CommTouch to Tap Fast-Growing Korean E-Mail Market

Web-based e-mail provider CommTouch Software Inc made its debut in the Korean market by
joining forces with Korea’s Pacific Network.

Pacific Network, a consulting firm specializing in overseas marketing of
information systems, software and hardware, announced last week that
CommTouch Software has signed a contract with the company to provide
Web-based free e-mail service. Other related services include instant messaging and e-mail-to-pager service in Korea.

“We will focus on a marketing strategy of providing a more diversified
e-mail service than the existing e-mail service providers,” said Lim Soo
Hyun, president of Pacific Network. “We expect that CommTouch’s e-mail
solutions will receive favorable response from corporate clients who are
considering offering their customers free e-mail service via their
websites.”

CommTouch Software’s entry into the Korean market is expected to trigger
tougher competition in the local e-mail service market, which is growing
at a faster clip than the number of Net users and Internet advertising
revenues.

At present, the number of web-based free e-mail IDs owned by Korean
Internet users is estimated at around 15 million. This figure is nearly
2.5-times the number of Internet users in Korea, estimated at 6.3 million
by last October.

So far, Daum Communications has been leading the Korean web-based free
e-mail service market with 3.6 million registered users. It is followed
by Netian which has secured about 1 million registered users. And other
Internet portals such as Yahoo! Korea, Naver and Lycos Korea are also
providing free e-mail services.

“I think that free e-mail service has greatly contributed to establishing
the nation’s Web communities as well as expanding the number of Internet
users. As an important means for communication, free e-mail will gain an
explosive popularity among the general public along with increasing
number of Internet users in Korea,” said Lee Jae-Woong, president of Daum
Communications.