In response to the demand for better security information in South East Asia, international mobile messaging service provider 1rstWAP has set up a free service to enable people in South East Asia and elsewhere in the world to subscribe to alerts by SMS and email. The alerts, containing travel advisories and warnings issued by embassies and foreign ministries, are available for free at www.MobileWarning.com.

The recent terrorist bombings and other tragic events around South East Asia have highlighted a problem faced by many governments and foreign missions in the region: how to deliver correct information at the right time and place in uncertain situations.

In a problem most acutely seen in the Australian experience following the deaths of over 100 people in the bombings in Bali, complaints were made by frightened travelers and grieving family and friends at home about the difficulty of government bodies to disseminate useful and accurate information about the security situation in Indonesia in a timely manner.

In some cases this has lead to even greater uncertainty and has paved the way for misunderstanding and misinterpretation of media reports and rumors, as in the case of conflicting and uncertain reports made by the Danish, British and Thai governments about the state of security in Phuket recently.

To help solve this, 1rstWAP has set up a free mobile service at www.MobileWarning.com to enable people both in South East Asia and elsewhere to subscribe to alerts by SMS and email. These alerts contain information about travel advisories and warnings issued by embassies and foreign ministries around the world, as well as updates on breaking news and events. This service is provided free by 1rstWAP during this period of uncertainty.

To use the service, people with an SMS-capable mobile phone and an email account go to the web site www.MobileWarning.com and register for free. They then choose the country and type of alert that is relevant to them and select the delivery mode that suits them best. Delivery modes include SMS, email and instant message, and access is possible through multiple devices including mobile phones, PC's or PDAs.

While 1rstWAP charges for some other messaging services, 1rstWAP is providing these security alerts for free.

1rstWAP has also offered its mobile messaging services to embassies in some South East Asian countries to enable the embassies to broadcast their own alerts by SMS, instant message and email. These mobile services can be used to disseminate official security information within minutes and directly to the nationals under their care who need it most.

This will help reduce the uncertainty and misinformation that may inappropriately alarm people. And as the alerts can be received in over one hundred countries around the world, family, friends and prospective travelers throughout the Asia-Pacific and Europe can also choose to register and receive these alerts.

"The mobile phone is an indispensable communication tool for millions of people in Asia and it is the best way to reach people with vital information when they need it!" said 1rstWAP Managing Director, Pascal Lalanne.

Mr Lalanne continued: "As a global corporate citizen with a strong local understanding due to our significant development and operations activities based in Indonesia, 1rstWAP is pleased to take this opportunity to help people in South East Asia and elsewhere during this uncertain time".


About 1rstWAP

With over 2 million registered users of its mobile messaging services, 1rstWAP (pronounced "First Wap") has developed a robust global instant and mobile messaging platform. The company, which has offices in Vienna and Jakarta, was established in 1999. 1rstWAP a wireless ASP providing an integrated communication platform and branded portals in four languages which bring together the Internet and mobile worlds for consumers with PCs, mobile phones and PDAs.

1rstWAP also operates its own global infrastructure, including a grid of SMSCs and its coverage in over 100 countries through hundreds of telecom operators spans the globe. The most popular 1rstWAP applications include mobile instant messaging and SMS email notifications, SMS reply to PC, Community Building, Multi-mode News and Alert delivery and Multimedia Messaging. Some of its customers are Mobilkom Liechtenstein, Indosat, MobilTel, China Unicom, MCM, TM1 and several media companies.

For pictures and further information, please contact:

Troy Richardson
1rstWAP

1rstWAP Building
Jl. Kapten Tendean No 34, L4
Email: marketing@1rstWAP.com
Tel: +62 (21) 791 99577
Fax: +62 (21) 799 5602
Web: http://www.1rstWAP.com