Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1283588
maltatoday | SUNDAY • 30 AUGUST 2020 13 COMMERCIAL EBO.AI and Vonage joined forces to develop a multi-chan- nel conversational solution that brings EBO's Virtual Agent to the world's biggest messaging app, WhatsApp, for the first time. The collaboration means that businesses are now able to take their customer service from the contact centre to the custom- er's personal device. The partnership combines EBO's intuitive Virtual Agent with the powerful Vonage Voice, Video, and Messaging APIs to create seamless sup- port journeys across any touch- point of the client's preference, including Viber and Facebook Messenger besides WhatsApp. A global leader in customer experience tools, Vonage de- velops award-winning unified communications systems, con- tact centre software, and pro- grammable communications that drive some of the biggest brands including Revolut, Ar- amex, and Be My Eyes. The company is listed on the Nas- daq Stock Market. The integration with EBO's Virtual Agent will now expand the capabilities of the Von- age Communications Services Platform to offer automated customer support on cue. The world-class communi- cations tool leverages artificial intelligence and cloud infra- structure to deliver exception- al, always-on customer service directly through the natural communications environments used by individual customers like messaging apps. "Our partnership with Von- age is an exciting step forward, as together we are providing powerful, transformative, in- telligent tools at the forefront of communications solutions." explained EBO.ai CEO, Dr Gege Gatt. "This relationship also opens up WhatsApp messaging to EBO's powerful AI solution. WhatsApp which is the most popular global mobile messag- ing app with 1.6bn active users is now a supported, legitimate channel in EBO's AI offering. We're proud that our partner- ship is showing the world what the future holds for communi- cations technology." Based in Malta and the UK, EBO equips companies to deploy self-learning Virtual Agents that engage in natural, meaningful conversations with their customers. EBO's Virtual Agent offers 24/7 customer support in more than 80 languages that can scale up or down according to real-time demand. The combi- nation of technologies provides reliable insights that support marketing efforts and gener- ate new leads. EBO.ai works with Microsoft to build quality components in security, host- ing, and latency reduction to ensure an infrastructure that is both robust and secure. Melita mobile customers increase to more than 150,000 THE number of mobile custom- ers subscribed to Melita has con- tinued to grow in 2020 and now stands at more than 150,000. During the first quarter of this year, in fact, the company took half of the market growth in the postpaid segment and was the only operator to register growth in the prepaid segment. As a result of this, Melita's market share in the mobile segment has increased from 21% in 2019 to 24% today. The latest market data from the Malta Communications Authority confirms that Mel- ita has continued to build on the positive customer numbers and market share trends which started in 2017 and accelerated from 2018 with the roll-out of its 5G ready Ericsson mobile network. Additional independent re- search, commissioned by Meli- ta, shows that satisfaction rates of Melita mobile customers are extremely high, particularly with regards to the reliability of the service. Harald Roesch, CEO at Mel- ita Limited, said, "Melita now owns the most advanced mo- bile network in Malta built ex- clusively with Ericsson, one of Europe's leading technology companies. "This significant investment has clearly underpinned our ability to deliver an excellent and reliable service. At the same time, we have also con- tinued to invest in our custom- er care and to offer great value, particularly through our in- novative Endless mobile plans which give our customers un- limited mobile data from just €25 per month. "Reliability, good customer care and great value are com- bining to increase our custom- er numbers and market share as well as resulting in very positive customer satisfaction numbers. "This success is something we are determined to continue building on as we remain com- mitted towards continual im- provement across all areas of our business." The number of mobile customers subscribed to Melita has continued to grow in 2020 and now stands at more than 150,000 Global communications platform backed by Malta-based EBO