2 June 2008 - FSBM Holdings Bhd, an information technology service and systems provider, aims to spread its UNOS mobile phone software to the Middle East and the US.

The group, through its multimedia and communications arm which offers the software, has operations in Australia, China, Hong Kong and Singapore.

“We are actively in talks with people in the US and are close to finalizing the deal. We also received interest from the Middle East and Europe during the recent WCIT (World Congress of Information Technology 2008).” UNOS chief executive office Michael Ta said at a media briefing in Petaling Jaya yesterday.

The flagship product, UNOS PRO, is a virtual subscriber identity module allowing free short messaging service (SMS) worldwide and cheaper international rates for mobile phone users who are subscribers.

“We have close to 50,000 active users from 120 countries, with roughly 40 per cent coming from Malaysia,” he said.

Although the rollout of its services in China has been delayed, Ta is sticking to the company’s initial target of 1.5 million individual users globally by the year-end.

“The base in China is huge, with roughly 500 million mobile phone subscribers there.”

Ta said that about 20 enterprises are using UNOS PRO. The company is in talks with another 30 enterprises globally, in sectors such as insurance and banking, as well as multinationals and religious communities.

The prospective deals range in value from RM5,000 to RM500,000 each depending on the services to be provided.