Visto To Announce $51 Million Financing, Schuler To Join Board"

TORONTO -(Dow Jones)- Visto Corp. is set to announce US$51 million in new financing and the addition of a former America Online chairman and chief executive, Barry Schuler, to its board.

It's the third round of financing for the wireless email service provider. The round was led by Oak Investment Partners and included existing investors Draper Fisher Jurveston, Meritech Capital Partners, DFJ ePlanet Ventures, Rustic Canyon Ventures, GKM and Blueprint Ventures.

A new partner this round was the DFJ Growth Fund, which is headed by Schuler. "The reason he's excited about Visto and this opportunity is the large market and the fact we're at an inflection point," Visto Chief Financial Officer Stephen Anderson told Dow Jones.

Visto, Redwood City, Calif., has made headlines in the past year for launching patent-infringement lawsuits against several heavy hitters in the wireless email space, including Research In Motion and Microsoft. Despite the lawsuits, which are ongoing, Anderson said Visto doesn't plan to transform itself into a patent-licensing company. "We're absolutely not a litigation company," he said. "We have more than 400 employees in 10 different countries."

Visto's goal is to drive mass adoption of wireless email, Anderson said. He said adoption is hitting an inflection point due to the proliferation of new handsets from the likes of Motorola and Nokia, as well as affordable monthly pricing plans from carriers. The company's carrier partners include Vodafone Group and Sprint Nextel.

Visto has tripled its subscriber base in the past year, Anderson said. However, the company, which isn't profitable, doesn't break out its subscriber numbers or revenue.

Visto's previous round of financing closed last August and was for $70 million. Its first financing raised $50 million. "We believe that we've raised the amount of dollars required to achieve profitability with this round," Anderson said. "Having said that, there is significant interest from the investor community due to the excitement in the mobile email market. As a result, we may accept one or more subsequent closings on this round in the near future."

Company Web Site: http://www.visto.com

- Stuart Weinberg, Dow Jones Newswires; 416-306-2026;
stuart.weinberg@dowjones.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires"

Posted to the site on 27th September 2006