VZones Press Releases

This page contains press releases that were issued by Inworlds.com and Avaterra.com, Inc when they did business as VZones.

1999

July 22nd

AVATERRA.COM LAUNCHES SCI-FI VIRTUAL ZONE

First Element Launches Today in Cooperation with TriWay Promotions

SANTA CLARA, Calif., July 22, 1999 -- The success of television shows like the X-Files points to our insatiable appetite for information about UFOs. Capitalizing on this interest, Avaterra.com, Inc. (AVAR-OTC/BB), a provider of avatar-based technologies and services for the next generation of Internet communities, launched today its latest VirtualZone called VZscifi -- an online community of UFO experts and enthusiasts at www.avaterra.com/VZscifi. The Zone will kick off with a virtual area called UFOchat, produced in cooperation with TriWay Promotions of Los Angeles, which opens today at 6:00 p.m. PST.

VZscifi will feature a range of Sci-Fi, UFO and fantasy content, with UFOchat focused on top UFO researchers, renowned authors, military personnel and lecturers coming together to conduct online lectures, workshops, seminars and interactive sharing of research and knowledge in real time. All of these activities are happening within Avaterra.com's graphically rich VirtualZones, where visitors are represented on-screen as avatars -- or customized graphical representations of themselves -- and can see, talk and interact with other visitors.

"This launch marks another milestone in our strategy to build commercially sponsored, targeted Internet communities based on our VirtualZone concept," said David Andrews, president and CEO of Avaterra.com. "UFOs and the paranormal are popular topics on the Internet, so we expect to generate tremendous traffic to our new VZscifi zone."

Marcia Pellitteri, CEO of TriWay Promotions, is credited with booking the leading UFO experts who will be conducting daily chats and events. Participants include Jim Hickman of SkyWatch International, Derrel Sims, CM.Ht., R.H.A., former intelligence staff for the C.I.A., popular author Dr. Roger Leir, retired Air Force Major George Filer, John Carpenter, Joyce Murphy and many others.

"We're providing a place where people from all over the world can access the latest research information about UFOs," explained Pellitteri. "And by hosting this community inside Avaterra.com's avatar-inhabited environment on the Internet, we're able to have people interact in real time with knowledgeable speakers and participate in interactive workshops with leading researchers and celebrities in the UFO field."

About Avaterra.com, Inc.

Avaterra.com was formed in May 1999, when it acquired core technologies from Fujitsu's WorldsAway Products and Services Group, in order to develop its VirtualZone business model. The company builds VirtualZone communities on the Internet where consumers interact, play, shop, educate and socialize within a graphical environment where they and other visitors are represented as avatars (customized graphical representations of themselves). VirtualZones are built around specific topics to attracted targeted audiences, and they are commercially sponsored by brand advertisers. Avaterra.com's two showcase VirtualZones have been online for more than three years and include members from around the world, meeting 24 hours a day.

Avaterra.com provides superior community-building technology with features like customizable graphics, high subscriber involvement, a working economy based on tokens, several patent-pending tools for social order and management, and one of the highest "stickiness" factors on the web (with an average session length of 3.5 hours). The company derives revenue from its unique advertising venues, fee-based membership, custom virtual community development and software co-licensing.

Avaterra.com is publicly traded on the OTC Bulletin Board under ticker symbol AVAR. For more investor information, please call 1-888-845-5853 or e-mail ir@avaterra.com, or visit the company web site at avaterra.com.

In keeping with U.S. law, Avaterra.com, Inc. notes that this press release includes forward-looking statements. Actual results may vary significantly due to various risks and uncertainties. Those include, but are not limited to, the risk that new technologies are inherently subject to development, timing and consumer acceptance risks.

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