FOR IMMEDIATE
RELEASE
QUALCOMM Contacts:
Michele Bakic, QUALCOMM Internet Services
858.651.4017 (ph) 858.8451254 (fax)
mbakic@qualcomm.com
Emily Gin, Corporate Public Relations
858.651.4084 (ph) 858.651.5873 (fax)
publicrelations@qualcomm.com
Julie Cunningham, Investor Relations
858.658.4224(ph) or 858.651.9303 (fax)
jcunningham@qualcomm.com
SORRENT Contacts:
Chris Clark, Principia Group
415.503.3925
chris@principiagroup.com
Team Yao/BDA Sports Management:
Bill Sanders
310.581.4509
bsanders@bdasports.com
YAO MING BASKETBALL BY SORRENT TO BE DISTRIBUTED EXCLUSIVELY
VIA
QUALCOMM’S BREW ™ SOLUTION
Highly Anticipated Wireless Game to Premiere on China Unicom’s “U-Magic” Service
SAN DIEGO AND SAN MATEO, (April 29, 2003) — QUALCOMM
Incorporated (Nasdaq: QCOM), pioneer and world leader of Code Division
Multiple Access
(CDMA) digital wireless technology, and Sorrent, a leading creator and
publisher of
games for wireless devices, today announced that Yao Ming Basketball
by Sorrent, a
wireless game based on QUALCOMM’s Binary Runtime Environment for
Wireless ™
(BREW) platform, featuring the likeness and characteristic playing style
of basketball
star, Yao Ming, will be introduced exclusively for China Unicom’s
(NYSE: CHU) “U-Magic” wireless data service. Yao Ming
Basketball by Sorrent takes advantage of
the full features of BREW 2.0 to deliver the sounds and sensations of
a fast-paced
basketball game with 3D rendered animations and competitive, two-on-two
action. “
Like basketball, video games and technology are a big part of my life,” said
Yao
Ming. “I've been playing a preview version of the wireless Yao
Ming Basketball game
for a few weeks now and I know that China Unicom subscribers will enjoy
the fast-paced
action of being able to play a pick up game whenever and wherever they
choose.
China
Unicom, the second largest wireless operator in China,
is expected to
introduce the game to wireless subscribers this summer. Yao
Ming Basketball is one
of the most anticipated data applications to be introduced
by China Unicom following
the operator’s successful launch of its BREW-enabled
service and its CDMA2000 1X
network.
“ Sorrent is demonstrating the flexibility and global reach of
applications created for
the BREW platform,” said Gina Lombardi, senior vice president
of marketing and
product management, QUALCOMM Internet Services. “China
Unicom is again
showing their leadership and commitment to wireless data
by giving consumers in
China the opportunity to experience the challenge and entertainment
of Yao Ming
Basketball on their BREW-enabled phones.”
Yao Ming Basketball
by Sorrent is the first wireless basketball game endorsed
by a
professional basketball player, and it features gameplay
and graphics that are just as
compelling and exciting as the Chinese basketball star himself.“ Sorrent
is proud to deliver the first wireless Yao Ming Basketball
game to China
Unicom’s subscribers,” said Isaac Babbs, president
of worldwide distribution and
marketing for Sorrent. “Since the BREW client supports
powerful native application
execution it enabled us to deliver a high-performing game
that showcases not onlyYao Ming’s basketball skills,
but also the versatile capabilities of the BREW
platform.”
Sorrent will
be partnering with Qualcomm BREW Global Publisher Mobile
Internet
Group (MIG) in Beijing to launch the game with China Unicom
and QUALCOMM in
China.
Deployments
of the BREW solution continue as operators throughout the
world join
Verizon Wireless and ALLTEL in the United States, KTF in
South Korea, KDDI in
Japan, China Unicom, VIVO (the joint venture between
Telefónica
Móviles and
Portugal Telecom) in Brazil and Telstra in Australia, in
commercializing BREW-based
services. U.S. Cellular has also launched a BREW user trial.
More than 50 BREW-enabled
handset models have been offered to consumers worldwide and
more than
40 device manufacturers have indicated their interest in
the BREW platform.
QUALCOMM’s
BREW solution is a complete product and business system
for the
development and over-the-air deployment of data services
on wireless devices. The
BREW solution provides the necessary tools and value-added
services to
developers, device manufacturers and wireless operators for
application
development and distribution, device configuration, and billing
and payment.
About Sorrent
Sorrent is a leading creator and publisher of connected,
interactive games for
wireless and Internet-capable devices. With its proprietary
convergent game
platform, Convergence Everywhere Live™, Sorrent
allows both mobile and land-based
hardware to communicate simultaneously via the Internet.
Sorrent games are
produced by Sorrent Studios and marketed in partnership with
global brands such as
FOXSports.com, The X-Files and Yao Ming. Currently, Sorrent
games are available
on major U.S. wireless carriers including Verizon
Wireless, Sprint, AT&T, Cingular,and Nextel.
Sorrent has set the standard for wireless sports
games with its
solo
and
multiplayer games that are connected, persistent and convergent.
Headquartered in
San Mateo, Calif., Sorrent is funded by NEA and Sienna Ventures.
For more
information, visit www.sorrent.com.
About QUALCOMM
QUALCOMM Incorporated (www.qualcomm.com) is a leader in developing
and
delivering innovative digital wireless communications products
and services based
on the Company’s CDMA digital technology.
Headquartered in San Diego, Calif.,
QUALCOMM is included in the S&P 500 Index
and is a 2003 FORTUNE 500® company traded on The Nasdaq Stock Market ® under
the ticker symbol QCOM.
Except for
the historical information contained herein, this news
release contains
forward-looking statements that are subject to risks and
uncertainties, including the
Company’s ability to successfully design
and have manufactured significant
quantities of CDMA components on a timely and profitable
basis, the extent and
speed to which CDMA is deployed and the BREW solution is
adopted, change in
economic conditions of the various markets the Company serves,
as well as the
other risks detailed from time to time in the
Company’s
SEC reports, including the
report on Form 10-K for the year ended September 30, 2002,
and most recent Form
10-Q.
QUALCOMM is
a registered trademark of QUALCOMM Incorporated. BREW is
a
trademark of QUALCOMM Incorporated. All other trademarks
are the property of
their respective owners.
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