NeoMedia Technologies, Inc (NEOM)

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DD Akoo and McDonald’s at Woodfield Mall Launch m-Venue, First-of-Its-Kind, in-Store Entertainment Service Activated by Mobile Phones

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McDonald’s Customers Can Now “Order Up” Audio and Video Content from Sony BMG Music Entertainment, Universal Music Group, and Sony Pictures Using Text Messaging, the Mobile Internet, or Wi-Fi; Selections Are Performed Publicly on Demand in Designated Multimedia Zones within the Restaurant

CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Akoo and McDonald’s at Woodfield Mall today announced the launch of m-Venue™, a patent-pending entertainment and marketing platform that enables McDonald’s customers to search, select, and “activate” in-store digital content -- including music, music videos, and movie previews -- with their mobile phones or Internet-connected mobile devices.

m-Venue allows patrons to choose a wide variety of audio and video content from Sony BMG Music Entertainment, Universal Music Group, and Sony Pictures, among others, via text messaging (SMS), the mobile Internet, or a Wi-Fi-enabled laptop. Selections are performed on demand in designated multimedia zones within the restaurant or placed into a queue if another selection is already playing. For a limited time, the service is available at no cost to customers, compliments of participating McDonald’s locations.

m-Venue debuts in McDonald’s at Woodfield Mall in Schaumburg, Illinois, where 10 multimedia flat-panel screens have been established. Additional McDonald’s locations throughout the Chicagoland area and the southeastern region are launching m-Venue by year’s end. Akoo is also in discussions to roll out the platform at numerous “big box” retail, dining, and leisure entertainment chains by early 2007.

“Since launching m-Venue, we’ve increased our restaurant’s sales by nearly 17 percent compared to the same period last year,” said John O’Keefe, owner/operator of McDonald’s at Woodfield Mall. “m-Venue empowers our customers to create compelling, interactive entertainment experiences. As a result, we’ve created a unique destination that brings us competitive advantage and attracts more customers to our restaurant,” he added.

In addition to on-demand digital content, m-Venue offers McDonald’s customers day-parted ambient audio/video programming; a music ID and discovery feature, whereby users can identify the artist and name of any song playing in participating locations by sending a text message; and ultimately, a digital store where patrons can purchase and download digital content over-the-air to their mobile devices.

Since the m-Venue platform also tracks consumers’ usage behaviors and preferences in a non-intrusive way, McDonald’s locations will be able to employ more effective mobile-based promotions, loyalty & rewards programs, and opt-in targeted marketing campaigns.

“We’re extremely pleased to help McDonald’s owners/operators connect with their customers in more compelling ways and differentiate the company’s great brand in an increasingly competitive quick-serve restaurant marketplace,” said Niko Drakoulis, Akoo’s chief executive officer. “m-Venue is the only platform that extends the exponential growth of digital media consumption and social networking on the Internet into public places where mobile device users gather, shop, eat, socialize, and play. As our location partners are discovering, it’s an innovative way to attract, convert and retain target demographics. The return on investment is immediate.”

Akoo’s m-Venue platform was recently featured in the Innovations pavilion at the 2006 Worldwide McDonald’s Convention, where 15,000 attendees gathered. “The reaction to our platform from top executives was overwhelmingly positive,” added Drakoulis. “The demand for our service by owner/operators was especially strong because they see m-Venue as an ideal way to interact with customers ‘where they live’ – that is, via their mobile phones and mobile devices.”

For more information about the m-Venue platform, prospective strategic partners – including retailers and major brands, venue owners/operators, content providers, advertisers, wireless operators, device manufacturers, and diversified media companies – should visit www.akoo.com.

About Akoo International Inc.

Akoo’s patent-pending digital media and marketing platform, m-Venue™, enables partners to offer location-based entertainment to mobile consumers visiting their establishments. For the first time, consumers can use their mobile phones or Internet-connected mobile devices to search, select, and “activate” in-location audio/video content and interactive entertainment. Simultaneously, the m-Venue platform tracks consumers’ usage behaviors and preferences to facilitate more effective mobile-based promotions, loyalty & rewards programs, and opt-in targeted marketing campaigns. Akoo was formed in 2001 and is based in Chicago. Visit www.akoo.com for more information.

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