Qualcomm Inc (QCOM)

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Pharos Joins QUALCOMM as an Elite BREW® Developer
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TORRANCE, CA – Pharos Science & Applications Inc., a leading provider of portable GPS navigation and location-based services, today announced the company has become an Elite BREW Developer, highlighting Pharos' work in creating the innovative Smart TrafficTM service now available for BREW-enabled handsets. The Smart Traffic service was recently named as a finalist for Best Productivity/M-Commerce application in the BREW 2004 Developer Awards being held at the BREW 2004 Developer’s Conference in San Diego, June 7-9.

Aggregating up-to-the-minute highway monitoring data from various State Transportation Departments and other Pharos partners, Smart Traffic gives consumers real-time traffic-flow information in both color-coded graphics and text for ease of use. Smart Traffic takes advantage of the wireless data capability of the BREW solution to deliver traffic incident and speed information directly to the user. Travelers equipped with BREW-enabled phones can receive Smart Traffic updates on demand, allowing them to see what traffic is like ahead, find out how fast traffic is moving and where lanes are blocked, and how to route around congested areas before they get stuck.

“Pharos is excited that the Smart Traffic real-time traffic information service is being offered to wireless subscribers in the United States, and we are thrilled with the selection of Smart Traffic as a finalist in the BREW 2004 Developer Awards,” said James Oyang, Ph.D., president of Pharos, Inc. “Technically robust and reliable, the BREW solution is the ideal platform for delivering vital information such as traffic alerts. QUALCOMM also provides a useful business component that allows Pharos to focus our efforts on delivering the best application possible. We look forward to our continued work with QUALCOMM as an Elite BREW Developer.”

“Pharos is taking full advantage of the benefits mobility gives a wireless subscriber, and is delivering a truly useful service that allows users to make the best use of their time, instead of sitting in a frustrating traffic jam,” said Mike Yuen, director of BREW Developer Relations for QUALCOMM Internet Services.

QUALCOMM's BREW solution provides products and services that connect the mobile marketplace value chain, which includes publishers, application developers, content providers, device manufacturers, operators and consumers.

Publishers and developers worldwide are generating revenue from BREW-based applications and content, and 26 manufacturers have offered more than 135 BREW-enabled device models to consumers. BREW is successfully enabling the commercial wireless data services of many successful operators, including Verizon Wireless, ALLTEL, Cellular One, MetroPCS, Midwest Wireless, NTELOS and U.S. Cellular in the United States, China Unicom, KDDI in Japan, KTF in South Korea, Hutch in Thailand, Telstra in Australia, VIVO in Brazil, BellSouth Chile, BellSouth Colombia, BellSouth Ecuador, BellSouth Guatemala, BellSouth Nicaragua, BellSouth Panama, BellSouth Perú, Telefónica Móviles in Peru, Movicom in Argentina, Telcel and Movilnet in Venezuela, Verizon Dominican Republic, Verizon Wireless Puerto Rico, Pelephone in Israel and Zapp in Romania.

Smart Traffic is part of a larger Web-based location and navigation service from Pharos, called Smart Navigator™, the first service to integrate real-time traffic data and dynamic points-of-interest lookup (in the form of Smart Finder™) with GPS positioning and navigation routing. Subscribers to Smart Navigator can create travel routes, receive voice-, text- and graphics-prompted driving instructions; follow and react to real-time traffic information specific to their location; and designate and navigate to nearby banks, hotels, restaurants, Internet hotspots, or other local businesses or venues.

The timesaving Smart Traffic real-time traffic information service is available to consumers on the nation’s leading wireless operator for just $3.99 per month, invoiced on their monthly statement.

About Pharos
Pharos Science & Applications, Inc. is a leading provider of portable GPS navigation and location-based services for a variety of markets. Pharos is a QUALCOMM Elite BREW Developer, a charter member of Microsoft’s Mobility Partner Advisory Council, and member of ITS America and CTIA. The company’s products are sold through a network of leading national retail locations and online stores including CompUSA, Fry’s Electronics, Dell, Toshiba, Amazon, SkyMall, MobilePlanet, Buy.com, Verizon and others. For more information, visit www.pharosgps.com.

http://spatialnews.geocomm.com/dailynews/2004/jun/21/news4.html