April 23, 2012: KVH Announces Winners of “KVH Application Development Contest”

- “SmartCompany” of Scientia Corporation Selected as Gold Prize Winner -

Press release: April 23, 2012

Tokyo, April 23, 2012 – KVH Co. Ltd., Asia’s leading information delivery platform, today announced that “SmartCompany”, an application developed by Scientia Corporation, was selected for the Gold Prize of the “KVH Application Development Contest” at the final judgment and award ceremony on Friday, April 20 in Sendai City.

Contest entrants included 10 companies that developed 13 applications among them in total. Winners were selected based on a strict judging process that involved assessing each application’s content, business model, and system configuration. “SmartCompany” was awarded based on its Human Resource Management (HRM）features and its marketability as a highly valuable application for the human resources industry as it improves human resource information management.

The contest was held for software development companies in Iwate, Miyagi, and Fukushima Prefectures as part of KVH’s ongoing support of the Tohoku region following the Great Tohoku Earthquake of March 11, 2011. The project aims to support the sustainable growth of companies in the areas devastated by the earthquake by assisting businesses in refining their business models and services and enabling them to develop and pursue new business opportunities.

The results of the “KVH Application Development Contest” are as follows:

1. 1st Prize: Gold

Name of application:“SmartCompany”
Company name: Scientia Corporation (Headquarters: Sendai City, Miyagi)
Reasons for selection: Highly valuable Human Resource Management (HRM）features and strong marketability as an application for human resource information management

2. 2nd Prize: Silver

Name of application: “WinView”
Company name: Upplan Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Hanamaki City, Iwate)
Reasons for selection: Enables integrated management between PCs and the Android platform, and strong marketability as an application for MDM（Mobile Device Management）

3. 3rd Prize: Bronze

Name of application: “Aizu Online Judge” Joint Project with Aizu University
Company name: TheDesignium Inc. (Headquarters: Aizu Wakamatsu City, Fukushima)
Reasons for selection: Enables and supports education in online programming by leveraging a cloud platform

4. Highly Commended Prizes: Shining

1) Name of application: “ZumenPDFserver Web Browser Version”
Company name: MicroArts Corporation (Headquarters: Aizu Wakamatsu City, Fukushima)
Reasons for selection: Highly useful and valuable application that enables the conversion of CAD data to PDF files

2) Name of application: “ActLog”
Company name: Kyoritsukobo Corporation (Headquarters: Morioka City, Iwate)
Reasons for selection: Valuable information sharing application with communication capabilities, supported with high enthusiasm of the developer

Mr. Takafumi Hayashi, Professor of University of Aizu and a member of the judging panel, noted “This contest aims not only to support reconstruction efforts, but also to create new ways of conducting business with cloud-based applications that derive from innovative ideas and design concepts from the Tohoku region and can be used across both domestic and overseas markets. I strongly believe that the participants’ high motivation and the originality of their work have led to a range of new opportunities for businesses. I anticipate that the contest and efforts made by all participants will contribute to the sustainable growth of the IT industry in Tohoku and contribute to their success across global markets.”

This contest has been developed in collaboration with various companies and organizations including the University of Aizu, Tohoku Innovation Capital Corporation, and the Globis Graduate School of Management. KVH will provide the winners of the contest with free access to its Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) platform together with individual business support to develop marketing strategies and plans that will help these companies receive maximum public exposure to their target markets. The other participating organizations will also offer their knowledge and support to the winners.

Please visit KVH’s website for more information about the KVH Application Development Contest: http://www.kvh.co.jp/#!contents/kvhcares/contest-EN

About KVH

KVH was established in Tokyo in 1999 by Fidelity Investments as a Japan focused IT/communications service provider. As an information delivery platform that allows enterprise customers to store, process, protect and deliver their vital business information, KVH offers integrated cloud and network solutions that include infrastructure-as-a-service, managed services, data center services, professional services, data networking, internet access, and voice services. KVH operates the lowest latency network in Japan, and with over 450 financial services customers, is the leading provider of ultra low-latency network and proximity hosting solutions to the high-frequency trading community in Tokyo and Osaka. KVH also offers low-latency connectivity services between major financial markets in the Asia/Pacific region and the US including Tokyo, Chicago, Aurora, New York, Singapore, Hong Kong, Shanghai, and Sydney. More information on KVH can be found at www.kvh.co.jp/en/