Vonage Names Thomas Klar Head of Country for Germany

HOLMDEL, N.J., July 27, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Vonage (NYSE: VG), a leading provider of cloud communications for business, has named Thomas Klar as Head of Country for Nexmo, the Vonage API Platform. With extensive experience in cloud communications and business technology, Mr. Klar will focus on driving the global expansion of Nexmo, building upon its existing presence and customer base in EMEA, with a focus on the German market.

"As we continue to explore ways to expand Vonage's reach across the globe, we are putting down roots in regions where we not only have a strong existing customer presence, but where we see the most opportunities for growth," said Vonage CEO Alan Masarek. "I am delighted to welcome Thomas to the Vonage team. Working closely with our existing Vonage leadership in Europe, he will play a vital role in laying the groundwork for continued expansion of our unified communications business throughout Germany and other European countries.

"As the German market for cloud communications gains momentum, Thomas' oversight of our existing Nexmo customer base there, as well as his deep network and industry knowledge in the business communications space, will ensure we continue to gain traction among the region's digital natives and agile enterprises. Our robust cloud offering of both unified communications and communications platform capabilities positions Vonage well to serve this growing market with end-to-end communications technology that transforms the way enterprises do business."

Mr. Klar is an experienced industry expert in the cloud communication market and has a proven track record of driving revenue growth and new sales opportunities. Prior to joining Vonage, Mr. Klar spent more than 10 years in various senior sales leadership roles at Communications Platform as-a-Service (CPaaS), cloud communications and business technology companies, including Twilio, where he led the German sales team, as well as Syniverse, MACH and tyntec. As a German-native, Mr. Klar's deep understanding and knowledge of the German business landscape will be a tremendous asset to the Company's plan to continue to expand throughout EMEA.

"I am excited to be joining the Vonage team as it furthers its reach into such a rich and digitally diverse market," said Mr. Klar. "Vonage's end-to-end business communications offering - from collaboration and mobility for employees and seamless integration with workflow tools for improved productivity, to deeper and personalized engagement with customers - positions the Company well to not only transform how businesses communicate, but how they operate to drive better business outcomes. I look forward to bringing this unique offering to German businesses and expanding upon existing relationships with enterprise customers based in this marketplace."

Expanding and building upon existing local presence

Vonage's current Nexmo customers in Germany include leading carshare app, Car2Go, a Daimler company, and Helpling, Europe's leading online marketplace for home services, among many others.

Through the integration of the Nexmo SMS API, Helpling sends personalized and real-time SMS alerts to self-employed cleaners to notify them of new cleaning bookings – anytime and anywhere.

"Messaging has been a key way for us to streamline the way we work with service providers," says Sebastian Nepote CTO, Helpling. "With real-time management of new cleaning offers and appointments, we are able to provide the right tools that cleaners need to fill and manage their own schedules more efficiently. Additionally, real-time communications with our customers via SMS enables us to address their needs and requests more quickly and precisely than ever before."

Car2Go, a Daimler company, offers flexible carsharing without fixed rental stations. Instead, users can rent and park their rental car anywhere within their neighborhood or home city.

"Nexmo has been a very reliable provider for Car2Go's communications, in Germany and internationally," said Rainer Bibus, Manager Vehicle Integration and Telematics Development at Car2Go. "The Nexmo SMS API enables us to deliver efficient, critical and real-time SMS communications to help connect clients with their vehicles for a seamless customer experience."

In 2016, Nexmo also partnered with Germany-based Deutsche Telekom International Carrier Sales & Solutions (ICSS), a leading international wholesale carrier, to further increase delivery quality for mission-critical, application-to-person (A2P) messaging to the Deutsche Telekom footprint in Europe, including Germany, and outside of Deutsche Telekom's footprint through partner networks. Through this partnership, Nexmo APIs are enabling a faster and more effective interaction between consumers and businesses through A2P messaging.

End-to-end communications for better business outcomes

Vonage's existing Unified Communications as-a-Service (UCaaS) customers in Germany include global shared workspace community WeWork and LK Global, an international and multi-location law firm.

The Company's robust cloud offering, which includes a broad UCaaS product suite and leading position in CPaaS, enables enhanced productivity and mobility among employees, as well as deeper customer interactions via embedded, contextual communications.

Vonage's portfolio of UCaaS solutions allow companies to provide integrated technologies and tools - including integrated voice, email, instant messaging, web collaboration, and more -  that allow employees to seamlessly work anytime, from anywhere, and on any device.

New economy companies, as well as agile enterprises, are increasingly looking to improve the user experience when it comes to communication, particularly via mobile devices. Vonage's CPaaS technology allows developers to easily program and embed communications into their business applications, ensuring effective communications - via text, social media or chat apps - with both consumers and other businesses. Through the API platform, Nexmo, developers are empowered with capabilities for increased programmability and scalability to enable more meaningful connections with customers. These contextual communications enable deeper customer engagement no matter how or where their customers choose to connect.

About Vonage
Vonage (NYSE: VG) is a leading provider of cloud communications services for business. Vonage transforms the way people work and businesses operate through a portfolio of cloud-based communications solutions that enable internal collaboration among employees, while also keeping companies closely connected with their customers, across any mode of communication, on any device.

Vonage's Nexmo API Platform provides tools for voice, messaging and phone verification services, allowing developers to embed contextual, programmable communications into mobile apps, websites and business systems. Nexmo enables enterprises to easily communicate relevant information to their customers in real time, anywhere in the world, through text messaging, chat, social media and voice.

The Company also provides a robust suite of feature-rich residential communication solutions. In 2015 and 2016, Vonage was named a Visionary in the Gartner Magic Quadrant for Unified Communications as-a-Service, Worldwide. Vonage has also earned Frost & Sullivan's 2015 Growth Excellence Leadership Award for Hosted IP and Unified Communications and Collaboration (UCC) Services and the 2016 North American Cloud Communications Product Line Strategy Leadership Award. For more information, visit Vonage Business.

Vonage Holdings Corp. is headquartered in Holmdel, New Jersey. Vonage^® is a registered trademark of Vonage Marketing LLC, owned by Vonage America Inc. To follow Vonage on Twitter, please visit www.twitter.com/vonage. To become a fan on Facebook, go to www.facebook.com/vonage. To subscribe on YouTube, visit www.youtube.com/vonage.

(vg-a)

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SOURCE Vonage