Kodak to Start Company for Wireless Technology

ROCHESTER, N.Y., Jan. 10 -- Eastman Kodak Co. will form a new company based on patented wireless technologies from its research and development labs called Appairent Technologies Inc.

Appairent will use Kodak's intellectual property to enable current and future wireless products to work more efficiently. Appairent will develop market-leading technology for the wireless transmission of high-quality video, still images and data, supporting Kodak's goal of commercializing its technologies to expand the infoimaging category -- a $225 billion industry created by the convergence of images and information technology.

Kodak and the Monroe Fund, a private venture capital fund managed by a unit of Rochester, N.Y.-based Trillium Group, are the initial investors in Appairent. The amount of the investment is undisclosed. Kodak will also contribute a number of patents and patent applications. The spinout follows several years of technology incubation and seed funding by Kodak for development of the products Appairent will launch commercially.

"Wireless communication is critical as imaging and information technologies converge," said James Stoffel, senior vice president and chief technology officer, Eastman Kodak Co. "The greatest value in this intellectual property and the technology it enables lies in making it broadly available. We look forward to using Appairent's wireless communication technology in our own products and to seeing much broader applications and infrastructure."