Oct 25, 2005
IconMedialab and FatWire Software announce Strategic Partnership Focused on the eTravel Market
Partners Offer Solutions to Help Travel Companies Increase Online Conversion Rates

Milan, 25 October 2005 - FatWire Software, a leading provider of content management solutions for deploying persuasive Web sites and content-centric applications, and IconMedialab, an international network providing digital user centered devices consulting, services and solutions, and Italian leader in the development of user centered applications for all digital devices, today announced a new strategic partnership to offer comprehensive eMarketing solutions to the Italian Travel & Transportation market.

Together, FatWire and IconMedialab enable travel and transportation companies to build persuasive Web sites intended to convert browsers to buyers, increase customer loyalty, and decrease costs. IconMedialab will provide the services and the system integration for FatWire's eTravel Accelerator solution.

eTravel Accelerator helps travel companies take advantage of the growth of online travel sales. Despite surging numbers of travel shoppers on the Web, many travel suppliers -- hotel and resort operators, transportation providers, travel agencies, and tour operators -- struggle with how to convert lookers to bookers. Conversion rates are low, costs to acquire a new customer are high, competition is fierce, and customer loyalty is almost nonexistent.

The eTravel Accelerator enables travel vendors to engage on-line travel buyers and persuade them to book. FatWire and IconMedialab help companies deploy sites that incorporate compelling content, well integrated and personalized offers, and persuasive delivery to turn browsers into customers and improve look-to-book ratios.

IconMedialab uses an integrated communication approach to answer any requirements of the different players in the Travel market:
  • Travel B2B: Operators - Travel agencies:
    to accelerate paperless processes and the migration of consumers to the on-line channel, IconMedialab expands and develops the level of the customer relationship by tracking eTravel user experience and loyalty and the use of incentive programs.
  • Travel B2C: Travel agencies - Consumers/Operators - Consumers:
    to increase brand awareness, direct customer relationship, and buying disintermediation, IconMedialab offers integrated solutions - Web site, e-mail marketing and permission marketing, Web advertising and search engine marketing, community building, viral marketing, loyalty programs, results tracking, and CRM.
Joint customers in the travel industry have access to FatWire's product family, which combines a content management platform with the three key capabilities that are needed to deploy dynamic, persuasive content-centric applications:
  • transparent content management - Business people create and manage content with the tools and processes they already know and use everyday. There is no need to learn new tools or change how they work.
  • persuasive Targeted Marketing - Marketing people can easily define the rules for who should see what content under what conditions, using wizard-driven interfaces. This results in end-user experiences that persuade audiences to take actions that support a company's business goals.
  • scalable, dynamic content delivery - Allows companies to manage large numbers of sites and applications, and reuse content, business logic, and design elements across these sites, while scaling for high performance.

IconMedialab brings extensive expertise and experience in the Travel industry to help ensure customers meet their goals quickly and cost effectively.

"The Travel market is one of the favourite infocommerce activities, and one of the few sectors where the buying on-line is higher than off-line," said Marco Tosi, Managing Director IconMedialab Italy. "We think the holiday shopping season can't start soon enough. Not only do the holidays generate a high percentage of the yearly sales, they attract new shoppers. With this partnership between IconMedialab and FatWire, we would help the retailers to provide a satisfactory shopping experience on-line and convert the new visitors into long-term customers".

"The travel industry is leading the movement towards ensuring that content is personalized and pertinent to each customer or prospect," said Marco Davide, FatWire's Regional Business Manager for Italy and the East Mediterranean. "We're very pleased to partner with IconMedialab to serve the needs of travel product providers and their customers." .

About FatWire Software
FatWire Software enables organizations to put content to work by deploying content-centric applications and Web sites that attract, convert, and retain customers. Organizations in financial services, manufacturing, retail, media/entertainment, telecommunications, travel, healthcare, and government use FatWire's solutions, which are tailored to meet the needs of departmental, mid-size enterprise and global enterprise initiatives.

FatWire's solutions are powered by Content Server, which combines complete business user control over the creation and presentation of content with a scalable architecture for dynamic content delivery and multi-site deployment. Unlike other Content Management solutions that focus on getting content under control, FatWire's solutions enable organizations to put content to work by delivering highly targeted and persuasive experiences to customers, partners, and employees.

Founded in 1996, FatWire has over 400 customers, including J.P. Morgan Chase, Sony, Radisson/SAS, European Space Agency, Nihon Seimei, and Bank of China. FatWire is headquartered in New York and operates offices throughout North America, Europe, and Asia-Pacific.

The Italian FatWire Office opened in 1998. Customers include Ministero delle Finanze - SOGEI, Ministero dell'innovazione, CNIPA, Regione Lombardia, ESA, ICCREA, Gewiss, Finmeccanica, ELSAG, EDS, and the Boscolo Group

For more information about FatWire Software's award-winning products and services, visit www.fatwire.com.

About IconMedialab
IconMedialab, an international network providing digital user centered devices consulting, services and solutions, and Italian leader in the development of user-centered applications for all digital devices, operates in 10 countries through 16 locations and more than 700 interactive communications specialists.

Services offered, resulting from the unique blend of system-integration and user-centered solution design capabilities, allowed IconMedialab to rapidly grow and get a leading position on the European marketplace.

On Genuary 2002, IconMedialab International merged with the Lost Boy Group, a Dutch new media company, thus strengthening its leadership of the European e-business market and keeping the pace within the US market challenge.

On June 2004, the company name was changed from IconMedialab International into LB Icon.

Top companies for which new media communications plays a strategic role has already chosen IconMedialab, such as Alitalia, Arca SGR, Blockbuster, Boscolo Group, Cattolica Assicurazioni, Class Editori, Coca-Cola HBC Italia, Coca-Cola Italia, Coming Soon Television, Esselunga, Energia S.p.A., ESA - European Space Agency, Gruppo Sanofi Aventis, H3G, IULM, Janssen-Cilag, Mediaset, Pirelli, Prada, RAINet, SAES Getters, Star Alimentare, Tamoil, Trenitalia Divisione Cargo, Vortice.

IconMedialab has been active in Italy since 1999, thanks to the acquisition of the first Italian Internet company founded by Marco Tosi, currently President&CEO of IconMedialab Italia. The Italian company, based in Milan, employs a total of 80 people.

Contact:

Marco Davide
FatWire Italia
marco.davide@fatwire.com
+39-02-44577001

Costanza Mastrovalerio
Digital strategy
costanza.mastrovalerio@iconmedialab.it
+39 02 48042.1