FOR BLUESKYTALK, USERPLANE HELPS LANGUAGE-LEARNERS

[SalesManager]

FOR BLUESKYTALK, USERPLANE HELPS LANGUAGE-LEARNERS CONNECT ONLINE WITH FLASH-BASED VIDEO CHAT AND INSTANT MESSAGING CAPABILITIES

Users Seeking Second Language Proficiency Can Go Straight to the Source,
Via Userplane Community Suite

LOS ANGELES (Jan. 25, 2005) – Userplane, a pioneer in providing enterprise social software for online communities, today announced the deployment of its multi-user Web chat room system and its one-to-one A/V instant messaging solution on new language site BlueSkyTalk (www.blueskytalk.com), helping those learning a language practice by communicating with each other online, anywhere around the globe.
BlueSkyTalk enables language-learners to have online conversations with native speakers worldwide, to hone their everyday conversation skills or to practice at either a technical or a business level. Members serve as tutors for each other – paying a fee as the learner and earning a commission as the teacher. The site currently offers French and both British and American English, and plans to expand to include Spanish, German and Italian by the end of this year.
Userplane’s Community Suite enables BlueSkyTalk’s members to participate in realistic online conversations, helping them bridge the miles and truly communicate and practice another language. Userplane Web Chat provides members with a text-based chat room as a place to meet language partners, while Userplane Instant Communicator supports one-on-one audio/video or keyboard-based conversations.
“We were looking for instant messaging, audio and webcam software solutions to integrate into our site, and nothing came close to the reliable, off-the-shelf, plug-and-play nature of the Userplane solutions,” said Cameron Barnett, managing director of BlueSkyTalk. “They’re scaleable and easy to use, with very few language requirements for integrating and using them. The service has been very professional and helpful, and the staff has been approachable and quick to respond.”
“This is an imaginative way to put our online communication tools to use, and a strong endorsement of the quality of conversation that our audio/video solutions enable,” said Michael Jones, president of Userplane. “BlueSkyTalk’s innovative approach to language-learning shows how far online communication has come. When in-person interaction isn’t possible, our online audio/video tools provide an excellent solution.”

Facilitating Global Communication
Part of Userplane’s Community Suite, Userplane Web Chat and Userplane Instant Communicator provide Flash-based chat room and instant messaging capabilities to community, dating, corporate and collaborative websites. They work seamlessly on any website, require no special plug-ins besides the ubiquitous Macromedia Flash, instantly recognize any Webcam without the need for tricky configuration, provide full compatibility with modem and broadband connections and have easily customizable interfaces.
Userplane Apps are seamlessly integrated with existing user databases, login systems, and buddy lists through fast and simple XML and any web scripting language: PHP, .NET, ASP, ColdFusion, XML, JSP, etc. The Userplane Instant Communicator and Web Chat applications feature foreign language support including non-roman characters including Korean, Japanese, Chinese, Russian, Arabic and Hebrew.
Like Userplane’s other tool in its Community Suite – Userplane Web Recorder -- Userplane Web Chat and Userplane Instant Communicator allow full website administrative control and customization for each deployment to match the business model and branding of the site.

About Userplane

Based in Los Angeles, Userplane is the premier provider of enterprise social software for online communities. Userplane Apps are elegant, easy to use, and rapidly deployed Web-based applications. Leveraging Macromedia Flash, the Apps are lightweight, cross-platform with no user installation, and customizable for a site's specific needs. Userplane Apps are deployed internationally on sites ranging from online communities to intranets. The application suite reaches tens of millions of users and supports more than three million live conversations a month in twelve countries. Userplane continues to provide forward-thinking Web and software development for industry-leading clients including Red Bull, Honda and 1-800 Flowers.

Note to editors: High-resolution Web or print Userplane Application screenshots are available at http://www.userplane.com/partner/press.cfm