CTIA Wireless Show - Atlanta, GA - March 23, 2004 - Tegic Communications, a wholly owned subsidiary of America Online, Inc. today announced that Shanghai LongCheer Telecommunications Co., Ltd. ("LongCheer") has licensed T9(r) Text Input software for Chinese Pinyin, Stroke and Phrasal Text Input, as well as English. LongCheer will integrate T9 Text Input into a new line of GSM chipset modules for handsets manufactured by Chinese OEMs. By making text entry on mobile phones quick and easy, T9 Text Input enables the use of text-based mobile services such as SMS (short messaging service) and e-mail.

"For text input, T9 is the leading global standard for handsets, specifically for mobile originated two-way SMS," said Junhong Du, General Manager for LongCheer. "Our Chinese OEM handset makers request T9, since so many handset subscribers are familiar with T9 in the Chinese market. We are pleased to offer our OEM Customers the leading solution for quick and easy text entry for our OEM's new GSM handsets."

"LongCheer is planning extensive new module development and we are excited that they've chosen T9 Text Input for their new models," said Jackie Zhang, Senior Country Manager - Business Liaison (People's Republic of China) for AOL. "In the highly-competitive handset market, many OEMs are looking for quick ways to integrate solutions for new handset products - LongCheer offers a total package, with T9, for Chinese handsets. Also, LongCheer is looking forward to integrate Chinese Phrasal Text Input, since this will be a revolutionary product for Chinese handset users."

Tegic Communications will be demonstrating T9 Text Input, T9 Sloppy Type for PDAs, the next generation of Chinese T9 -Phrasal Text Input PTI(tm)- and the latest features and functions in text input in the America Online booth at CTIA (Booth #769). About T9 Text Input By incorporating T9 Text Input into mobile communications products, companies are solving the fundamental problem of how to quickly and easily type and send messages. Although each key on a telephone keypad can be interpreted in multiple ways-a single press on the "5" key could be "J," "K," or "L"-T9 Text Input uses an internal database to automatically scan possible variations to determine the correct word. For example, entering the word "call" into a mobile phone will take just four key presses with T9 Text Input rather than ten key presses required by conventional "multi-tap" text entry. In addition, T9 Text Input adapts to users by automatically capturing their unique text messaging language -- such as slang, abbreviations, symbols, mixed alpha-numerics, emoticons, URLs and e-mail addresses -- in its dictionary so that users need not multi-tap them with each use.

T9 Text Input is available in 42 languages, including Afrikaans, Arabic, Bulgarian, Catalan, Chinese, Croatian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, Estonian, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hebrew, Hindi, Hungarian, Icelandic, Indonesian, Italian, Japanese, Korean (Hangul), Latvian, Lithuanian, Malay, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Serbo-Croatian, Slovak, Slovenian, Spanish, Swahili, Swedish, Tagalog, Thai, Turkish, Ukrainian and Vietnamese. T9 Text Input supports Simplified and Traditional stroke-based Chinese, as well as phonetic Pinyin, BoPoMoFo, and Phrasal Text Input. Language support is continually expanding. There are nearly 300 mobile phone models available throughout the world today that include T9 Text Input and the technology has been licensed to major consumer electronics and communications equipment manufacturers representing more than 90 percent of annual mobile phone production worldwide.

For more information about T9 Text Input, please visit www.t9.com or AOLKeyword: T9 Text Input.