6.0 sets a new update standard by extending the reach beyond traditional firmware updates and optimizing the solution to support open OS platforms, or Smart Phones, with platforms such as Symbian and Linux OS. This enables application and component providers to target and update specific files and applications on the device. mProve 6.0 is the result of joint efforts of Bitfone and its customers including both operators and manufacturers to enable FOTA that is convenient to use by subscribers and easy to integrate by handset manufacturers and platform providers.
About Bitfone Corporation
Bitfone Corporation provides innovative, patented software solutions for mobile device management and customer care automation to wireless operators and handset providers. Bitfone's MVP, SmartCare, mProve, and MVA solutions provide the ability to diagnose, service, and enhance mobile devices while in the subscribers' hands resulting in dramatic cost savings, increased subscriber satisfaction, and broader adoption of advanced wireless services. Bitfone's solutions are used by leading companies worldwide such as Motorola, LG Electronics, Kyocera, QUALCOMM, Freescale Semiconductor, T-Mobile, 3, Swisscom Mobile, and others. Bitfone is a private company headquartered in Laguna Niguel, California, with offices in Canada, China, Japan, Korea, and the U.K. For more information, visit www.bitfone.com.