Mumbai, July 6, 2001 : 123India.com, India's premier portal, announced the launch of its Premium Membership. (http://premium.123india.com)

Premium Membership offers access to a customized package of value added services including communication services like the high-powered email facility and a new calendar service, information services like real time stock quotes, personalized horoscopes and much more.

The email service will now be easier to access, faster to download, will include more customizable features like colors, filters etc along with all the existing features like POP3 access [which lets you download the mail onto your Outlook / mail client] & a large inbox [10 MB]. The calendar service, being launched as part of the premium package keeps track of all your appointments & daily tasks and reminds you about them periodically.

“Due to the softening of the advertising market, free Internet services are no longer sustainable unless they are severely restricted or neglected. We are convinced that moving forward, subscription is a more superior way of keeping our services reliable, innovative and meaningful. Offering subscription-based services allows us to reduce the advertising space on our pages thereby leading to faster download times and more space to offer exclusive content.” said Arvind Kajaria, Director, 123India.com

Soon to be released will be great new services including a web based bookmarks service, an integrated messenger, a desktop utility which notifies users of mail without having to logon, multiplayer games & tournaments, and even more customization options. During the course of the year, more of the existing services will also be upgraded and transitioned to the premium section.

Premium Membership is priced at Rs. 599 / 6 months & Rs. 999 / year. There is a special introductory offer for all existing users. Payments are accepted in the form of Credit Cards in either Indian or equivalent US currency online. 123India.com also announced a tie-up with UTI Bank to collect cash & cheques in 42 cities across India. The users can also post Demand Drafts & Cheques directly to the 123India.com office as well.  

About 123India.com:
123India.com, India's Premier Portal, is an India dedicated Internet media site that offers branded web content, serving Indians worldwide. As the leading Indian online navigational guide to the web, 123India.com is one of the largest guides in terms of users, database and reach amongst the Indian community on the Internet. Visit us at www.123india.com.