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NEW YORK, NY--(Marketwire -02/15/12)- Chinese Internet stocks have been on the upswing of late, outperforming the S&P 500 by a sizeable margin over the last month. Over that period, TickerSpy's Chinese Internet Stocks Index (CHDOT) is up more than 9 percent -- helping Chinese shares traded in New York to a five-month high, Bloomberg reports. Five Star Equities examines investing opportunities in China's Internet Sector and provides Stock research on Ctrip.com International Ltd. (NASDAQ: CTRP - News) and NetEase.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: NTES - News). Access to the full company reports can be found at:

http://www.fivestarequities.com/CTRP

http://www.fivestarequities.com/NTES

Chinese internet stocks listed in the U.S. often move in accordance with investor sentiment towards China's economy. According to a recent report from Barron's "Chinese Internet stocks are prominently listed on U.S. exchanges, and are among the most widely-held Chinese stocks." Fears of a hard economic landing in China pushed shares of internet firms towards 52-week lows in the early stages of 2012. However recent measures from China's government have restored some optimism regarding the direction of China's economy.

China's economy expanded by 9.2 percent in 2011 from a year earlier and 8.9 percent year-on-year in the fourth quarter, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). "There is not likely to be any dramatic decline in China's economy this year and a soft landing will be achieved," Pan Xiangdong, chief economist with China Galaxy Securities, said in an interview with Xinhua.

Five Star Equities releases regular market updates on China's Internet Sector so investors can stay ahead of the crowd and make the best investment decisions to maximize their returns. Take a few minutes to register with us free at http://www.fivestarequities.com and get exclusive access to our numerous stock reports and industry newsletters.

The number of those accessing the Internet grew 12.2 percent last year, said the China Internet Network Information Center. There were 356 million mobile Internet users in the country by the end of 2011, a year-on-year increase of 17.5 percent. Even still, the proportion of China's population who are Internet users, 40 percent, is low compared with that of developed Asian countries - for example, the Internet analysis firm Miniwatts Marketing Group says that more than 70 percent of the Japan, South Korea and Singapore population are online.

Five Star Equities provides Market Research focused on equities that offer growth opportunities, value, and strong potential return. We strive to provide the most up-to-date market activities. We constantly create research reports and newsletters for our members. Five Star Equities has not been compensated by any of the above-mentioned companies. We act as an independent research portal and are aware that all investment entails inherent risks. Please view the full disclaimer at: http://www.fivestarequities.com/disclaimer

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Chinese Internet Stocks on the Upswing -- Ctrip.com and NetEase.com Showing Growth

WAKEFIELD, Mass., Feb. 14, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Comverse (Nasdaq:CMVT - News), a global leader in BSS, mobile Internet, and value-added services, announced today that the Comverse ONE(R) Billing & Active Customer Management solution has won a BSS/OSS Excellence Award for an industry-first third year in a row. TMC, a global integrated media company, honored Comverse ONE with this unparalleled distinction for its notable advancements in the field of Policy Management and Policy Enforcement.

With soaring data traffic on a sharp upswing, communication service providers (CSPs) seek to effectively manage their limited bandwidth to ensure an optimal user experience and robust profitability. Enhanced with policy management and enforcement to enable traffic management and charging that is both subscriber- and network-aware, Comverse ONE is being recognized for meeting this industry need with its trailblazing solution -- which is proving effective around the world for unleashing more of the broadband data opportunity.

"Comverse, yet again, has demonstrated outstanding achievements in creating exceptional systems for supporting internal network operations and customer support solutions, and therefore was selected by the editors of INTERNET TELEPHONY to receive this coveted BSS/OSS Excellence Award for a record third consecutive year. Comverse ONE, extended with policy management and policy enforcement, has provided outstanding contributions in delivering winning solutions for its customers around the world," said Erik Linask, Editorial Director of INTERNET TELEPHONY.

"I am pleased to recognize Comverse's achievement again this year with an INTERNET TELEPHONY BSS/OSS Excellence Award. As our first-ever three-time winner, they continue to distinguish themselves in the industry with a commitment to innovation that translates to profitable growth for their customers," stated Rich Tehrani, CEO, TMC. "Congratulations to the entire team at Comverse and I look forward to continued excellence."

"We'd like to thank INTERNET TELEPHONY for this unprecedented honor. With the industry evolving rapidly, agility to act fast is mission-critical for CSPs," said Roni Levy, Head of Comverse BSS. "The tight integration with Policy Management and Policy Enforcement that won Comverse ONE this award also makes winners of CSPs. It gives them a crucial competitive advantage in their markets -- positioning them to win the loyalty and business of more and more consumers and enterprises."

The 2011 INTERNET TELEPHONY BSS/OSS Excellence Award winners are published in INTERNET TELEPHONY magazine, http://www.itmag.com.

Click for more information about Comverse BSS with Policy Management and Policy Enforcement and about Comverse at Mobile World Congress.

About INTERNET TELEPHONY Magazine

INTERNET TELEPHONY has been the IP Communications Authority since 1998(TM). Beginning with the first issue in February of 1998, INTERNET TELEPHONY magazine has been providing unbiased views of the complicated converged communications space. INTERNET TELEPHONY offers rich content from solutions-focused editorial content to reviews on products and services from TMC Labs. INTERNET TELEPHONY magazine reaches more than 225,000 readers, including pass-along readers. For more information, please visit http://www.itmag.com

About Comverse

Comverse is the world's leading provider of software and systems enabling converged billing and active customer management, mobile Internet, and value-added services. Comverse's extensive customer base spans more than 125 countries and covers over 450 communication service providers serving more than two billion subscribers. The company's innovative product portfolio enables communication service providers to unleash the value of the network for their customers by making their networks smarter. Comverse's solutions support flexible deployment models, including in-network, cloud, hosted and managed services. Comverse, ranked number 55 in PwC's Global 100 Software Leaders based on research by Pierre Audoin Consultants, is a subsidiary of Comverse Technology, Inc. (Nasdaq:CMVT - News). For more information, visit http://www.comverse.com.

The Comverse Technology logo is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=7454

Statements included or incorporated by reference in this press release may contain "forward-looking statements." There can be no assurance that any forward-looking statements will be achieved, and actual results could differ materially from forecasts and estimates. Important factors that could affect the company include the risks described in the section entitled "Forward-Looking Statements" Item 1A, "Risk Factors" and elsewhere in the company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended January 31, 2011 filed with the SEC on May 31, 2011 or in subsequently filed periodic, current or other reports. The company undertakes no commitment to update or revise forward-looking statements except as required by law.

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An Industry First: Comverse BSS/OSS Wins Third Consecutive INTERNET TELEPHONY Excellence Award

LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Hotels.com and Columbus Internet have today announced the launch of the first in-Facebook affiliate programme through their joint app ‘Hotels WithMe’ in the UK, Italy, France, Sweden and Germany.

The ‘Hotels WithMe’ app enables friends, families and colleagues to get together to collectively browse, choose and book a hotel from Hotels.com’s portfolio of almost 140,000 properties worldwide. The app launched on the UK Hotels.com Facebook page in September 2010 and has since seen strong growth, also rolling out across APAC and Europe. In this new and innovative move, owners of other Facebook information pages can now install the app and earn commission on bookings made through it.

The app can be added to a facebook page in a few seconds, as is explained in the video shown here http://www.choosewithme.com/affiliate-marketing/. Once added, visitors to that page can browse and book properties. Every time a booking is made, the page’s owner will earn commission via the affiliate programme, which is managed by AffiliatePerformance GmbH.

AffiliatePerformance has developed a management tool for affiliate partners which gives a detailed overview of the performance of the app within their Facebook pages. The whole tracking system is accessible to page-admins from within Facebook, as well as via the AffiliatePerformance website directly.

Josie Shah, Director of Partner Marketing at Hotels.com, comments, “The launch of the affiliate programme utilising the app is a unique innovation for Hotels.com, and one we are pleased to be spearheading. The use of this app through Facebook pages will be of particular interest to those championing sports events, bands or concert tours as it can be pre-set with default dates and locations to match multiple tour dates. This offers a useful service to fans of the Facebook page as well as great commission opportunities for the owner.”

“This is not only the first real Affiliate Program to sit within Facebook, it is also a way for Facebook pages to significantly increase interaction with visitors to their pages,” said Andrew Sittermann, CEO at Columbus Internet. “We are very proud to be working with Hotels.com and AffiliatePerformance on this ground-breaking project.”

Matthias Juergensen, CEO at AffiliatePerformance, is convinced that this new Facebook2Facebook marketing programme offers clear added value to users and affiliates alike, adding, “This is the perfect integration of social media and online marketing.”

-Ends-

About Hotels.com:

As part of the Expedia, Inc. group which operates in all major markets, Hotels.com, the global hotel specialist, offers almost 140,000 quality hotels, B&Bs and serviced apartments worldwide. If the customer can find the same deal for less on a prepaid hotel, Hotels.com will match it. Hotels.com benefits from one of the world's largest hotel contracting teams in the industry, negotiating the best rates for its customers, plus there are 3 million reviews from users who have actually stayed in the hotels to ensure customers make an informed choice when booking. The company currently operates 85 Hotels.com sites around the world.

Hotels.com, Hotel Price Index, HPI and the Hotels.com Wake Up Happy logo are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Hotels.com, LP, in the U.S. and/or other countries. Other logos or product and company names mentioned herein may be the property of their respective owners. © 2002-2011 Hotels.com, LP. All rights reserved. CST # 2083949-50

About Columbus Internet:

Columbus Internet is one of the leading providers of social shopping applications under the brand Choose WithMe both within and outside of Facebook. Columbus Internet is based in Berlin Germany and was founded in 2008.

http://choosewithme.com/

About AffiliatePerformance:

Founded in 2007 by Matthias Juergensen, AffiliatePerformance is a seasoned affiliate management agency with clients in the travel, dating and financial sectors. AffiliatePerformance specialises exclusively in the creation and management of affiliate programmes to deliver maximum results. AffiliatePerformance succeeds by applying their expertise on analysing programme progress and continuous improvement. The team has a proven track record of successful affiliate programme implementations as well as a comprehensive background in e-commerce marketing and technology.

http://www.affiliateperformance.de/

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Hotels.com and Columbus Internet launch first in-Facebook affiliate programme through ‘Hotels WithMe’

DUBAI — Millions of Iranians have suffered serious disruption recently in accessing email and Internet social networking sites, raising concerns authorities are stepping up censorship of opposition supporters ahead of parliamentary elections next month.

Iranians have grappled with increased obstacles to using the Internet since opposition supporters used social networking sites to organize widespread protests after the disputed 2009 re-election of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

The country is preparing to hold parliamentary elections on March 2, the first time Iranians will go to the polls since President Ahmadinejad's disputed re-election. The government denied any fraud in the vote, which ignited street protests that were crushed violently by security services after eight months.

The new Internet blockade affected the most common form of secure connections from Friday, according to outside experts and Iranian bloggers. Traffic was said to have returned to normal on Monday. "I haven't been able to open pages for days but now it's working again, although slowly," said Hamid Reza, a 20-year-old student in Tehran, who was reluctant to give his surname.

The cut-off appeared to target all encrypted international websites outside Iran that depend on the Secure Sockets Layer protocol, which display addresses beginning with https, according to Earl Zmijewski of Renesys, a U.S. company that tracks Internet traffic worldwide.

Google, which uses SSL for its Gmail service, reported that traffic from Iran to its email system fell precipitously.

Iran's Ministry of Communications and Technology denied knowing of the disruption, saying the origin was elsewhere.

"The government is testing different tools," said Hamed Behravan, who reports on Iranian technology issues for the U.S. government-funded Voice of America. "They might have wanted to see the public reaction."

NATIONAL INTERNET SYSTEM?

Many Iranians are concerned the government may be preparing to unveil its much documented national internet system, effectively giving the authorities total control over what content Iranian users will be able to access.

The authorities say it is designed to speed up the system and filter out sites that are regarded as "unclean."

"The Internet is an uninvited guest which has entered our country," said Mohammad Reza Aghamiri, a member of the Iranian government's Internet filtering committee, "and because of its numerous problems, severe supervision is required."

He told the daily Arman that Internet search engines like Google were a threat to the country.

"We have never considered Google as appropriate to serve Iranian users, because Google is at the service of the CIA," he said. "It has adopted a vivid hostile stance against us."

Opposition supporters believe Iranian authorities were targeting their attempts to hold a rally calling on the government to release leaders of the opposition Green movement, Mirhossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karoubi.

The two leaders were placed under house arrest on February 14 last year after they urged their supporters to join a rally in support of uprisings across the Arab world.

Iranian authorities have vowed to quell any public protest against the protracted house arrest of Mousavi and Karoubi.

"It could just be a coincidence but my guess is that the system was looking to block communication between opposition supporters," said an Iranian analyst who did not want to be named.

The disruption has riled some Iranian members of parliament and they have vowed to look for those responsible.

An MP, Ahmad Tavakoli, told the semi-official Mehr News Agency that the issue was creating widespread discontent that could "cost the establishment dearly."

"This filtering leads people to break the law, and using proxies makes the blocking of sites and signals ineffective, because using proxies becomes widespread," he said.

Authoritarian Arab governments under popular pressure have sought to shut down Internet service to make it harder for opponents to mobilize protests, but with little success.

Copyright 2012 Thomson Reuters. Click for restrictions.

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Iran's Internet severely disrupted as elections loom