Exhibit 99.1
Contacts:
David Wonderling Melissa Maughan
Motient Hill and Knowlton
703.176.6375 202.944.5138
[email protected] [email protected]
TMI COMMUNICATIONS AND MOTIENT CORPORATION ANNOUNCE
PLANS TO FORM NEW MOBILE SATELLITE VENTURE
North America's Leading Operators of Mobile Satellite Networks
To Merge Satellite Operations
RESTON, VA. and OTTAWA, ON. -- January 16, 2000-- Motient Corporation
(NASDAQ: MTNT) and TMI Communications and Company, L.P. today announced the
signing of a definitive agreement, subject to certain conditions, to merge
Motient Satellite Ventures with TMI to serve customers all over the North
American Continent. Last summer Motient announced the formation of Motient
Satellite Ventures in partnership with three of the nation's leading private
equity investors, Columbia Capital, Spectrum Equity Investors, and Telcom
Ventures, LLC.
Following regulatory approvals, the partnership will bring about a complete
merger of the two companies' mobile satellite operations, along with US$50
million of new investment from the financial partners in Motient Satellite
Ventures, increasing their aggregate ownership from 20 percent to 40 percent.
The newly formed company, called Mobile Satellite Ventures (MSV), will bring
together the technology and the resources required to create the next generation
of mobile satellite services in North America. The new satellite system will use
a highly innovative and spectrum efficient combination of spot beam satellites
and fill-in terrestrial base stations.
"As pioneers in the mobile satellite business, we are convinced that a
satellite-only system is ideal for rural and remote areas, and with terrestrial
enhancements can also be affordable and competitive in urban communities," said
Gary M. Parsons, chairman of Motient. "The techniques employed by the proposed
system represent a breakthrough in satellite-terrestrial spectrum management,
and hold substantial promise for the development of a viable mass market for
mobile satellite services."
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"This joint venture between North America's two leading mobile satellite
operators will benefit everyone," said Larry Boisvert, president and CEO of TMI
Communications. "By consolidating our operations and our expertise, the company
formed by this union can operate profitably, provide better customer service,
and develop exciting new applications and services in the years to come."
Services to the two companies existing customers will operate normally and will
seamlessly be integrated into the new company's operations. Once regulatory
approvals are secured, TMI and Motient will consolidate certain of their
operating facilities to maximize the operating efficiencies the merger provides.
About TMI Communications
TMI Communications & Company, L.P. (www.tmisolutions.com) is a leading North
American developer and supplier of mobile satellite communications services,
delivering a full portfolio of wireless digital data, voice, fax and dispatch
radio applications from the powerful MSAT-1 satellite. Headquartered in Ottawa,
Ontario, TMI Communications is a member of the BCE Media group and a wholly
owned subsidiary of BCE Inc., one of the world's premier telecommunications
companies.
About Motient
Motient (www.motient.com) owns and operates an integrated terrestrial/satellite
network and provides a wide range of two-way mobile and Internet communications
services principally to business-to-business customers and enterprises. The
company provides eLinkSM two-way wireless email service to customers accessing
email through corporate servers, Internet Service Provider (ISP) and Mail
Service Provider (MSP) accounts, and paging network suppliers. Motient serves a
variety of markets including mobile professionals, telemetry, transportation,
field service, and nationwide voice dispatch offering coverage to all 50 states,
Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and hundreds of miles of U. S. coastal
waters.
# # #
Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the
forward-looking statements in this news release are described in Motient
Corporation's registration statement on Form S-3 (File No. 333-42104) and in
Motient's annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 1999 and
its other periodic filings and reports with the Securities and Exchange
Commission. Copies of such reports and filings are available upon request from
Motient Corporation's Investor Relations Department.
Motient Corporation will hold a conference call at 10:00 AM (EST) today to
provide a briefing and answer questions about the Motient and TMI press release
issued this morning. The following information is required to access the call.
Conference call number
800 289-0437
Access Code
466094
Replay call number
888 203-1112
