(Click on photos to download hi-res image.)
Photos by Chaz Hendrickson, courtesy of PacifiCall (c) 2003.

Contact: Keith Kamisugi, 415-876-0589, keith@kamisugi.net

Download PDF of news release here.

Wireless tech company PacifiCall
expands operations to Hawai'i

Hawaii is first market to pilot PacifiCall service, provided through TCA Wireless in Honolulu

HONOLULU, HAWAII (January 28, 2003) - PacifiCall (http://www.pacificall.net), a Palo Alto-based wireless technology company, will today announce its expansion to Hawai'i during a meeting with Gov. Linda Lingle. Citing Act 221 as the major incentive, the company noted that it is the first Mainland technology venture to move its operations to Hawai'i since the start of the Lingle administration.

"PacifiCall will enhance Hawai'i's technology and business community," said Gov. Lingle. "I know that this is just the start of more out-of-state ventures taking a serious look at the benefits of doing business here."

PacifiCall is a mobile software technology startup that plans to offer a breakthrough service for
Java™-enabled Nextel, Sprint, T-Mobile and AT&T mobile phones. The service, which saves an estimated 40 to 80 percent on the costs of mobile international long distance calling, uses PacifiCall technology to make the calling process simple and easy by eliminating the need for consumers to purchase calling cards and memorize access numbers, security codes and complicated commands. Later this year, the company will also launch additional mobile phone capabilities allowing users to turn their phones into advanced personal communications systems.

"The company is seeking to hire staff in Hawai'i and will soon test market its first product in this market, said Ted Liu, director of the state Department of Business Economic Development and Tourism. "Hawaii will be both a showcase and a springboard for the product in the Asia Pacific."

PacifiCall partners with TCA Wireless to deliver pilot of mobile service

PacifiCall also announced that Honolulu mobile phone retailer TCA Wireless would be the first distributor nationwide to offer PacifiCall's breakthrough service for JavaTM-enabled Nextel, Sprint, T-Mobile and AT&T Wireless mobile phones.

TCA Wireless, winner of the 2002 PacificNews.Net Wireless Entrepreneur of the Year award, is a leading authorized dealer for AT&T Wireless, Nextel and T-Mobile with retail locations in Ala Moana Shopping Center and all four Daiei stores on O'ahu.

Mobile phone users interested in participating in the PacifiCall trial can call 808-593-9191, email info@pacificall.net, or visit the nearest TCA Wireless (http://www.tcawireless.com) location.

$40 billion international calling market

Following the Hawai'i trial through TCA Wireless, PacifiCall will roll out the service across the United States and internationally.

"We're entering an estimated $200 billion mobile calling market worldwide with approximately 1 billion subscribers and a global international calling market in excess of $40 billion. By providing a service designed to combine low international rates with the convenience of direct dialing using a mobile phone, we offer a better alternative to current prepaid calling cards or wireless service plans," said Rob Romero, CEO of PacifiCall. "Hawai'i, the hub of the Asia-Pacific region, is a prime base for such services."

PacifiCall's partnerships in Hawai'i

Although currently based on Palo Alto, Calif., PacifiCall is entering Hawai'i with existing and strong ties to individuals and companies in the state.

CEO Romero is a key investor in Honolulu-based AssistGuide Inc., a provider of online systems to long-term care, disability, senior and healthcare businesses. Romero, an 18-year technology veteran, co-founded eVoice, a nationwide voicemail provider acquired by American Online in 2001. He was also director of business development at Netsys, which was acquired by Cisco Systems.

Through business relationships nurtured through his involvement with AssistGuide, Romero met and recruited former Hawai'i resident Dave Kozuki as vice president of business development. Before joining PacifiCall, Kozuki consulted with GoBeam, a new generation telco providing local service over a VoIP infrastructure, and executed strategic alliances for Sylantro, a voice application softswitch developer.
He also held sales positions at Sprint Hawaii and at IBM, both in Honolulu and in Silicon Valley.

Romero and PacifiCall have also been working closely with venture law attorney Gregory R. Kim, a partner at Goodsill Anderson Quinn & Stifel. Kim advised PacifiCall as the company applied for - and was granted in December 2002 - its Qualified High Technology Business (QHTB) status with the state tax department. Kim has acted as co-counsel for PacifiCall with the prominent Silicon Valley law firm of Venture Law Group.

Dalton Tanonaka, president of the Pacific Basin Economic Council, has also assisted PacifiCall in its continued outreach to various entities in the public and private sector.

A success story for Act 221

PacifiCall developed an interest in expanding its business to Hawai'i as a result of the investment incentives offered by Act 221, Session Laws of Hawai'i 2001, which seeks to encourage the entry and development of high technology businesses in the state.

"PacifiCall is an example of the kind of technology firm that Hawai'i can and should strive to attract, companies that will help build a critical mass of technology, know-how and expertise in our state," said venture attorney Greg Kim. "You have in PacifiCall a CEO who is a proven Silicon Valley entrepreneur and investor with no prior connections to Hawai'i, but interested in building a presence in Hawaii due to Act 221, a business-friendly administration and the right talent and environment to grow a successful company."

PacifiCall will be one of the very few Hawai'i tech companies with a live, hard-wired connection and presence in Silicon Valley. This is a critical distinction for Valley influencers, who are more likely to encourage additional ventures in Hawaii after seeing the success of PacifiCall. With more than $5 billion invested in Valley companies by venture capital firms in the first three quarters of 2002, even a minute share of those investment dollars would have a major impact on Hawai'i's business environment.

PacifiCall will also help to strengthen and grow the local crop of tech-savvy workers. The success of other technology companies in Hawai'i resulted in a talent base that still exists, both in and outside of the state. Verifone, Long Distance/USA, Digital Island, Pihana and Adtech have all helped to build a pool of expertise and experience. An even larger pool of such skilled workers exists in the Hawai'i "expat" community, Hawai'i residents who moved to the Mainland seeking better opportunities, but would be eager to return home working for the right company.

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(L to R) Lt. Gov. Aiona, Gov. Lingle, Romero

Gov. Lingle and Romero discuss PacifiCall