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Partnership adds mass message alerts to Siemens HiPath Dispatch command and control console,
extends Open Communications to public sector and military emergency responders
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BOCA RATON, Fla. (June 18, 2007) – Siemens Communications, Inc.,[NYSE: SI] and AtHoc, Inc., a
leading provider of network-centric emergency notification systems, today announced a partnership
to integrate AtHoc's IWSAlerts™ into Siemens' HiPath Dispatch command and control console. The new
partnership extends Siemens Open Communications to federal, state, local and tribal public safety
responders, K-12 and higher education, and the military. The partnership enables first responders
and the military to save more lives and property through improved communications coordination and
interoperability.
Getting the right information to the right people - wherever they are - quickly and reliably is
critical for effective incident management and military engagement. During an emergency, federal,
state and local governments, as well as K-12 and higher education institutions, must contact a broad
range of people - employees, students, and their families, as well as emergency personnel - to
ensure fast, efficient response. This applies whether confronting natural or man-made incidents.
The military needs comprehensive real-time alerts for optimum combat effectiveness and to save
warfighters' lives.
Now when they find themselves in a situation where they must alert a broader audience, HiPath
Dispatch operators can send alerts through IWSAlerts at the touch of a button on their consoles.
The HiPath Dispatch console enables command center and emergency operations center personnel to
communicate with virtually any communications device anywhere, anytime through an IP network.
The AtHoc IWSAlerts system uses network IP communications to send tens of thousands of tailored
mass alerts to any network-connected delivery device - including desktops, laptops, cell phones,
PDAs, phones, sirens and public announcement systems - in minutes. Recipients can receive alerts
in multiple formats, including text messages, phone calls, emails and Instant Messaging.
The fast and easy-to-use combination saves time during an emergency and leverages the power of
fixed mobile convergence - bringing IT, wireline and wireless voice and data together over an IP
network - to enhance continuity of operations during natural or man-made incidents. AtHoc's
technology complements Siemens Open Communications, which use converged, scalable architecture,
flexible, feature-rich collaboration tools and standards-based, open, user-centric technology to
provide powerful, flexible deployment options.
"Failures in emergency communications systems have exacerbated every major disaster of the last
decade," said Charles Jennings, Chairman of Regional Alliances for Infrastructure and Network
Security (RAINS), a nonprofit public-private alliance dedicated to developing and deploying
Internet-based homeland security systems. "Internet-based systems-which offer increased
survivability, greater flexibility and inherent interoperability-are the clear solution.
Industry partnerships such as Siemens' and AtHoc's are essential to deliver the next-generation
emergency communications capability that our country urgently needs."
"With AtHoc's focus on net-centric emergency alerting and Siemens' focus on bidirectional voice
conferencing, the combined effort gives military and first response organizations a single
communications console for command and control missions," said Guy Miasnik, President and CEO
of AtHoc. "Together, AtHoc and Siemens are helping customers handle all aspects of their emergency
communications needs. We are bridging the gaps between emergency monitoring, communications and mass
alerting."
"Siemens' commitment to improving public safety and military communications is based on meeting
public safety organizations' and the military's needs, not just technology, and applying technology
to best serve the public good," said Mike Lewis, Vice President of Federal Solutions at Siemens
Communications. "This is our key role, to understand our customers' business and become their
trusted partner and advisor. With technology as an enabler, we help our government, military,
business and educational partners operate more easily and effectively during a crisis, when
every moment counts."
About Siemens
Siemens AG (NYSE:SI) is one of the largest global electronics and engineering companies with
reported worldwide sales of $96 billion in fiscal 2005. Founded nearly 160 years ago, the company
is a leader in the numerous fields, including medical technology; power systems; automation and
control systems; transportation; information and communications; lighting; building technologies;
water technologies; and services and home appliances. Based in Munich, Siemens AG and its
subsidiaries employ 460,000 in 190 countries. Eleven of Siemens' worldwide businesses are based
in the United States and are supervised from Siemens' U.S. corporate headquarters in New York City.
Siemens' American operations produce annual sales of $18.8 billion and employ approximately 70,000
people in all 50 states and Puerto Rico.
For more information on Siemens in the United States, please visit http://www.usa.siemens.com.
About Siemens Communications, Inc.
Siemens Communications, Inc. is one of the world's leading vendors of Open Communications solutions
for enterprises of all sizes, enabling business processes to be more productive, faster and more
secure - with any device, network or information technology infrastructure. The company is a wholly
owned subsidiary of Siemens AG with about 15,000 employees globally and headquarters in Boca Raton,
Fla.
For more information, please visit http://www.usa.siemens.com/communications.
About AtHoc, Inc.
AtHoc is a recognized leader in providing enterprise-class, network-centric emergency notification
systems used for force and personnel protection, facility mass notification, public safety and
critical enterprise communications. Millions of end users worldwide, in organizations such as
the U.S. Air Force, U.S. Army, U.S. Navy, the Air University, Hawaii State Civil Defense, Boeing,
PricewaterhouseCoopers and eBay rely on AtHoc's alert delivery and management systems for their
critical communication and alerting needs.
For more information on AtHoc, please visit http://www.athoc.com.
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