Press Relations

Be Press Releases

Be Product Information

Executive Profiles

Company Background

Be in the News

Photos and Images

For more information, contact: A&R Partners for Be, Incorporated Elizabeth Conrady, 650/762-2815 econrady@arpartners.com In Europe: Be Incorporated Marie-Francoise Lelong-Weinberg, +33 (0)1 55 91 77 36 mflelong@beeurope.com Metricom, Inc. Sarita Kincaid, 408/399-8410 sarita@metricom.com Be Incorporated and Metricom Team to Arm Internet Appliances with Wide-Area Wireless Web Connectivity Be's BeIA Software Platform and Metricom's Ricochet 128 kbps Mobile Access Combine to Internet-Enable Appliance Manufacturers' Mobile Products Be Incorporated (Nasdaq: BEOS) and Metricom, Inc. (Nasdaq: MCOM) today announced a strategic alliance to provide a wireless-enabled solution for the Internet appliance market by integrating the BeIA(TM) software platform with the Ricochet wireless modem and high-speed mobile access. By combining Ricochet 128 kbps with Be's software platform designed to deliver information and entertainment over the Internet, the companies will provide hardware manufacturers the crucial elements to offer a full-featured wireless Web solution. "With its performance and stability, BeIA offers smooth, reliable communication and a robust feature set for wireless Internet appliances. Equipped with a Ricochet modem, these appliances are instantly connected to the Ricochet wide-area wireless network, at speeds that rival wired solutions," said Metricom Senior Vice President, Marketing & Sales, John Wernke. "The simplicity, flexibility and advanced media handling capabilities of BeIA make it an ideal complement to the high-speed Ricochet network. Internet appliance manufacturers will find the combination of BeIA and Ricochet particularly attractive when considering time-to-market." "Ricochet's technology is a low-cost, high-valued wireless solution which provides desired mobility for Internet appliance users," said Jean-Louis Gassée, chairman and chief executive officer of Be. "Our joint efforts with Metricom will bring consumers wireless access to information, empowering them to take advantage of rich graphical Internet content, while being truly mobile, anytime." The combined Be and Metricom technologies may be available to hardware manufacturers by Q4 2000. About Metricom and Ricochet Metricom, Inc. is a leading provider of mobile data networking and technology. With its high-speed Ricochet mobile access, Metricom is making "information anytime" possible - at home, at the office, on the road, and on many devices. Founded in 1985, Metricom has spent more than 15 years on the development of its distinctive MicroCellular Data Network. That experience enables Metricom to develop the fastest wireless mobile data networking and technology available today. Ricochet has been operating since 1995 in three markets at speeds up to 28.8 kbps. The new Ricochet, delivering user speeds of 128 kbps and greater, is currently under construction in 21 major markets across the US, and right-of-way efforts are underway in an additional 25 markets that will ultimately make Ricochet available to over 100 million people. About the BeIA Internet Appliance Platform P. Be offers BeIA, a turnkey integrated software platform and development tools that enable the creation of customized Internet appliances. BeIA is designed to provide the high level of responsiveness and stability that users typically experience and expect from consumer electronics devices. About Be Incorporated Founded in 1990, Be Incorporated creates software platforms that enable rich media and web experiences on personal computers and Internet appliances. Be's headquarters are in Menlo Park, California, and its European office is in Paris, France. It is publicly traded on the Nasdaq National Market under the symbol BEOS. Be can be found on the web at http://www.be.com/. Metricom and Ricochet are registered trademarks of Metricom, Inc. Be, BeIA and BeOS are trademarks or registered trademarks of Be Incorporated in the United States and other countries. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Statements made in this press release that are not historical facts, including those related to future market conditions, future competitors, future partners, market rollouts and future technology, are forward looking and are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such statements involve risks and uncertainties which may cause results to differ materially from those set forth in these statements. Among other things, additional competition from existing and future competitors may impact the market. Projections of market size, partners, market acceptance, technological rollout and competition are estimated based on preliminary information as well as certain assumptions which management believes to be reasonable at this time. All forward looking statements are subject to the successful completion of the actions described in this press release. In addition to the factors set forth elsewhere in this press release, the economic, competitive, governmental, technological and other factors identified in Metricom's and Be's respective filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission could affect the forward looking statements contained in this press release.

About Be, Inc. | Be Products | World of Be | BeOS Support | Jobs | Developers | Press | Partners | Investors

Copyright © 2001 by Be, Inc. All rights reserved. (Legal Info)
Comments, questions, or confessions about our site? Please write the Webmaster!