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Two SMS Providers Merge
The USA SMS services provider, MobileSys and Europe's mBlox are to merge and have raised US$8 million in venture capital to fund further expansion. The combined company, mBlox Inc., will be headquartered in London, UK with an operational centre in California, USA. It will be led by MobileSys CEO Chip Hoffman. mBlox CEO Andrew Bud becomes Chairman and President.
Andrew Bud said, "This merger of two strong leaders, fuelled by a major investment, creates a technical and financial powerhouse in the SMS services market. This sector is ready for consolidation and with our financial muscle and market position we will drive this process forward. mBlox has been a profitable company since early 2002 and has made a major impact in the European market. Combined with MobileSys' premier position amongst the Fortune 100, we will be in an enormously strong position as the US market for SMS explodes."
Bud noted, "SMS is a huge media channel in Europe, where content services and marketing are now a substantial portion of the 10 billion messages sent every month. The US has recently introduced the service, and already over 1 billion SMS are sent per month and forecast to approach European levels within the next 18-24 months. Content and service providers are eagerly awaiting the opportunity to leverage their brands and content across both continents. By enabling them to overcome the complexities of multiple operators, networks and technologies, only mBlox can help them succeed."
MobileSys is America's leading provider of wireless messaging services to global corporations including Cisco, Chevron and EDS. Its leadership is based on its direct connections to US carriers, its proprietary technology and its SMS expertise. mBlox, based in London, is Europe's leading provider of SMS transmission services to European content and applications providers. It has premium-rate SMS services in 12 countries and is unique in owning and operating its own Short Message Service Centre (SMSC)."
Posted to the site on 25th June 2003