REDWOOD CITY, Calif., Dec. 19 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Openwave Systems Inc. , the leading provider of open software products and services for the communications industry, today announced a strategic reseller agreement with Thumbspeed Inc., a leading developer and publisher of mobile applications, to enable Openwave to offer Thumbspeed's instant messaging (IM) client for both operators and handset manufacturers. The Thumbspeed IM client can either be deployed by operators over-the-air (OTA) or embedded and pre- installed on mobile devices by handset manufacturers. The agreement helps Openwave's operator and handset manufacturer customers bring mobile IM services to market rapidly and easily and is available now.

"Mobile instant messaging allows consumers to access the most in-demand applications from leading instant messaging providers like AOL, MSN and Yahoo!, available conveniently on their mobile phone," said Olivier Bartholot, head of the client business unit at Openwave. "Our agreement with Thumbspeed gives us the opportunity to increase the availability of high-quality mobile IM services and is a win-win for operators and handset manufacturers in raising the appeal of their offerings with an increasingly popular form of communication."

"Thumbspeed and Openwave both share strong backgrounds in the mobile content and messaging space," Hank Skorny, president and CEO, Thumbspeed. "This agreement offers operators and handset manufacturers the freedom to choose how and when they deploy mobile instant messaging services and provides users with a rich, instant messaging experience on the widest possible range of mobile devices."

The Thumbspeed IM client will be offered in addition to the Openwave(R) Instant Messaging Client that is currently embedded on mobile handsets around the world. The new IM client can work across Java (J2ME & BlackBerry(R)), BREW(R), Symbian(R), Windows Mobile(R), and Palm environments on devices from all major manufacturers, giving operators and handset manufacturers the most choice available in adding this solution to their available services. The Openwave Instant Messaging Client offers support for custom operator services and is used as the foundation for building full IM applications and presence- enhanced phonebooks.

The Openwave Instant Messaging Client is part of a suite of mobile messaging software offered by Openwave. Openwave's messaging, location, browsing and content services span all networks and devices. Today, Openwave software is used by more than 100 mobile operators, broadband providers and Mobile Virtual Network Operators (MVNOs) to enable access to data services for more than 500 million consumers around the world.

About Thumbspeed

Thumbspeed develops and publishes messaging, personalization and entertainment applications for mobile phones and wireless devices. Our messaging-centric design allows users to communicate (IM/email/SMS) within every application. By leveraging the core value of mobile devices along with the addictive and viral nature of messaging, Thumbspeed creates compelling new services for operators, device manufacturers and brand owners. Thumbspeed is headquartered in Bellevue, Washington. For more information, please visit http://www.thumbspeed.com/.

About Openwave

Openwave Systems Inc. is the leading independent provider of open software products and services for the communications industry. Openwave's breadth of products, including mobile phone software, multimedia messaging software (MMS), email, location and mobile gateways, along with its worldwide expertise enable its customers to deliver innovative and differentiated data services. Openwave is a global company headquartered in Redwood City, California. For more information please visit http://www.openwave.com/.

NOTE: Openwave and the Openwave logo are trademarks of Openwave Systems Inc. All other trademarks are the properties of their respective owners.

For more information please contact: Openwave Systems Inc. Vikki Herrera Public Relations Vikki.herrera@openwave.com Tel: 650-480-6753 Openwave (Europe) Ltd. Sally Bate Public Relations sally.bate@openwave.com Tel: +44 (0)1442 458811 For more information, press only: Marivi Lerdo-de-Tejada OnPR for Thumbspeed marivil@onpr.com / pr@thumbspeed.com Tel: 415-577-4318 / 425-467-6206

CONTACT: Vikki Herrera, Public Relations of Openwave Systems Inc.,
+1-650-480-6753, or Vikki.herrera@openwave.com; or Sally Bate, Public
Relations of Openwave (Europe) Ltd., +44 (0)1442 458811, or
sally.bate@openwave.com; or Marivi Lerdo-de-Tejada of OnPR, +1-415-577-4318,
+1-425-467-6206, or marivil@onpr.com, or pr@thumbspeed.com, for Thumbspeed

Web site: http://www.thumbspeed.com/

Web site: http://www.openwave.com/