WARWICK, R.I., March 24, 2004 (PRIMEZONE) -- ICOA, Inc. (OTCBB:ICOA), a provider of Wi-Fi network solutions and public broadband Internet access, today announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement for a $5 million Equity Commitment from Cornell Capital Partners, LP. This flexible equity facility may be used in whole or in part entirely at ICOA's sole discretion subject to an effective registration. Under this agreement, ICOA will have access to up to $5 million over a two-year period. This access to funds will provide ICOA with financial flexibility, allowing it to seek to enter into contracts for Wi-Fi networks in airports throughout the country.
Under the terms of the agreement, ICOA has received a firm commitment from Cornell Capital to purchase up to $5 million of ICOA's stock during the next 24 months. From time to time at ICOA's sole discretion, the Company may present Cornell Capital with a draw down notice, which would require them to purchase shares at a 2% discount to the lowest daily Volume Weighted Average Price ("VWAP") of ICOA, Inc. shares traded on each of the five days following a draw down notice by ICOA. A maximum of $250,000 may be drawn down in any five business-day period. ICOA retains complete control of the timing and amount of each draw down.
Simultaneously, ICOA entered into a $550,000 convertible debenture with Cornell Capital Partners as a bridge loan to fund operations through the registration process.
Erwin Vahlsing, Jr., CFO of ICOA, commented on the financing, "We are delighted to have signed this agreement that gives us the flexibility of drawing down up to $5 million over the next two years. The advantage of this structured financing is that the funds are secured and available to us, and drawdowns under the facility are totally at our discretion. We expect these funds, in addition to our cash flow, will enable us to accelerate the expansion of Wi-Fi Hot Spots in airports and other venues."
About ICOA
ICOA, Inc. (www.icoacorp.com), located in Warwick, R.I., is a provider of Public Broadband Internet Access. The company owns, operates and manages private networks of Wi-Fi Hot Spots, Internet Terminals (WebCenter3000(TM)), and distributed broadband systems nationwide. ICOA operates in over 260 of the most sought after public locations -- airports, hotels, marinas, transportation, and conference centers. The Company provides fully managed broadband Internet connectivity, transactions processing, Internet services, and location based content and advertising. ICOA currently operates installations at the San Francisco International Airport (SFO), the Greater Baton Rouge, Louisiana Airport (BTR), Sacramento International Airport (SMF), Rhode Island's Newport Harbor 'Hot Zone', 140+ Panera Bread (Nasdaq:PNRA) (www.panerabread.com) locations, Chicago's McCormick Place Convention Center and several prestigious hotels.
Safe Harbor
The foregoing contains "forward-looking statements" which are based on management's beliefs as well as on a number of assumptions concerning future events and information currently available to management. Readers are cautioned not to put undue reliance on such forward-looking statements, which are not a guarantee of performance and are subject to a number of uncertainties and other factors, many of which are outside ICOA's control that could cause actual results to differ materially from such statements. For a more detailed description of the factors that could cause such a difference, please see ICOA's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. ICOA disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. This information is presented solely to provide additional information to further understand the results of ICOA.