Hearst Magazines Introduces Mobile Solutions for Women over 35 Partnering with Crisp Wireless to Target an Underserved Segment

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Hearst Magazines, one of the world’s largest publishers of monthly magazines, today announced the launch of three mobile ventures targeting women age 35+ in partnership with Crisp Wireless, a mobile technology and services company. Good Housekeeping, House Beautiful and Redbook made-for-mobile Web sites are now available in the U.S. at http://M.redbookmag.com, http://M.goodhousekeeping.com and http://M.housebeautiful.com. Each site provides valuable, time-saving content, with interactive, mobile-only tools like calculators, quizzes, downloadable wallpapers, user-generated contributions and comprehensive search facilities.

“Hearst’s brands, paired with our technology platform, will focus on the user’s experience, resulting in an increase in mobile Web usage among women.”

“Today, women live action-packed, on-the-go lives, and a mobile phone has become ‘home base,’” said Stacy Morrison, Redbook editor-in-chief. “Cell phones are how a woman stays connected to friends and family, keeps herself organized, and now, with our new mobile sites, she’ll be able to use her phone to actually make her life easier – whether that means finding last-minute recipes at the supermarket, getting ideas for fun, flirty things to do with her guy or quickly looking up the best way to get gum out of her kid’s hair. The goal is to meet women where they are living their lives every day, and more and more, that means on the run, with a cell phone at the ready."

Both the Redbook and Good Housekeeping mobile sites offer a library of recipes, complete with grocery lists and nutrition facts, as well as diet and exercise tips. Two unique Redbook features are “Time for You Tips,” with ideas on how to make the most of your private moments and “Mommy Strategies,” with advice on how to stop a tantrum, teach good manners, and more. User suggestions are encouraged for both sections with talk-to-us technology. Good Housekeeping mobile has a searchable list of every product that carries the Good Housekeeping seal, an exercise calculator and expert advice on everything from tipping to travel. House Beautiful’s “Design Dictionary” offers decorating definitions, while a paint calculator determines the quantity needed to cover a room. Redbook and House Beautiful’s sites also feature branded mobile stories, both fiction and non-fiction: Redbook’s “Infertility Diaries” and House Beautiful’s “Interior Tales” are the first to go live.

Chuck Cordray, vice president and general manager of Hearst Magazines Digital Media, explained the strategy: “Through research we found that 25% of our readers now have mobile Web-enabled cell phones but have not yet found what they are looking for. Much like the Internet was ten years ago, today is a new world on the mobile front, and it’s one with clear potential, if the content and delivery are right. To support this strategy, we selected Crisp Wireless for their proven technology platform and robust experience in creating a meaningful mobile experience for the end-user.”

Crisp Wireless has extensive experience in building mobile web sites for print publishers, newspapers and major media companies, all of which leverage their proprietary technology platform, mLogic Media™. mLogic Media has many advanced features including robust device detection and handset optimization, resulting in the best consumer experience. Other mLogic features include rich media transcoding and delivery, ad serving and enhanced reporting.

“Hearst Magazines is providing women on-the-go with useful mobile information and services, filling a void in the marketplace for functional, female-oriented content,” said Mary Park, vice president, business development at Crisp Wireless. “Hearst’s brands, paired with our technology platform, will focus on the user’s experience, resulting in an increase in mobile Web usage among women.”

Hearst is launching on and off-deck sites and has agreements in place with most Tier I U.S. carriers, including AT&T/Cingular, Sprint, and Verizon.

About Hearst Magazines

Hearst Magazines Digital Media is the online unit of Hearst Magazines, one of the world’s largest publishers of monthly magazines, with a total of 19 U.S. titles and nearly 200 international editions. Hearst Magazines, a unit of The Hearst Corporation (www.hearst.com) reaches more adults in the U.S. than any other publisher of monthly magazines (73.4 million according to MRI, fall 2006). The company also publishes 19 magazines in the United Kingdom through its wholly owned subsidiary, The National Magazine Company Limited.

About Crisp Wireless

Crisp Wireless offers technology solutions and services for consumer facing companies that want to extend their brand onto mobile devices. Crisp Wireless’ core product, the mLogic™ platform enables companies to efficiently deploy mobile web sites that offer rich media features including audio and video, commerce solutions to sell ringtones, wallpapers and subscriptions, text messaging, and integrated data feeds for content management. Leveraging mLogic's extensive device database, sites are optimized based on unique handsets and carrier capabilities offering consumers the ultimate browsing experience. Crisp Wireless customers are major media companies and publishers including USA Today, Tribune Interactive, NBC Universal, Bravo Cable Network and Paramount Pictures. For more information, please contact info@crispwireless.com or visit the company web site at www.crispwireless.com.