PRESS RELEASE

Kirusa launches neXtCeleb & neXtSport® Channels with Nexttel in Cameroon

 

  • Cameroonians to have direct access to their favorite celebrities on the neXtCeleb Platform
  • Regular updates from popular celebs like Moustik Karismatik, Stanley Enow, Lady B.
  • Access premier feeds from football clubs AEPL, UEFA and La Liga on the neXtSports Forum

 

Douala, Cameroon, and New Providence, NJ, August 30, 2018: Kirusa, a global leader in communication solutions over data network for consumers and enterprises, today announced the launch of neXtCeleb and neXtSport services on Kirusa® Channels platform, with Viettel Cameroun S.A, the leading telecom company in Cameroon.

 

Kirusa Channels (earlier called InstaVoice Channels), intensifies and deepens celebrity-fan interactions by leveraging the power of voice. The celeb channel, which is offered as a part of Kirusa Channels, brings celebrities and their fans together. Using the voice blogging feature, celebrities express their emotions and share their joyous and challenging moments daily; the voice messages are delivered instantly to the fans, creating a “Voice Twitter” like experience.

 

With the launch of this channel, neXttel subscribers can receive voice updates from a diverse set of Cameroonian celebrities like the Comedian Moustik Karismatik, Rapper Stanley Enow, Comedy Journalist Kardinal Aristide, Rapper Lady B, Singer Mimie, and Singer Frederique Ottou.

 

Sharing his enthusiasm, the Comedian Moustik Karismatik said, “the celeb content channel is an empowering medium that will help bridge the gap between fans and celebrities. I am delighted that Viettel Cameroun and Kirusa are providing a platform where we can connect with our fans on a more personal level.”

 

The Sports channel is another component of the unique Kirusa Channels platform that provides daily soccer updates, such as team news, pre and post-match analysis, quotes from team players and managers. Users can follow all English Premiere League Clubs, along with UEFA and La Liga. neXttel subscribers can get alerts on football news, players, matches, goals, penalties and much more.

 

The Cameroon national football team has been one of the most successful teams in Africa since its strong showing in the 1982 and 1990 FIFA World Cup. Cameroon has won five African Cup of Nations titles and the gold medal at the 2000 Olympics. Cameroon was the host country of the Women African Cup of Nations in November–December 2016. The women football team is known as the ‘indomitable lionesses.’

 

“We are proud of our nation’s football accomplishments. With the launch of Kirusa Channels in Cameroon, we hope to build an impeccable communication network between celebrities and fans for neXttel subscribers. I am confident that Kirusa’s Sports Channel will deliver immense value to Cameroonians, who have a strong penchant for football,” said neXttel E-Commerce Director, Adam Abdu Isa.

 

On a similar note, Founder, and CEO of Kirusa, Dr. Inderpal Singh Mumick said, “I am thrilled to announce our partnership with neXttel to deliver Kirusa Channels in a country of football enthusiasts and for users who enjoy being in the entertainment loop. We hope that the effort will go a long way towards making a substantial imprint amongst neXttel subscribers in Cameroon.”

 

About Viettel Cameroun

 

Third mobile operator installed in Cameroon and pioneer of 3G technology, neXttel launched its commercial activities on September 14, 2014, throughout the Cameroonian territory. In its perpetual quest to offer its subscribers advanced products and services, neXttel has invested more than 250 billion FCFA in the development of a modern telecommunications network hence the best current coverage in the field of telephony in Cameroon. In addition, neXttel has more than 4 million subscribers in the 10 regions that benefit from fiber optics, which provides uninterrupted service.

 

About Kirusa

 

Kirusa is a global leader in providing communication solutions over data networks for consumers and enterprises. Kirusa’s solutions include InstaVoiceReachMe, a voice-over-data solution to help users receive their GSM calls over data in a mobile app, while helping carriers leverage the power of data to enrich the calling experience of their subscribers; InstaVoice®, a unique call completion solution for users that bundles voicemail, missed calls, availability, and ring, and helps mobile carriers monetize missed calls in their networks; Kirusa Konnect™, a Communications Platform as a Sevice (CPaaS) for enterprises that helps bolster enterprise-customer engagement over mobile channels; and Kirusa Channels, that offer users access to live voice blogs from their favorite celebrities, sports clubs, news portals and other streams.  Kirusa solutions are deployed in 46 countries, with 50 mobile carrier partnerships in Africa, Asia, and LatAm. Kirusa solutions are built on its patented technology and highly reliable, scalable multimodal & cloud platforms, which manage over 2.5 billion calls and 100 million active mobile users across the globe, every month. Headquartered in New Jersey and led by an experienced team of wireless telecom executives and technologists, Kirusa has offices in four continents. For more information, visit: www.kirusa.com

For further inquiries, please contact

 

For neXttel

Adam Abdu Isa

Tel: +237 666060606

 

For Kirusa

Godslove Adagbonyin

gadagbonyin@kirusa.com

PRESS RELEASE

TNM Malawi brings home the First-Ever InstaVoice Services in Partnership with Kirusa

  • Never miss a call with the popular InstaVoice app
  • Malawians can follow their favorite celebrities as well as the latest news on Soccer
  • Dan Lu, Alphasky and Lomwe amongst the top celebrities on InstaVoice platform

Blantyre, Malawi, and New Providence, NJ, Tuesday, 10th January 2017:Malawi’s pioneer mobile network company TNM Telekom Networks Malawi) has launched the InstaVoice, Celeb and Sports services, in collaboration with Kirusa, a global leader in telecom and social media solutions.

Following the introduction of these services, TNM subscribers can manage their missed calls, voicemail and voice messages over the InstaVoice app. The app, with its intuitive and unique chat-like interface, allows the user to respond to missed calls and voicemails, through text as well as rich media. InstaVoice has features such as unlimited voicemails, content delivery over email, option to link multiple numbers and message withdrawal.

Speaking on the launch, TNM Chief Officer - Consumer Services, Daniel Makata, said, “The new addition will offer flexible communication features to TNM subscribers. As the company continues providing innovative products and services to its clients, this is another first from TNM which will enable customers to send and receive InstaVoice messages seamlessly in Malawi and across the world.”

InstaVoice Celeb is a unique service that brings celebrities and their fans together. Using the voice blogging feature, celebrities express their emotions and share their joyous and challenging moments on a regular basis; the voice messages are delivered instantly to the fans, creating a “Voice Twitter” like experience.

Some of the famous celebrities on TNM’s InstaVoice Celeb are - Dan Lu, whose music career spans over 11 yrs, with a fan base estimated at 3.8m in Malawi alone; Aplha Sky aka Alpha Dude, a young internet personality and talented spoken word artist; and Big Brother Amplified's finalist, Lomwe, who started his entertainment career in 2005 at Malawi's biggest radio station FM 101 Power as a DJ, and became one of the most recognized DJs in the country.

Makata added, “TNM is nurturing Malawians’ urge to remain continually updated in the fields of sports and entertainment, through smart content partnerships. Kirusa platforms have helped us connect with local celebrities and further enabled celebs to keep in touch with their Malawian fan base.”

Surinder S. Anand, Vice President of product management, Kirusa says, “This partnership is the result of Kirusa’s pursuit of excellence, and consistency to ensure quality in products, services, and support. Kirusa and TNM will be marketing a cobranded InstaVoice app to users in Malawi.

About TNM Malawi

Telekom Networks Malawi (TNM) Company number 4029 was the pioneer mobile network in Malawi. Listed on the Malawi Stock Exchange, it was established in 1995 as a joint venture between Telekom Malaysia, and the then government owned Malawi Telecommunications Limited (MTL), In April 2007 Telekom Malaysia sold its 60% majority stake in TNM. TNM is now wholly Malawian owned.

About Kirusa

Kirusa is the leader in voice messaging and social media mobile apps that enable mobile subscribers to “Have a Voice!” and share their stories with their family and friends across the globe. Kirusa’s solutions include InstaVoice®, InstaVoice Celeb™ and InstaVoice Sports™ apps, which are offered in partnership with more than thirty-five mobile carriers in Africa, India, LatAm, and the Middle East, as well as via the app stores, and are used monthly by over 80 million mobile users on four continents. Kirusa solutions are built on its patented technology, and its highly reliable and scalable multimodal and cloud platforms, which process over one billion events a month. Kirusa has been recognized as one of top 20 most promising technology companies by Silicon India, and one of top 25 emerging technology companies by Smart Techie magazine. Headquartered in New Jersey and led by an experienced team of wireless telecom executives and technologists, Kirusa has offices in four continents. InstaVoice is a registered trademark of Kirusa, Inc. InstaVoice Celeb and InstaVoice Sports are trademarks of Kirusa, Inc. For more information, visit: www.kirusa.com

For further inquiries, please contact

For TNM Malawi

Akossa Mphepo
Manager, Public Relations
Tel: 0884 824 662
E-mail:akossa.mphepo@tnm.co.mw
Follow us on Twitter: @TigoRwanda

For Kirusa

Alchemy Corporate Communications
Anju Makin
Tel: +1-973-536-2652
E-mail: anju_makin@alchemycc.com

PRESS RELEASE

Digicel and Kirusa Announce Strategic Partnership to Launch InstaVoice® Celeb and Sports services in Haiti

  • Haitians can now follow their favorite celebrities as well as the latest news on Soccer
  • Famous celebrities like Myria Charles, Oky Jems, Manno Beats, Mendywill, Emmery Paul, Jude Jean available on InstaVoice platform

Port Au Prince, Haiti, and New Providence, NJ, 9th February 2017: Digicel, a leading global communications provider, has signed a strategic agreement with Kirusa, a global leader in telecom and social media solutions, to launch Kirusa’s InstaVoice Celeb and Sports services in Digicel Haiti.

InstaVoice Celeb is a social media service offered by Kirusa that gives celebrities and their fans an opportunity to interact with each other in a more personal and friendly way. This service enables celebrities to record voice blogs, and fans to retrieve them, by simply dialing a shortcode. It is the easiest way to hear voices of notable personalities ranging from movie stars, musicians, sports icons, religious and political leaders.

InstaVoice Celeb and Sports are popular services in Latin America and Africa, with more than 150 celebrities and over 11 million fans.

InstaVoice Celeb has been launched in Haiti with celebrities like Myria Charles - TV show and radio host, Oky Jems - songwriter and singer, Manno Beats - director, producer and singer, Mendywill - producer, singer and rapper, Emmery Paul - author, composer, singer and founder member of musical group Karizma, and Jude Jean - author, composer, singer and founder member of musical group k-dans.

InstaVoice Sports enables mobile subscribers to receive daily soccer alerts and updates, such as team news, pre and post-match analysis and quotes from team players and managers. Kirusa’s partnership with Goal.com enables subscribers to follow their favorite clubs and teams, such as Manchester United, Chelsea, and Arsenal, and get exclusive alerts on players, matches, goals, penalties and much more.

“Digicel has the vision to bring leading edge technologies to the markets in which we operate. We are delighted that Kirusa shares our vision as a partner. Kirusa has been at the forefront of developing leading social media apps for millions of mobile users across the globe. After seeing their tremendous success in Africa and Latin America, we are delighted to offer Kirusa’s services in Haiti. We know that our subscribers will find value in their innovative offerings.” Said Nicholas Menos, Digicel Haiti Head of Marketing.

Commenting on the occasion, Dr. Inderpal Singh Mumick, Founder, and CEO of Kirusa said, “We are delighted that Digicel has chosen us to offer these ingenious services. We are confident that Digicel subscribers will find great value in InstaVoice offerings”.

About Digicel Group

Digicel Group Limited is a leading global telecommunications provider with operations in 33 markets in the Caribbean, Central America, and Asia Pacific. After 13 years of operation, total investment to date stands at over US$5 billion worldwide. The company is renowned for delivering best value, best service and best network.
Digicel runs a host of community-based initiatives across its markets and has set up Digicel Foundations in Jamaica, Haiti, Papua New Guinea and Trinidad and Tobago which focus on educational, cultural and social development programs.
Digicel is the lead sponsor of Caribbean, Central American and Pacific sports teams and individuals including the world’s fastest man, Usain Bolt, and Special Olympics teams throughout these regions. Digicel also sponsors the West Indies cricket team.
Visit: www.digicelgroup.com for more information

About Kirusa

Kirusa is a global leader in providing telecom & social media solutions that enable customers to have a voice and connect seamlessly. Kirusa’s solutions include InstaVoice®, InstaVoice Celeb™, InstaVoice Sports™, InstaVoice Ring™, myGenie™ & a host of mobile marketing solutions, which are offered in partnership with over 40 mobile carriers in Africa, India, LatAm, and the Middle East, as well as via the app stores for iOS, Android & Windows. Kirusa solutions are built on its patented technology and its highly reliable, scalable multimodal & cloud platforms, which manage over 2.5 billion calls/messages a month. Kirusa solutions are being used by over 100 Million mobile users in four continents every month. Kirusa has been recognized as one of Top 20 most promising technology companies by Silicon India and one of Top 25 emerging technology companies by Smart Techie magazine. The InstaVoice app won first prize at NJTC Mobile Apps Forum. Informa selected InstaVoice as a finalist for the Best App in Africa. Headquartered in New Jersey and led by an experienced team of wireless telecom executives and technologists, Kirusa has offices in four continents. InstaVoice is a US registered trademark of Kirusa, Inc. For more information, visit:www.kirusa.com

For further inquiries, please contact

For Digicel

Gertrude BULY
Public Relations Executive
Tel:50937777699
E-mail:Gertrude.buly@digicelgroup.com
Follow us on Twitter: @TigoRwanda

For Kirusa

Alchemy Corporate Communications
Anju Makin
Tel: +1-973-536-2652
E-mail: anju_makin@alchemycc.com

PRESS RELEASE

Kirusa Launches New Konnect Portal For Enterprises

Portal to facilitate flash call based marketing campaigns.

New Providence, USA, November 7, 2017: Kirusa, a global leader in communication solutions over data networks for consumers and enterprises, today launches its Konnect Portal to enable enterprises drive customized flash call marketing campaigns.

With the Konnect Portal, enterprises can create, test, launch and manage flash call campaigns at their own pace, and on their own terms, within a short duration and without external interferences. To do this, an enterprise can buy distinct mobile numbers, either long or short, for specific campaigns. These numbers can be advertised on marketing collaterals, targeted at prospective and existing customers.

Flash call campaign is valuable to enterprises as it can be used to encourage customers to “flash-a-call” in order to express interest, pledge to a cause, enter a contest, vote or give feedback, hence making it a viable and an innovative lead generation, pull marketing tool. This creates an additional platform for customers to reach out to brands, easily.

Speaking on the launch of the portal, Surinder Anand, Kirusa’s Vice President Product, said: “In Africa, we are witnessing a higher usage of mobile devices compared to any other electronic device. Hence the need to create a viable platform for enterprises to engage with their consumers via mobile. With the Konnect Portal, enterprises can own, customize and monitor their marketing campaigns, and generate leads, all within the same portal.”

Commenting, Ebenezer Amankwah, Corporate Relations Manager, Vodafone Ghana said: “Our efforts during the Ebola campaign highlighted mobile technology and innovation in action through effective partnerships. Kirusa Konnect proved an able and efficient partner in how we were able to get our key messages across to Ghanaians. I dare say it was one of the many reasons why Ghana recorded no case of the disease.”

The Kirusa Konnect Portal, which is already integrated with all the carriers in Ghana, will bring programmatic voice solutions to the region using APIs, hence allowing enterprises incorporate flash calling into their solutions.

Hannah Acquah, CEO TKC Africa said, "TKC Africa would like to appreciate Kirusa for the continuous partnership and all the support in making our project, the 3FM Business Pitch competition a success. We are impressed with the quality of service provided by the Kirusa team and look forward to continuous co-operation as we officially launch the 3FM Business Pitch Season One this April 2017."

Today, the portal goes live in Ghana with subsequent releases in other countries across Africa.

About Kirusa

Kirusa is a global leader in providing communication solutions over data networks for consumers and enterprises. Kirusa’s solutions include ReachMe, a voice-over-data solution to help users receive their GSM calls over data in a mobile app, while helping carriers leverage the power of data to enrich the calling experience of their subscribers; InstaVoice®, a unique call completion solution for users that bundles voicemail, missed calls, availability, and ring, and helps mobile carriers monetize missed calls in their networks; Kirusa Konnect™, a Communication Platform as a Sevice (CPaaS) for enterprises that helps bolster brand-customer engagement over mobile channels; and InstaVoice Channels™, that offer users access to live voice blogs from their favorite celebrities, sports clubs, news portals and other streams. Kirusa solutions are deployed in 44 countries, with 50 mobile carrier partnerships in Africa, Asia, and LatAm. Kirusa solutions are built on its patented technology and highly reliable, scalable multimodal & cloud platforms, which manage over 2.5 billion calls and 100 million active mobile users across the globe, every month. Headquartered in New Jersey and led by an experienced team of wireless telecom executives and technologists, Kirusa has offices in four continents. For more information, visit: www.kirusa.com

For further inquiries, please contact

For Kirusa

Godslove Adagbonyin
E-mail: gadagbonyin@kirusa.com

PRESS RELEASE

Orange Partners with Kirusa To Offer ‘Orange Célébrité’ Services In Africa

To Leverage Popular and Versatile InstaVoice Channels Voice Based Content Services

New Providence, NJ, Thursday, July 6th, 2017: Kirusa, a global leader in providing telecom and social media solutions, has partnered with Orange, a French telecommunication corporation, to offer Orange Célébrité Services in countries where Orange services are deployed. The service is due to be initiated in Cameroon, Democratic Republic of Congo and Ivory Coast.

Orange Célébrité Service will be delivered over Kirusa’s InstaVoice Channels Platform that offers myriad content based services like Celebrity and Sports news, over voice. Using the voice blogging feature, celebrities express their emotions and share their joyous and challenging moments on a regular basis; the voice messages are delivered instantly to the fans, creating a “Voice Twitter” like experience. It is the easiest way to connect with notable regional personalities in different fields ranging from movies, music, politics, sports, and media. This service is also available over an App which makes the user experience better for smartphone users.

The service provides a more personalized feel to the fans as they can listen to their favorite celebrity’s voice rather than read a message, making it an improved social networking platform. Celebrities’ interaction will extend to contests, one-on-one meetings like dinners, winning branded merchandises, event passes, etc.

The service also offers Sports content as another component of the unique InstaVoice Channels platform, which provides daily soccer updates, such as team news, pre and post-match analysis, quotes from team players and managers. Users can follow all English Premier League Clubs, along with UEFA and La Liga. One can get alerts on football news, players, matches, goals, penalties and much more.

Founder and CEO of Kirusa, Dr. Inderpal Singh Mumick said, “I am delighted to announce our partnership with Orange for an interactive and enhanced social media service module. InstaVoice Channels service has garnered massive popularity across several countries in Africa, with more than 350 celebrity sign ups and 23 million fan subscriptions. With the launch of this service, Orange users will have access to regular voice updates from renowned figures and clubs.”

Orange is one of the world’s leading telecommunications operators with sales of 40.9 billion euros in 2016 and 265 million customers worldwide. In Africa and the Middle East, the Group is present in 21 countries where it has a total customer base of 123 million customers and published revenues of 5.2 billion euros for 2016. The Africa-Middle East region is an important part of the Group’s development strategy where it has the ambition to play a major role in leading the continent’s digital transformation.

About Kirusa

Kirusa is a global leader in providing telecom & social media solutions that enable customers to have a voice and connect seamlessly. Kirusa’s solutions include InstaVoice®, a unique call completion service, which supports diverse modes of messaging to ensure you never miss a call; InstaVoice Channels™ that offer subscribers myriad voice content from their favorite celebrities and sports clubs. The company also offers Kirusa Konnect™ enterprises suite to enable enterprise to communicate with their customers using mobile channels. Kirusa partners with over 50 mobile carriers in Africa, India, and LatAm. Kirusa solutions are built on its patented technology and its highly reliable, scalable multimodal & cloud platforms, which manage over 2.5 billion calls and 100 million active mobile users across the globe, every month. Headquartered in New Jersey and led by an experienced team of wireless telecom executives and technologists, Kirusa has offices in four continents. InstaVoice is a US registered trademark of Kirusa. For more information, visit:www.kirusa.com

For further inquiries, please contact

Orange Partnerships & Services:

Sophie Gilmore
E-mail:sophie.gilmore@orange.com

For Kirusa

Godslove Adagbonyin
E-mail:gadagbonyin@kirusa.com

PRESS RELEASE

Smart Tanzania and Kirusa Partner to Launch the Exceptional InstaVoice® Messaging Service in Tanzania

  • Manage your Missed calls, Voice SMS and Voicemail service on the best messaging forum
  • Get Missed call alerts even when your phone is switched off

Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, and New Providence, NJ, Jun 06, 2017: Smart, the leading mobile communication company in East Africa, and Kirusa, a global leader in providing telecom and social media solutions, have partnered to launch the unique InstaVoice service in Tanzania.

With the deployment of the InstaVoice service, Smart subscribers can now send and receive voicemails and voice messages seamlessly as well as receive missed call notifications anytime they miss a call, including when their mobile is switched off. Smartphone users can do this via the InstaVoice app. Its intuitive and unique chat-like interface allows users to manage and respond to missed calls and voicemails through text as well as rich media, while enjoying other features like unlimited voicemail inbox, personalized voicemail greetings, voicemail delivery over email, option to link multiple numbers and ability to withdraw an already sent voicemail/message.

Meanwhile, Feature phone users and non-app users can still enjoy the service as they will be alerted via SMS of new voicemails or voice messages. They can simply follow the short instruction in the SMS to retrieve the messages and can dial ‘star’ followed by the recipient’s number to record and send a voice message.

The InstaVoice Service has been designed to facilitate seamless communication across networks and countries. Over 50 mobile operators across the globe have partnered with Kirusa to provide an integrated InstaVoice experience to over 100 million monthly active users.

Speaking at the occasion, Abdellatif Bouziani, Group CEO, Smart said, “InstaVoice is a highly innovative forum that has recaptured the idea of voice messaging for our customers and in the long run adds to call completion in scenarios when the person one is trying to reach is unreachable, has their phone switched off, or is busy. We strive to provide innovative, value-for-money solutions to our customers and fulfill their need to communicate seamlessly.”

Tanzania tele density has reached 79% in 2015, for which mobile voice subscriptions account for the greatest part. In the past five years, mobile subscriptions rose by 89%, from 21m in 2010 to almost 40m in 2015.

Inderpal Singh Mumick, Founder and CEO of Kirusa said, “InstaVoice is a highly acclaimed service across Africa, and we hope to receive an enthusiastic response in Tanzania. The integrated features are sure to deliver an enhanced, and smooth messaging experience.”

InstaVoice is also available as the first-ever voicemail skill on Amazon’s Alexa platform. Users can configure their InstaVoice account to avail a seamless access to voicemails over Alexa Platform.

About Smart Telecom (Smart to approve)

SMART Tanzania, rebranded from Benson Informatics Limited in early 2014, provides a range of innovative products to suit your lifestyle, and outstanding value-for-money packages to suit your wallet. It’s not just about our products and packages that you’ll see a difference. It’s in the way we do things. That’s because SMART’s parent company is Industrial Promotion Services (IPS) Kenya, which in turn is part of the Aga Khan Fund for Economic Development (AKFED). AKFED has been funding social enterprises across East Africa for decades – making long-term investments with the aim of building economically sound businesses that create employment and improve lives.

About Kirusa

Kirusa is a global leader in providing telecom & social media solutions that enable customers to have a voice and connect seamlessly. Kirusa’s solutions include InstaVoice® Channels that offers contents celebrity and sports news, live updates, educational content, etc. that subscribers can choose from. The company also offers InstaVoice Ring™, myGenie™ & a host of mobile marketing solutions, which are provided in partnership with over 40 mobile carriers in Africa, India, LatAm, and the Middle East, as well as via the app stores for iOS, Android & Windows. Kirusa solutions are built on its patented technology and its highly reliable, scalable multimodal & cloud platforms, which manage over 2.5 billion calls/messages a month. Kirusa solutions are being used by over 100 Million mobile users in four continents every month. Kirusa has been recognized as one of Top 20 most promising technology companies by Silicon India and one of Top 25 emerging technology companies by Smart Techie magazine. The InstaVoice app won first prize at NJTC Mobile Apps Forum. Informa selected InstaVoice as a finalist for the Best App in Africa. Headquartered in New Jersey and led by an experienced team of wireless telecom executives and technologists, Kirusa has offices in four continents. InstaVoice is a US registered trademark of Kirusa, Inc. For more information, visit:www.kirusa.com

For further inquiries, please contact

For Smart Tanzania

Name: Abdellatif Bouziani
Designation: Group CEO
Tel: + 255798020007; +256742020007
E-mail:abdellatif.bouziani@smarteastafrica.com

For Kirusa

Name: Godslove Adagbonyin
Designation: Team Lead, Public Relations.
Tel: +2347014516254
E-mail: gadagbonyin@kirusa.com

PRESS RELEASE

Kirusa & zMessenger Launch StarFriends Voice Service with Mobitel Sri Lanka

Connecting with Celebrities via Voiceover Mobitel Network, Sri Lanka

New Jersey, US and Colombo, Sri Lanka, Wednesday, 24 May, 2017: Kirusa, a global leader in providing telecom and social media solutions, announced today the launch of StarFriends Voice Service, in partnership with zMessenger, Sri Lanka's pioneering leader in mobile marketing and entertainment solutions, and Mobitel, the national mobile service provider in Sri Lanka.

Kirusa is enabling zMessenger's premium celebrity content service, StarFriends, via itsInstaVoice platform, to bring voice capabilities that allow starsto record their voice messages and send to their fans.

With the launch of this service, Mobitel users in Sri Lanka can now follow their favorite celebs’voice blogs.Users can subscribe to the service by sending an SMS in the format Star’s name + V to 2468(e.g. RoshanV to 2468).

From celeb-to-fans, StarFriends Voice Service provides a seamless flow of messages. Using the unique voice update feature of the service, celebrities express their emotions and share their joyous and challenging moments. The voice messages are delivered instantly to fans, creating a ‘Voice Twitter’ experience.

Actress Yureni Noshika, singer Raini Charuka, musician Lahiru Perera, and actor Roshan Ranawana are some of the eminent personalities with whom fans will be able to connect with via the StarFriends Voice Service. More celebs are expected to join the platform shortly.

Commenting on the launch of the service, Mr. Isuru DissanayakaSenior General Manager, Marketing of Mobitel Sri Lanka said, “It is indeed a delight for Mobitel to enter into this partnership with Kirusa and to be able to offer our customers this unique service here in Sri Lanka. At Mobitel, we constantly strive to increase the value offerings to our customers, and I am confident that adding the dimension of voice to celeb messages will bring the celebrities closer to their fans and give our customers this unique experience.”

Ms. Jayomi Lokuliyana, CEO and Co-Founder at zMessenger said, “The communication between celebrities and their fans takes several forms. In StarFriends Voice service the control remains with the celebrity. However, the fans are also empowered, to connect, respond and engage with them. This makes it a unique connect, and a very personal mode of communication begins to take shape between celebrities and their fans. It is indeed an engaging and innovative service”.

Dr. Inderpal Singh Mumick, CEO of Kirusa said,“We are delighted to bringKirusa’s InstaVoice Channels service to Sri Lanka in partnership with Mobitel and zMessenger. With incredible successes in Africa, Latin America and now Sri Lanka, InstaVoice Channels has been adopted by hundreds of celebrities and millions of fans.”

About Mobitel (Pvt) Ltd

Mobitel is Sri Lanka’s National Mobile Service Provider and a fully-owned subsidiary of Sri Lanka Telecom. The company offers mobile telephony services, high-speed broadband, Enterprise Solutions, IDD services and a host of Value Added Services. Mobitel was the pioneer in South Asia to launch a Super 3.5G network, to successfully demonstrate HSPA + MIMO technology and successfully trial 4G-LTE and 4.5G-LTE Advanced Pro technology. The introduction of Dual Carrier HSPA+ technology and 4G-LTE service makes Mobitel’s broadband speeds the fastest in the country. Fuelling over theUSD600mn worth of investments to-date, Mobitel has shaped the ICT landscape, experiencing exciting growth – poised to lead the industry into its next phase of development. A growing customer base stands testament to Mobitel’s strong focus laid on customer centricity, emulating its credo of "We Care. Always." For more information, visit: www.mobitel.lk or dial 1717 to reach the Customer Care Hotline.

About zMessenger

zMessenger is the pioneering leader in Digital Marketing and Digital Content, providing a broad range of solutions in strategy and digital technology that helps businesses and brands redefine how they communicate and serve connected customers. We offer complete, integrated digital business and technology services – digital marketing, mobility, and analytics to deliver tangible results for both the real and virtual worlds.

About Kirusa

Kirusa is a global leader in providing telecom & social media solutions that enable customers to have a voice and connect seamlessly. Kirusa’s solutions include InstaVoice® Channels that offers contents celebrity and sports news, live updates, educational content, etc. that subscribers can choose from.The company also offersInstaVoice Ring™, myGenie™ & a host of mobile marketing solutions, which are provided in partnership with over 40 mobile carriers in Africa, India, LatAm, and the Middle East, as well as via the app stores for iOS, Android & Windows. Kirusa solutions are built on its patented technology and its highly reliable, scalable multimodal & cloud platforms, which manage over 2.5 billion calls/messages a month. Kirusa solutions are being used by over 100 Million mobile users in four continents every month. Kirusa has been recognized as one of Top 20 most promising technology companies by Silicon India and one of Top 25 emerging technology companies by Smart Techie magazine. The InstaVoice app won first prize at NJTC Mobile Apps Forum. Informa selected InstaVoice as a finalist for the Best App in Africa. Headquartered in New Jersey and led by an experienced team of wireless telecom executives and technologists, Kirusa has offices in four continents. InstaVoice is a US registered trademark of Kirusa, Inc. For more information, visit: www.kirusa.com

For further inquiries, please contact

For zMessenger

Sashean de Mel
Tel: +94710391795
E-mail:sashean@zmessenger.lk

For Kirusa

Alchemy Corporate Communications
Anju Makin
US Cell: +1 (973) 536- 2652
E-mail:anju_makin@alchemycc.com

PRESS RELEASE

Kirusa Launches the Popular InstaVoice® Channels with Vodacom Lesotho

  • Lesotho to have direct access to their favorite celebrities on the InstaVoice Channels Platform
  • Regular updates from notable personalities like Mary Bosiu, Bofilha Neko, Skebza D, Dollaman
  • Access to premier feeds from clubs in EPL, UEFA and La Liga on InstaVoice Sports

Maseru, Lesotho and New Providence, NJ, Tuesday, 2nd May 2017: Kirusa, a global leader in providing telecom and social media solutions, today announced the launch of InstaVoice® Channels, with Vodacom, the leading telecom carrier in Lesotho..

The InstaVoice Channels service, which incorporates Celeb and Sports content, is one of the top 3 revenue generating VAS services in Africa supporting multiple carriers. The channels platform has over 11 million followers, 14+ Football clubs, and more than 150 celebrities.

The Celeb content service, offered as a part of InstaVoice Channels, brings celebrities and their fans together. Using the voice blogging feature, celebrities express their emotions and share their joyous and challenging moments on a regular basis; the voice messages are delivered instantly to the fans, creating a “Voice Twitter” like experience. This service is also available over an App which makes the service experience better for smartphone users

With the launch of this content service, Vodacom subscribers can receive voice updates from popular figures in Lesotho like- Motivational Speaker Mary Bosiu, Comedian Bofilha Neko, Hip-hop prodigies Skebza D and Dollaman.

Distinguished Orator, Mary Bosiu expressed her eagerness to begin interacting with her fans. She says, “It is delightful to join a great forum that seeks to forge transparent communication between fans and celebrities. I am eager to start sharing my ideas with followers on a larger, more empowering scale.”

The Sports content service is another component of the unique InstaVoice Channels platform that provides daily soccer updates, such as team news, pre and post-match analysis, quotes from team players and managers. Users can follow all English Premiere League Clubs, along with UEFA and La Liga. One can get alerts on football news, players, matches, goals, penalties and much more.

“Kirusa’s InstaVoice Channels is a unique forum that seeks to both connect fans, celebrities, and sports clubs together, through voice. The service strikes the right chord with Vodacom’s spirit, and we hope that our endeavor meets every user’s expectations,” said Mpho Brown, Vodacom Lesotho Communications Manager.

On a similar note, Founder and CEO of Kirusa, Dr. Inderpal Singh Mumick said, “After attaining remarkable success across multiple network carriers in Africa, we are now introducing InstaVoice Channels for Vodacom subscribers in Lesotho. I hope that Vodacom users in Lesotho will find great value in InstaVoice offerings.”

About Vodacom

Vodacom is a leading African mobile communication company providing a wide range of communication services including mobile voice, messaging, data and converged services to over 65 million customers.

From its roots in South Africa, the company has grown its mobile network business to include operations in Tanzania, DRC, Mozambique and Lesotho. The mobile networks cover a total population of approximately 200 million people.

Vodacom is majority owned by Vodafone (65%) one of the world’s largest mobile communications companies by revenue. In Lesotho, Vodacom Lesotho is majority owned by Vodacom Group Limited (80%), and Sekhametsi consortium owns 20% of the company.

About Kirusa

Kirusa is a global leader in providing telecom & social media solutions that enable customers to have a voice and connect seamlessly. Kirusa’s solutions include InstaVoice, a unique voicemail and missed call management service, that supports multifarious modes of messaging to ensure you never miss a call; InstaVoice® Channels™ that offer subscribers myriad content based services viz. celebrity and sports news, live updates, educational content, etc. The company also offers InstaVoice Ring™, myGenie™, Kirusa Konnect™ and a host of mobile marketing solutions, which are provided in partnership with over 50 mobile carriers in Africa, India, LatAm, and other emerging markets, as well as via the app stores for iOS, Android & Windows. Kirusa solutions are built on its patented technology and its highly reliable, scalable multimodal & cloud platforms, which manage over 2.5 billion calls and 100 million active mobile users across the globe, every month. Headquartered in New Jersey and led by an experienced team of wireless telecom executives and technologists, Kirusa has offices in four continents. InstaVoice is a US registered trademark of Kirusa, Inc. For more information, visit:www.kirusa.com

For further inquiries, please contact

For Vodacom

Mpho Brown
Manager, Communications & Vodacom Foundation
Tel: +266 52212400
E-mail:mpho.brown@vodacom.co.ls
Follow us on Twitter: @TigoRwanda

For Kirusa

Alchemy Corporate Communications
Anju Makin
Tel: +1-973-536-2652
E-mail: anju_makin@alchemycc.com

PRESS RELEASE

Kirusa Launches InstaVoice® Channels with Tigo in Rwanda

  • Rwandans to have direct access to their favorite celebrities on InstaVoice Celeb
  • Regular updates from popular celebs like Arthur Nkusi, Lil G etc.
  • Access to premier feeds from clubs in EPL, UEFA and La Liga on InstaVoice Sports

Kigali, Rwanda, and New Providence, NJ, Monday, May 15, 2017: Kirusa, a global leader in providing telecom and social media solutions, today announced the launch of Celeb and Sports content services on InstaVoice® Channels platform, with Tigo Rwanda, a leading mobile network in the country.

The Celeb content service, which is offered as a part of InstaVoice Channels, brings celebrities and their fans together. Using the voice blogging feature, celebrities express their emotions and share their joyous and challenging moments daily; the voice messages are delivered instantly to the fans, creating a “Voice Twitter” like experience.

With the launch of this content service, Tigo subscribers can receive voice updates from popular Rwandan artists like Comedian Arthur Nkusi, and Prominent Rapper Lil G etc.

Sharing his enthusiasm, Arthur Nkusi said, “I am delighted to be a part of this ‘Voice-Twitter’ community, which is an empowering medium for artistes seeking extensive outreach to their fans. I genuinely look forward to turning on the humor on this all-embracing forum.”

The Sports content service is another component of the unique InstaVoice Channels platform that provides daily soccer updates, such as team news, pre and post-match analysis, quotes from team players and managers. Users can follow all English Premiere League Clubs, along with UEFA and La Liga. Tigo subscribers can get alerts on football news, players, matches, goals, penalties and much more.

“We are eagerly anticipating our subscribers’ response to this interactive platform. It truly meets our commitment, which is to deliver entertaining content to our customers. I am sure our subscribers will appreciate the versatility of InstaVoice channels and enjoy the continual flow of celebrity and sports updates.” Yaw Ankoma Agyapong, CCO of Tigo Rwanda.

On a similar note, Founder and CEO of Kirusa, Dr. Inderpal Singh Mumick said, “Our partnership with Tigo brings celebrity and sports updates to Tigo subscribers in Rwanda. We are hopeful that the InstaVoice Celeb and Sports services will be well-received in a nation which is ardently passionate about entertainment and sports.”

About Tigo Rwanda

Tigo Rwanda is owned by Millicom, a leading telecommunications and media company uniquely dedicated to emerging markets in Latin America and Africa. It provides mobile, mobile financial, cable and satellite services to over 60 million customers in fourteen countries, primarily under the Tigo brand. Tigo has been operating in Africa since 1993, in Rwanda since 2009, and serves over 26 million customers in Africa.

About Kirusa

Kirusa is a global leader in providing telecom & social media solutions that enable customers to have a voice and connect seamlessly. Kirusa’s solutions include InstaVoice, a unique voicemail and missed call management service, which supports diverse modes of messaging to ensure you never miss a call; InstaVoice® Channels™ that offer subscribers myriad content based services viz. celebrity and sports news, live updates, educational content, etc. The company also offers InstaVoice Ring™, myGenie™, Kirusa Konnect™ and a host of mobile marketing solutions, which are provided in partnership with over 50 mobile carriers in Africa, India, LatAm, and other emerging markets, as well as via the app stores for iOS, Android & Windows. Kirusa solutions are built on its patented technology and its highly reliable, scalable multimodal & cloud platforms, which manage over 2.5 billion calls and 100 million active mobile users across the globe, every month. Headquartered in New Jersey and led by an experienced team of wireless telecom executives and technologists, Kirusa has offices in four continents. InstaVoice is a US registered trademark of Kirusa, Inc. For more information, visit:www.kirusa.com

For further inquiries, please contact

For Tigo Rwanda

Sunny Ntayombya
Corporate Communications and Government Relations Manager
Tel: +250 722123408
E-mail:sunny.ntayombya@tigo.co.rw
Follow us on Twitter: @TigoRwanda

For Kirusa

Alchemy Corporate Communications
Anju Makin
Tel: +1-973-536-2652
E-mail: anju_makin@alchemycc.com

PRESS RELEASE

Expresso Senegal & Kirusa Partner to Launch InstaVoice® and InstaVoice Channels services

  • Senegalese can follow their favorite celebrities as well as the latest news on Soccer
  • Bakhaw Dioum, Simon Kouka, amongst the top celebrities on InstaVoice Channels platform

Dakar, Senegal, and New Providence, NJ, Wenesday, 14, March 2017: Expresso Senegal, a leading mobile network company, has launched the InstaVoice Messaging service, and InstaVoice Channels, in partnership with Kirusa, a global leader in telecom and social media solutions.

With the deployment of InstaVoice Messaging service in Senegal, an Expresso subscriber can send a message to another Expresso subscriber by simply dialing ‘star’ followed by the recipient’s number. The recipient gets an SMS with a voice dial number, where the message can be listened to, for free.

“This partnership with Kirusa is a unique opportunity to accomplish our primary objective of delivering innovation. InstaVoice is a highly novel and differentiated platform that provides seamless communication features to our subscribers, and they can expect to connect uninterrupted in Senegal and across the world,” says Koudy Wane, VAS Manager, Expresso Senegal.

The Celeb and Sports content services, which are offered as a part of InstaVoice Channels, brings celebrities, soccer clubs and their fans together. Using the voice blogging feature, celebrities express their emotion and share their joyous and challenging moments on a regular basis; the voice messages are delivered instantly to the fans, creating a “Voice Twitter” like experience.

Some of the popular Senegalese celebrities who have already signed up on the platform are, Bakhaw Dioum and Simon Kouka. “Sharing his excitement on the same, Bakhaw Dioum said “I am thrilled to be on Instavoice Channels as it allows me engaged with my fans on a different level. I congratulate Expresso Senegal on striking this worthwhile partnership with Kirusa and bringing home a service designed to boost fan-celebrity engagement.

The Sports content service is another component of the unique InstaVoice Channels platform that provides daily soccer updates, such as team news, pre and post-match analysis, quotes from team players and managers. Users can follow all English Premiere League Clubs, along with UEFA and La Liga. One can get alerts on football news, players, matches, goals, penalties and much more.

Barinderpal Singh Mumick, Vice President Operations at Kirusa, said “The partnership with Expresso has been forged to deliver Kirusa’s best mobile solutions that will serve to provide an enhanced messaging experience, along with live updates on sports and entertainment. We hope to receive a great response in Senegal with Expresso subscribers.”

About Expresso Telecom

Expresso Senegal is part of Expresso Telecom Group; a leading African telecom group operates in Senegal, Mauritania & Guinea Conakry. Expresso Senegal has more than 3 M active subscribers with 22% market share in Senegal Market. Expresso Senegal (ESN) was launched in 2007 as the third market entrants, and it was the 1st mobile operator to launch the 3G services in Senegal. Beside 3G network, ESN offers different technologies & networks, such as CDMA Network, 2G Network, Fiber Optical Network, Fixed Wireless (P2P), Wi-Fi Network.

About Kirusa

Kirusa is a global leader in providing telecom & social media solutions that enable customers to have a voice and connect seamlessly. Kirusa’s solutions include InstaVoice, a unique voicemail and missed call management service, which supports diverse modes of messaging to ensure you never miss a call; InstaVoice® Channels™ that offer subscribers myriad content based services viz. celebrity and sports news, live updates, educational content, etc. The company also offers InstaVoice Ring™, myGenie™, Kirusa Konnect™ and a host of mobile marketing solutions, which are provided in partnership with over 50 mobile carriers in Africa, India, LatAm, and other emerging markets, as well as via the app stores for iOS, Android & Windows. Kirusa solutions are built on its patented technology and its highly reliable, scalable multimodal & cloud platforms, which manage over 2.5 billion calls and 100 million active mobile users across the globe, every month. Headquartered in New Jersey and led by an experienced team of wireless telecom executives and technologists, Kirusa has offices in four continents. InstaVoice is a US registered trademark of Kirusa, Inc. For more information, visit:www.kirusa.com

For further inquiries, please contact

For Kirusa

Godslove Adagbonyin
E-mail:gadagbonyin@kirusa.com

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