Carphone Warehouse 2001 Annual Report Download - page 11

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GPRS, the opportunity to generate additional revenue streams for
the portal through new technologies and innovative data services
will become a reality.
Following the success of the portal, MViva is broadening its
potential to offer additional data services for mobile phone users
such as credit card facilities, ring-tones, icons, targeted SMS and
audio texting.
Our wireless investment fund has made a series of strategic
investments in new wireless technology companies in order to
strengthen our ability to capture and influence the rapid advance
from these new technologies and services.
Prior to the year-end, our own investments were successfully
transferred into an independently managed fund. As a result, a
further $25m was raised from new partners and we are confident
that the size of the fund will increase further, along with the
diversity of investors in the future. At 31 March 2001 monies
under management were $85m.
The Wireless Data Services division has made considerable
progress in the period. The division comprises MViva, our wireless
internet portal and our interest in a wireless investment fund.
In the last 12 months MViva, partly funded by AOL, has
developed a fully functional wireless portal in five European markets,
has secured joint home-page arrangements with key European
network operators and has over 220,000 registered customers.
Our MViva portal is multi-access, which means it is accessible
via both mobile and fixed line devices, including mobile phones,
PDAs, personal computers and interactive television. Customers
can subscribe to the portal through the Carphone Warehouse retail
network, where sales consultants can demonstrate and customise
the service at the point of sale, and through www.mviva.com.
MViva offers an extensive range of content that can be
personalised to customers’ individual needs, from up to date
news and financial information to sports results, games and
shopping channels. In the coming months, with the arrival of