Unified Signal Raises Funds For Commercial Launch

Unified Signal is a telecommunications technology company that has aggregated all services and functionality necessary to make any enterprise to become a virtual network operator (VNO) of any telecom service. A VNO is a telecom service provider that does not own infrastructure or negotiate with carriers. Unified Signal does this for them.

UNIFIED SIGNAL RAISES ADDITIONAL FUNDING

Commercial Launch Imminent

Press contact:
Kimberly Tassin
206.654.1001
kimberly@tassinmarketing.com   

Bellevue, Wash. - March 18, 2002 - Unified Signal, developer of the telecom industrys first turnkey operating platform for virtual network operators, announced today that it has acquired new backers and raised additional funds. With technology development complete and a trial currently in operation, the company will use the funds to begin commercial operations. Impulse Marketing Group, Inc., (IMG), a leading Internet marketing company and one of Unified Signals first customers, will begin offering wireless services using Unified Signals platform later this month. The new capital was raised through an extension of the companys series A funding which opened in 2000 and has now raised $2.5 million.

Unified Signal investors include Bear Creek Merchant Fund II, Washington Park Ventures LLC, managed by Doug Bevis; and prominent local business leaders Gary Ames, retired president and CEO of Media One International; Phil Herres, former Aldus executive; Russ Daggatt, former McCaw Cellular executive; Steve Wood, CEO of Wireless Services; and Chuck Hirsch of Madrona Venture Group.

In addition to the new funding, Unified Signal has received a significant line of credit from IMG to expedite and support its service launch. IMG has also committed to providing the necessary letters of credit required by network providers to support their wireless activations.

The new funding will speed us through to becoming a fully operational, profitable company," said Paris Holt, Unified Signal CEO. We are grateful for the support of all our investors who have seen us through the years of development, and we are especially grateful for the support of IMG, which we consider to be a particularly meaningful vote of confidence. The potential of our technology to create value for investors and customers alike is clearly evident."

Unified Signal has a great vision," commented Phil Herres, former executive of Nortel and Aldus, and new Unified Signal investor. Their technology, which basically empowers any company to become a VNO (virtual network operator), has tremendous potential to capitalize on the VNO trend that has become established in the U.K. and is now gaining strong interest in the U.S. Even before the recent downturn in equity markets, carriers were looking for ways to fill their spectrum and networks with new paying customers. Carriers want to partner with VNOs who can do this for them, and Unified Signal makes becoming a VNO a simple, turnkey, and profitable proposition."

To become a successful VNO using Unified Signals turnkey platform, a company need only have access to customers and a marketable brand name. Unified Signal then provides all functionality needed to acquire, activate, manage, and bill customers; and it provides a very sophisticated and intuitive customer web site where end user customers are led through the entire service selection and activation process. The economies of scale Unified Signal achieves through aggregating the traffic volume of all its customers and pooling back office resources allows Unified Signal to establish aggressive wholesale pricing with carriers.

I am very impressed with the scope of the Unified Signal technology," said Phil Huston, president of Novel Communications, Inc., the new division of Impulse Marketing Group, Inc. that will be launching the service. We are going to use it to offer wireless services under our brand name to customers to whom we currently offer financial and credit services over the Internet. Using Unified Signals technology, we can instantly expand our service offerings to include wireless without buying equipment or having to become communications experts. This allows us to spend our resources on marketing, which is what we do best."

Unified Signal is a private label solution for enterprises that want to offer telecommunications services to their customers. The technology is a comprehensive platform providing all of the back office functionality necessary for service providers to acquire, activate, bill and manage customers without having to buy infrastructure or negotiate with carriers. The Unified Signal technology was developed in response to a new and genuine trend in the telecom industry-the rise of the virtual network operator. A virtual network operator (VNO) is a service provider who does not own spectrum or network infrastructure, but who partners with network operators who do. Unified Signal has taken this concept and developed it to ultimate efficiency.

About Unified Signal
Founded in 1998 and based in Bellevue, Washington, Unified Signal provides a turnkey, national communications services program supported through one ubiquitous web-based operational and promotional platform, enabling any enterprise to become a virtual network operator and provider of any telecommunications service under a private label. Services to be available for resale on the system include wireless, Internet access, local and long distance telephone, paging, cable, and energy. For more information visit www.unifiedsignal.com or call 425.943.3850.