PocketGear Acquires Handango, Creating the World's Largest Cross Platform, Open App Store

PocketGear, Inc. today announced the acquisition of
Handango, the leading provider of smartphone applications globally, creating the world's largest
cross platform, open app store and content marketplace with a catalog of more than 140,000 paid
and free titles that are available for discovery and download by the more than 4 billion
consumers worldwide using Android®, Symbian OS®, BlackBerry®, Windows Mobile®, Palm®,
Linux, and Java® powered mobile devices. PocketGear and Handango are the two largest
independent app stores and combined to date have generated over $400 million in mobile
application revenues from customers living in more than 175 countries and using over 2,000
With the acquisition, PocketGear's mobile app marketplace has been expanded to connect more
than 32,000 developers in the PocketGear Developer Program with over 40 PocketGear-
powered storefront and distribution partners, including 4 of the world's top 5 handset
manufacturers, 4 of the top 5 mobile operators in the US, 3 of the top 10 mobile operators
globally, and leading media and ecommerce companies including Samsung, LG, Sony Ericsson,
Research in Motion, Microsoft, T-Mobile, AT&T, and Verizon Wireless. The reach of
PocketGear's direct to consumer app stores has also expanded to include the largest
independent app store, Handango.com, joining PocketGear's app store network that includes
PocketGear.com, Mobile2Day.de, SymbianGear.com, AndroidGear.com, RIMGear.com,
Smartphone.net, and PalmGear.com. In addition, more than 1,000 app developers are now using
PocketGear's developer storefront solutions to market and sell their mobile apps directly to
consumers from their own websites and other marketing channels.
Upon closing, Jud Bowman will remain as President and CEO of PocketGear and Alex Bloom,
current chief executive of Handango, will become Chief Operating Officer of PocketGear.
"Our vision is to facilitate an open app store ecosystem that supports every mobile device, every
application, and every carrier network globally," said Jud Bowman, President and CEO of
PocketGear. "By combining the two largest independent app store companies, we're creating
significantly more scale and value for all of the stakeholders in the open app store ecosystem."
Bowman added, "Handset manufacturers, carriers, and media companies now have a single
marketplace where they can quickly and easily connect with developers, source a catalog of apps
developed specifically for their supported devices, and create a branded, revenue generating
storefront and app discovery engine that works across all devices, platforms, geographies, and
"This is an exciting time in the app store market and we're thrilled to be joining forces with
PocketGear," said Alex Bloom, CEO of Handango. "As we increase our scale, not only can we
further accelerate speed to market of new devices and applications in a rapidly changing
marketplace, but we're also better positioned to help our distribution and developer partners
increase the overall revenues per download from both paid and free apps."
PocketGear was represented in this transaction by Kip Johnson of Womble Carlyle Sandridge &
PocketGear is the world's largest cross platform, open app store and content marketplace with a
catalog of more than 140,000 paid and free titles available for discovery and download. To date,
PocketGear has generated over $400 million in mobile application revenues for the more than
32,000 developers in the PocketGear Developer Program. PocketGear powers storefront and
content solutions for over 40 partners, including 4 of the world's top 5 handset manufacturers, 4
of the top 5 mobile operators in the US, 3 of the top 10 mobile operators globally, and leading
media and ecommerce companies, including Samsung, LG, Sony Ericsson, Research in Motion,
Microsoft, T-Mobile, AT&T, and Verizon Wireless. In addition, PocketGear operates the largest
network of independent app stores, including Handango.com, PocketGear.com, Mobile2Day.de,
SymbianGear.com, AndroidGear.com, RIMGear.com, Smartphone.net, and PalmGear.com.
PocketGear is headquartered in Durham, NC with offices in Munich, Germany and Irving, TX.
For more information, please visit http://corp.pocketgear.com.
Handango is the leading provider of smartphone applications globally for the BlackBerry®,
Palm®, Windows Mobile®, Symbian OS®, and Linux platforms. Leveraging its 140,000+ apps,
network of 23,000+ content partners, and vast distribution network, Handango delivers top-selling
mobile applications including games, business and entertainment apps and productivity tools to
millions of consumers. Applications can be downloaded via www.handango.com, partner Web
sites, SD cards and Handango's proprietary on-device catalog, InHand, the industry's leading
content delivery platform that allows consumers to purchase mobile apps directly from their
smartphone and download them over the air. Handango's unparalleled content expertise has
attracted numerous mobile industry partners, including Microsoft, Verizon Wireless, T-Mobile,
Alltel, AT&T, 3UK, LG, SoftBank, Sony Ericsson, Samsung, Best Buy, The CarPhone
Warehouse, CNET, and AOL.