With the launch of the SpeechMail and SpeecHTML services in the US market, Vocalis now announces the signing of a contract with Shared Network Services (SNS), the providers of 1stpage.com®.

SNS will offer SpeechMail to its Premier Merchant customers nationwide. Free Merchants and Shoppers can receive the same service for a monthly subscription. Vocalis SpeechMail will allow SNS customers to call and hear their e-mails from any telephone, anywhere, as well as being able to reply, delete and skip to the next message.

Based in Lodi, California, SNS is one of the fastest growing providers of build-your-own web site tools and services for small to mid-sized businesses. Its flagship product, 1stpage.com®, offers a full range of services conveniently bundled for customers and wholesalers. 1stpage.com® allows any size business to quickly set up shop online and easily maintain a full e-commerce web site.

"Vocalis' SpeechMail provides us with a valuable addition to our product portfolio," said Peter Westbrook, founder and President of SNS. "Small business owners are looking for a quick and easy method of accessing their e-mails while travelling or just away from the business. SpeechMail will be a working asset for all of our 1stpage.com customers, regardless of whether they even have a computer."

"The success of SpeechMail during 1999, with its adoption by scores of ISP's in the UK, and its day to day use by many thousands of their subscribers, has made its nationwide launch across the US the next strategic step for us." said Mike Williams, President of Vocalis Inc. "In 2000, we anticipate SpeechMail being adopted and put into widespread use in the US, in what is the world's largest Internet market, just as rapidly and successfully as in the UK."