TARA Press Release:

News ReleaseFor Immediate Release

Halifax - The Telecom Applications Research Alliance (TARA) is putting its money where its mouth is.

Founded in August 1995 to stimulate the development of new telecommunications products and services, TARA has agreed to purchase $80,000 worth of stock in InfoInterActive, one of 20 member companies within the TARA organization. TARA has agreed to purchase 100,000 shares at .80 per share in a private placement, pending regulatory approval. Bedford-based InfoInterActive (IIA) is traded on the Alberta Stock Exchange.

InfoInterActive Inc. is currently developing a variety of network-based enhanced services through the integration of telephony, Internet and wireless data technologies.

"Providing technical and financial assistance to a company such as InfoInterActive is an excellent example of TARA's capacity to accelerate a product's entry into the international marketplace," says TARA President Brian Penney. "TARA is making this investment because we believe in the future of the Internet, and the importance of increased functionality between the Internet and telephony."

Scheduled for release in the first half of 1997, InfoInterActive's product, Internet Call Manager, will receive the full benefit of the $80,000 infusion. This product will enable an Internet user to monitor incoming calls while maintaining his/her Internet connection, thereby maximizing the usefulness of a single phone line. Important calls can be taken, while other calls can be routed to either voice mail or to another phone number. The service will be offered at an estimated cost of $5 to $6 per month.

InfoInterActive is using TARA's own private telephone network to refine Internet Call Manager. "The advanced facilities available through TARA provide InfoInterActive with a distinct competitive advantage which allows us to develop and test this high-value application prior to full commercialization on live public networks," says InfoInterActive President Bill McMullin. "Few companies get the chance to explore and innovate using the immense capabilities of the NorTel DMS-100 SuperNode."

Located at TARA's Halifax offices, the DMS-100 is a rarity because there are very few other large-scale telephone switching machines in the world on which one can test telecom applications.

TARA assists telecommunications-oriented companies in the development and exploitation of new technologies and services for the rapidly evolving information highway. Founders Northern Telecom (NorTel) and Maritime Tel & Tel donated the equipment, facilities and seed capital, and ACOA and InNovacorp contributed $4.1 million over five years through the Canada/Nova Scotia Agreement on Technology Development.

TARA: Brian Penney, President (902) 421-6000
bpenney@tara.ca * Web site: http://www.tara.ca

InfoInterActive: Bill McMullin, President 1-800-270-1014
bill@interactive.ca * Web site: http://www.interactive.ca

The Alberta Stock Exchange has neither approved nor disapproved of the information contained herein.