NeuStar Acquires Followap, UK-based Enabler of Mobile IM Services in Europe and Asia

NeuStar Acquires Followap, UK-based Enabler of Mobile IM Services in Europe and Asia

November 28, 2006

Schedules Conference Call, Web Cast at 5 P.M. EST Today

    STERLING, Va., Nov. 28 /Xinhua-PRNewswire/ -- NeuStar,
Inc. (NYSE: NSR), a provider of essential communications
services to the global communications and Internet
industry, announced today that it has acquired Followap,
Inc., a UK-based leading provider of mobile instant
messaging (IM) products in Europe and Asia, for
approximately $139 million in cash.  NeuStar projects
Followap revenue to exceed $25 million in 2007 and to more
than double in 2008.  NeuStar affirmed the 2006 full-year
guidance issued on November 2, 2006, and confirmed that the
acquisition of Followap did not impact its 2006 guidance.

    Followap is a leading provider of next-generation
communications solutions for network operators, delivering
interoperability between operators and Internet portals in
five different functional areas: instant messaging,
presence, multimedia gateways, inter-carrier messaging
hubs, and services for handset clients.  Working with
Europe's leading mobile and fixed-line operators, Followap
has a customer base of 17 mobile network operators (MNOs)
that have over 160 million subscribers.  Customers, such as
Vodafone, Turkcell, 3 Group (Hutchison), Wind and Mobinil,
all rely on Followap to provide them with innovative
solutions to implement the operator-based, Personal IM
service, as well as to provide mobile access to leading
Internet IM portals. 

    Followap also works closely with leading Internet
service providers (ISPs) and specializes in seamlessly
connecting mobile subscribers to their favorite
portal-based instant messaging applications, in addition to
network operator-based services such as Personal IM. 
Followap's advanced IM client solutions have recently been
adopted by leading handset manufacturers.  The GSM
Association has identified Personal IM as a pan-industry,
mobile operator-hosted, messaging service that is a
critical complement and an upgrade to existing mobile
messaging services, including text and multimedia messaging
and telephone-number based presence.  Personal IM will
enhance services and capabilities for over 1.2 billion
mobile messaging users globally -- the largest, fully
interoperable user community, short of voice telephony,
which generates over $60 billion in revenues for mobile
operators and sends over 1 trillion messages per year.  As
announced at the annual GSMA's 3GSM World Congress 2006 in
Barcelona, Personal IM is scheduled for a coordinated
mobile industry launch starting in the first quarter of
2007 across major European and Asian markets.

    Strategy Behind Acquisition 

    The Followap acquisition expands NeuStar's platform for
growth, especially in mobile, IP and international markets. 
Followap furthers NeuStar's strategy by extending and
complementing our current beachhead initiatives in new
growth markets such as the GSM Association root DNS
service, the acquisition of UltraDNS and the development of
the SIP-IX service.  

    First, Followap brings a large community of new
customers outside of North America.  Second, it makes
NeuStar essential to a new, fast growing service for the
wireless industry.  And, third, it enables NeuStar to solve
immediate infrastructure challenges the MNOs face in
delivering advanced, IP-based services.  

    Followap will form the core of NeuStar's Next
Generation Messaging group and will complement NeuStar's
SIP-IX suite of interoperability product offerings and
services.  Combined with NeuStar's technology depth, the
Followap service and product suite will enable network
operators worldwide to provide mobile instant messaging to
their subscribers across networks and ISPs.

    With the addition of Followap, NeuStar's new mobile IM
solution suite will now support:

    * Multimedia messaging and real-time communications
    * Mobile phone number-based addressing
    * Presence as well as soft-state availability
information; turning the 
      handset phonebook into a buddy list
    * Cross-carrier chat sessions and group messaging
    * Location-based information services using presence
technology
    * Seamless interoperability amongst operators and
backward compatibility
      with existing mobile messaging services

    Commentary from Company Executives & Industry
Observers

    Jeff Ganek, NeuStar's Chairman and Chief Executive
Officer said, "Strong demand is emerging worldwide for
Instant Messaging, and leading mobile network operators in
Europe already depend on Followap's products to deliver IM.
 Mobile network operators can rely on NeuStar and Followap
for the necessary technical and service quality to support
their growing IM volumes.  By enabling IM, NeuStar will
build on Followap's strengths to deliver essential
infrastructure services in Europe and Asia."

    Dotan Volach, Followap's Chief Executive Officer added,
"We are pleased to join the NeuStar team.  NeuStar's
next generation services, including SIP-IX, support and
extend Followap's products, and will enable the combined
company to become the leading provider of infrastructure
services essential to delivering IP data services over
mobile networks."

    "NeuStar wrote a number of the key next-generation
technology standards, such as the SIP protocol, as well as
the ENUM-like directory standards for accessing phone
number-based routing and mobile number portability data
critical for IM interoperability," said Mark Foster,
NeuStar CTO.  Foster continued, "Followap brings
operator class-leading next-generation messaging products
that, alongside NeuStar's track record as a trusted
provider of essential interoperability, directory, and
managed services, position us collectively to support the
full spectrum of industry needs for these vital services. 
The combination will offer messaging, presence, dynamic
routing, and interworking services to network operators and
internet portal providers around the globe."

    According to Pete Nuthall, Mobile & Wireless
Industry Analyst of Frost & Sullivan Europe,
"Mobile IM is the next major global messaging revenue
opportunity, as it represents both the functional evolution
of SMS and has an existing 1 billion plus global SMS user
base into which it will grow.  Followap is a world leader
in mobile IM applications, presence, and inter-carrier
messaging.  NeuStar's unique capabilities include
deciphering and interpreting billions of connections
initiated by thousands of service providers each day in a
neutral and efficient manner.  Combining the two is a
significant win for the industry."

    Conference Call

    NeuStar, Inc. will conduct an investor conference call
to discuss the company's acquisition of Followap, Inc.
today at 5:00 p.m. (Eastern).  Investors may access the
conference call over the Internet via the Investor
Relations tab of the company's website
(http://www.NeuStar.biz), or via telephone by dialing
800-817-4887 (international callers dial [phone]) a
few minutes prior to register.  Those listening via the
Internet should go to the site 15 minutes early to
register, download and install any necessary audio
software.  For those who cannot listen to the live
broadcast, a replay of the call will be available through
Monday, December 4, 2006 (Midnight Eastern Time) by dialing
888-203-1112  (international callers dial [phone])
and entering replay PIN 9653748, or by going to the
Investor Relations tab of the company's website
(http://www.NeuStar.biz).

    NeuStar, Inc. will take live questions from securities
analysts and institutional portfolio managers; the complete
call is open to all other interested parties on a
listen-only basis.

    About NeuStar, Inc.

    NeuStar (NYSE: NSR) is a provider of essential
clearinghouse and directory services to the Global
communications and Internet industry.  Visit NeuStar online
at http://www.NeuStar.biz.  

    About Followap

    Headquartered in London, Followap is the leading
provider and an innovator of Presence, Instant Messaging
and Interconnect solutions to the telecommunications
industry.  Visit Followap online at
http://www.Followap.com

    Safe Harbor Statement under the Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995

    This press release includes information that
constitutes forward-looking statements made pursuant to the
safe harbor provision of the Private Securities Litigation
Reform Act of 1995, including, without limitation,
statements about our expectations, beliefs and business
results in the future. We have attempted, whenever
possible, to identify these forward-looking statements
using words such as "may," "will,"
"should," "projects,"
"estimates," "expects,"
"plans," "intends,"
"anticipates," "believes" and
variations of these words and similar expressions. 
Similarly, statements herein that describe our business
strategy, prospects, opportunities, outlooks, objectives,
plans, intentions or goals are also forward-looking
statements.  We cannot assure you that our expectations
will be achieved or that any deviations will not be
material.  Forward-looking statements are subject to many
assumptions, risks and uncertainties that may cause future
results to differ materially from those anticipated.  These
potential risks and uncertainties include, among others, the
risk that mobile instant messaging will not be widely
adopted or used by end users, the uncertainty about whether
we will be able to integrate our business with the business
of Followap successfully, the uncertainty of future revenue
and profitability and potential fluctuations in quarterly
operating results, both in our existing business and
related to the business acquired from Followap, due to such
factors as disruptions to our clearinghouse operations,
modifications to our material contracts, increasing
competition, market acceptance of our services, our ability
to successfully develop and market new services, the
uncertainty of whether new services will achieve market
acceptance or result in any revenue, and business,
regulatory and statutory changes in the communications
industry.  More information about potential factors that
could affect our business and financial results is included
in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission,
including, without limitation, our Annual Report on Form
10-K for the year ended December 31, 2005 and subsequent
periodic reports.  All forward-looking statements are based
on information available to us on the date of this press
release, and we undertake no obligation to update any of
the forward-looking statements after the date of this press
release.

    For more information, please contact:

    Investor Relations: 
     Paul S. Lalljie
     NeuStar, Inc.
     Tel:   [phone]
     Email: [e-mail]

    Media: 
     Elizabeth Penniman, 
     NeuStar, Inc.
     Tel:   [phone]
     Email: [e-mail]

SOURCE  NeuStar, Inc.