New Service Enables Texting Around the World and Chatting On Largest Social
Networks
Starting today, anyone with an iPhone, iPod touch, iPad, Mac or PC can text
message with people around the world for free, and chat on the largest social
networks. HeyWire™, created by MediaFriends, is the first and only Multi-Screen
Texting and Chat Service that delivers free international messaging with a real
phone number.
When using HeyWire to send a message to any mobile subscriber, the service
connects 1.6 billion people in 114 countries through 360 mobile operators; and
is scheduled to reach 193 countries, 4 billion subscribers and 850 mobile
operators around the world by the end of 2010.
Bringing the world even closer together, the service also enables HeyWire
users to text each other worldwide, anywhere, and supports all major languages,
including character based ones, so people can communicate in their native
tongue. When combining global language support with worldwide coverage, sending
and receiving messages is truly an international experience made personal with
HeyWire.
HeyWire is available through the Apple App Store and HeyWire for the
Web PC/Mac Beta at HeyWire.com. HeyWire for Android, BlackBerry, and
Google TV will be available Fall 2010. HeyWire for TV, gaming devices and
e-Readers will be coming in 2011.
Worldwide Projections for text messaging in 2013 surpass 10 trillion text
messages with international texting costs of over $5 billion for consumers in
2009, according to Portio Research. HeyWire enables users to realize messaging
cost savings like never before.
More than Texting – Social Networking And Multiple
Screens, Too
In addition to solving the problem of high-cost international texting,
HeyWire simplifies an increasingly complex world of multiple devices and
multiple ways to communicate via real-time messaging (SMS, Facebook Chat,
Twitter and IM) by integrating these messaging types in one service and
delivering it across multiple screens. HeyWire enables a new generation of users
to send and receive messages from any screen, using a real phone number as their
personal identity; providing people with any type of real-time messaging
anywhere, anytime.
At launch, HeyWire has integrated Facebook Chat, with the major IM services
coming this Fall. Through HeyWire’s unique, simple-to-use address book, text and
chat messages can be sent out to Facebook friends and mobile address book
contacts at the same time. Each reply ends up in a centralized message list so
individual chat conversations can continue. When accessing HeyWire for Web
through the PC or Mac Beta, the Facebook integration is complemented by the
addition of Twitter and Instant Messaging from AIM, Yahoo! Messenger, Google
Talk, and Windows Live Messenger.
“Messaging has quickly become the most popular way to communicate, akin to
the world’s favorite language, but until now it couldn’t be used freely across
borders and across devices due to high cost, incompatibility and inconvenience,”
said Meredith Flynn-Ripley, president & CEO of MediaFriends, Inc. “With the
proliferation of multiple Internet connected devices and messaging methods like
SMS and Facebook Chat, HeyWire™ simplifies and unifies the messaging experience
and links people and communities together everywhere on the device of their
choosing.”
MediaFriends patent-pending software platform builds a better bridge
connecting mobile technology and IP to enable users to text and chat from a full
range of devices and incorporates leading edge messaging interoperability from
Sybase 365.HeyWire is ad supported and messages are sent and received using data
connections, but will communicate through standard SMS protocols with mobile
phones that are not running HeyWire…yet.
In addition to its HeyWire Service for consumers, MediaFriends is in market
trials with large international mobile and wireline operators; helping them
broaden their reach of devices and breadth of real-time consumer messaging
services.
