AMERICAN AIRLINES AND APPRIS CONTRACT TO DEVELOP REAL-TIME DELIVERY SYSTEM OF FLIGHT STATUS

American Airlines today announced the selection of APPRIS™, to develop the technology to provide real-time flight-notification services to its customers through American's Website, AA.com.

APPRIS, based in Louisville, Ky., will design and implement a delivery notification application that will enable the airline's customers to request and automatically receive the most current flight information available.

State-of-the-art technology will offer customers the option of receiving flight status updates via wired and wireless communications tools, including pagers, cell phones and e-mail.

American will implement this expansion of its wireless communications capabilities in the fall. Flight schedules and real-time flight information currently are available to users of the wireless Palm VIITM handheld computer.

"We're very pleased to partner with APPRIS on this very important aspect of customer service and communications technology," said John R. Samuel, American’s vice president of interactive marketing. "It's a logical next step in which we can take the newest service-oriented technology and provide our customers with a new level of personalization."

APPRIS (www.appris.net), the parent company of The VINE Company, is North America’s pre-eminent application services provider, dedicated to providing businesses with the technology and systems necessary to revolutionize customer service in the digital age. The VINE Company is the largest source of automated notification services to the United States criminal justice system.