VANCOUVER, B.C., April 28, 2003 (PRIMEZONE) -- VendTek Systems Inc. (TSX Venture Exchange:VSI) ("VendTek" or "The Company"), a leading provider of automated transaction technology, is pleased to announce that Tangarine Concepts Corporation ("Tangarine") has launched its Now Prepay terminals into service and has ordered an additional 100 client licenses for immediate delivery.
Tangarine has already launched more than 50 POS terminals into operation with the Now Prepay software client. These terminals are now generating daily transactions and Tangarine is adding more terminals weekly. Tangarine is offering the Now Prepay services to its existing customer base allowing their more than 2,000 customers to sell electronic prepaid services. This provides greater access to services in a market as large as Ontario and enables their customers to be on the leading edge of product and service options.
"The ease of integration and the value-add of the Now Prepay clients has prompted Tangarine to order additional client licenses. The first clients deployed have been well received by their customers," said Paul Brock, President of VendTek Systems Inc. "Tangarine is one of our most important business partners and we are very happy with their quick adoption of our products."
According to the Canadian Wireless Telecommunications Association there are just over 10 million Canadian cellular subscribers of which there are approximately 2.6 million prepaid users. These numbers are forecast to grow to 16 million Canadian cellular subscribers and 5 million prepaid users by 2004. The Canadian market for cellular phone time recharges is expected to reach $800 million annually by 2004. Likewise, the market for prepaid long distance is expected to increase to $500 million by 2004.
Now Prepay is joining forces with POS terminal distributors and transaction processing organizations to integrate VendTek's e-Fresh(tm) software with debit card and credit card processing software. The combined applications will provide a value added application to the channels presently served by physical cards for prepaid telecom services. Given the anticipated future discontinuation of costly physical cards by Canadian Cellco's, VendTek, through Now Prepay, is poised to capture a significant share of the electronic distribution of prepaid services market in Canada.
The client licenses allow Tangarine and their customers to connect their POS terminals with Now Prepay's e-Fresh(tm) server. This enables POS terminals to provide the re-sale of prepaid long distance and wireless services through the electronic network. Tangarine has built a Canadian coast-to-coast network of small to medium sized businesses using their systems.
Tangarine has approximately 3,000 POS terminals installed to-date, and is growing at a rate of 200 terminals per month. They operate through a corporate and distributor network. In addition to providing merchants with a debit / credit transaction processing platform, activated merchants will now be able to sell their customers prepaid electronic products and services in real time, directly from electronic inventory that resides on Now Prepay's server. Products will initially include prepaid cellular and prepaid long distance time. Other services such as money transfer could be made available in the future.
For more information, or to receive news and updates as they become available, please contact Samantha Haynes at 604.940.2239.
About VendTek (www.vendteksys.com / www.nowprepay.com)
VendTek Systems Inc. engineers, markets and sells e-Fresh(tm), which is an electronic distribution software for prepaid telecommunication and financial services. Commercialization of e-Fresh(tm) under license is VendTek's strategy to create sustainable and recurring revenues.
VendTek's customers and its subsidiaries, Now Prepay Corp. and VendTek Systems Technologies (Beijing), are using e-Fresh(tm) software to build electronic, prepaid services networks which enable consumers to purchase prepaid services via POS and self-serve terminals connected to a central server. This system creates significant value through improved efficiencies compared to the traditional distribution paradigm. e-Fresh(tm) reduces shrinkage and inventory requirements while improving consumer access to prepaid services since it is completely electronic and eliminates physical cards and vouchers. About Tangarine Concepts Corporation
Tangarine operates as an equipment and software applications marketer for financial payment solutions, including bankcards and credit cards at the Point-Of-Sale (POS) with transactions processed through BCE Emergis and equipment supplied by Ingenico. Tangarine sells and supports its terminals directly and through distributors and offers purchase and placement options programs to its merchants. For more information on Tangarine please contact Keith Turner, President, at (905) 684 8867 or keith@tangarineconcepts.com
This release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the "safe harbor'' provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements are based on management's current expectations and beliefs and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements. The Company assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking information contained in this news release.
The TSX Venture Exchange has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.