Harvey Norman & Dick Smith to sell
SkyNetGlobal powerline products
SYDNEY 5th August 2003, SkyNetGlobal (ASX: SKG), a leading provider of wireless broadband
solutions, today announced the signing of an exclusive distributorship agreement with Smart
Connect (Wholesale) Pty Ltd, to distribute SkyNetGlobal’s Corinex range of powerline networking
products to major retail chains such as Harvey Norman and DickSmith.
Smart Connect is Australia’s leading distributor of home networking and automation products to
the retail sector. Its product range includes Gigafast’s powerline Ethernet adapters and a range of
X10 home automation products. Smart Connect presently distributes these products to most of
Australia’s major retail chains such as Dicksmith, Tandy, Harvey Norman and Domanye, who
combined have a retail distribution network of more than 480 stores nation wide.
Under the agreement, Smart Connect will replace Gigafast’s powerline Ethernet adapters with the
complete range of Corinex’s powerline networking products including the 802.11 b wireless access
point. The Corinex Ethernet and USB adapters will be sold at a retail price of $199 each including
GST, with pricing for the other products to be finalised soon.
Smart Connect expects to sell 7000 units by June 2004, solely to the retail sector, growing to
10,000 units by June 2005. SkyNetGlobal’s partnership with Smart Connect will establish Corinex
as the number one selling Home Plug (the powerline industry’s Standards Alliance) certified
networking product in Australia, with an estimated 90% market share of the powerline home
networking sector.
"Our research estimates the Australian powerline market to be worth A$4 million in 2004 growing
to A$10 million per annum in 2008 as the number of households owning more than one computer
continues to increase. The advantages of using powerline technology for home networking are the
ubiquity of electrical outlets, no new wires, high data rates and cost effectiveness. Compared to
WiFi as an alternate for home networking, powerline technology is more secured and provides
longer signal range (up to 300m)." said Frost & Sullivan.
The CEO of SkyNetGlobal, Jonathan Soon said, "The partnership with Smart Connect is a
significant milestone to SkyNetGlobal’s plan of achieving number one market share in Australia’s
powerline home networking sector. Today’s agreement has exceeded our expectations in terms of
timing and sales forecast for our powerline business."
The Managing Director of Smart Connect, Peter McCook said: "SkyNetGlobal’s Corinex powerline
products offer consumers a diverse range of networking options unmatched by no other vendor.
We are excited about the prospects of our partnership and look forward to a long term successful
relationship with SkyNetGlobal."
More information about Corinex powerline products
Powerline technology allows the utilisation of existing electrical wires to create Local Area Network
connectivity between multiple computers, and to share printers and internet connections from any
power socket in a premise. Corinex intelligent powerline products can transmit data, audio, video
and VoIP signals over electricity wires at speeds up to 14 Mbps at distances of up to 200 metres.
As most commercial premises and homes already have
existing electricity wiring, the convenience and cost benefits
of using powerline technology are significant, in comparison
to laying new cables for traditional networking products.
Setting up a powerline network is as simple as plugging two
Corinex Ethernet or USB adapters into two separate 240v
power sockets within an office or home.
One of the most expensive parts of
deploying a wireless hotspot is the
cabling cost of connecting the
wireless transmitter to the switch
where internet access is provided.
By using the Corinex Wireless
Powerline solution, hotspot
operators can reduce infrastructure
costs by at least 50% using the
existing electricity wiring of a
hotspot location.
For detailed information on Corinex products, please visit our website at www.skynetglobal.com.
ABOUT SKYNETGLOBAL
Listed on the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX: SKG) and headquartered in Sydney, SkyNetGlobal
is a leading innovator of wireless broadband solutions specialising in 802.11 wireless (WiFi) &
Home Plug powerline technologies. SkyNetGlobal’s solutions include a global remote access
service called "Connector" providing internet connectivity to 1000 wireless hotspots worldwide, and
W Home, a smart home system designed to deliver efficiency, convenience and cost savings for
apartment dwellers, offering wireless broadband telecommunications and services.
ABOUT SMART CONNECT
Smart Connect is Australia’s leading distributor of home networking and automation products to
the retail sector. Its product range includes Corinex powerline and a range of X10 home
automation products. Smart Connect ‘s trading partners includes most of Australia’s major retail
chains such as Dicksmith, Tandy, Harvey Norman and Domanye, who combined have a retail
distribution network of more than 480 stores nation wide.
ABOUT FROST & SULLIVAN
Frost & Sullivan employs over 500 consultants, market analysts, corporate trainers, account
managers and customer support staff globally. They work together in providing growth consulting
and corporate training solutions to clients in more than 50 countries around the world. For more
information, please visit their website at www.frost.com.
ABOUT CORINEX COMMUNICATIONS
Corinex (www.corinex.com) is a developer and manufacturer of innovative connectivity products
for the expansion of the accessibility and distribution of high speed data, audio, video and voice
signals to and within premises and a provider of system integration services to industries world
wide. The Corinex R&D team develops a unique and full-range solution for wired and wireless
connections, using the electrical wires as the network backbone for the end user. Corinex provides
integrated, end-to-end connectivity solutions that meet the diversified needs of its customers over
a common IP-based technology platform.
SKG
skynetglobal limited