Strategic Alliance Delivers Easy and Secure Wireless Access to Corporate Data and e-mail

CTIA Wireless - Las Vegas, NV, March 20, 2001 - Novatel Wireless Inc., (Nasdaq: NVTL), a provider of wireless data access solutions and Certicom (Nasdaq: CERT; TSE: CIC), a leading provider of mobile e-business security, today announced a strategic partnership that will greatly expand the utility of handheld devices, such as PDAs. Corporate users who use Palm PDAs and Pocket PCs will now be able to easily and securely access their corporate data and e-mail with Novatel Wireless products. 

As part of the agreement, Novatel Wireless will bundle and distribute Certicom's movianVPN, allowing easy wireless WAN access. This bundled solution enables users of handheld devices to access their corporate e-mail by leveraging existing Virtual Private Network (VPN) gateway servers, a significant advance over current solutions that require the addition of new servers or new server side software. movianVPN is interoperable with the majority of current corporate VPN hardware and software. 

"PDA users will now be able to easily gain access to all of their corporate information and e-mail without disrupting their current network," said John Major, CEO of Novatel Wireless. "This agreement is further evidence that handheld devices are rapidly becoming a valuable corporate tool; capable of the same type of VPN access that a laptop does, at the highest level of security across a wireless WAN connection. We are excited to partner with Certicom to lead the way in this technology evolution toward a next generation of corporate computing devices."

Enterprises whose security policies require the use of VPNs for remote access are now able to deploy Novatel Wireless modems for popular handheld devices and can license movianVPN directly from Certicom for commercial use and support.

"Wireless connectivity is a key driver for the adoption of enterprise-level wireless data strategies," said Rick Dalmazzi, President and CEO, Certicom Corp. "We believe the combination of movianVPN with Novatel Wireless' leading wireless products will further drive the widescale deployment of the new world of wireless applications for the fast growing mobile workforce." 

About movianVPN
movianVPN is the first VPN client that has been specifically designed for wireless devices that is broadly interoperable with multiple VPN gateways and supports the IPSec/IKE standards for VPNs. The client is available for multiple devices running Palm OS 3.5 or Win CE 3.0, and is interoperable with specific versions of gateways from Alcatel, Check Point, Cisco, Intel, Nortel, Radguard and Symantec. movianVPN protects existing network security investments by enabling IT professionals to leverage their existing VPN infrastructures and include handhelds in their corporate security policy for remote access. Incorporating Certicom's fast elliptic curve cryptography (ECC) and other security technologies, it is offered by Certicom to meet the needs of today's wireless enterprise computing professionals, with a focus on interoperability, performance and security. For more information about movianVPN, visit http://www.moviansecurity.com/.

About Novatel Wireless, Inc.
Novatel Wireless, Inc. is a leading provider of wireless data modems and software for use with handheld computing devices and portable personal computers. The company delivers innovative and comprehensive solutions that enable businesses and consumers to access personal, corporate and public information through email, enterprise networks and the Internet. Novatel Wireless also offers wireless data modems and custom engineering services for hardware integration projects in a wide range of vertical applications. The Novatel Wireless product portfolio includes the Minstrel(r) Family of Wireless Handheld Modems, Merlin(tm) Family of Wireless PC Card Modems, Sage(r) Wireless Serial Modems, Lancer 3W(tm) Family of Ruggedized Modems and Expedite(tm) Family of Wireless Embedded Modules. Headquartered in San Diego, California, Novatel Wireless is listed on the Nasdaq Stock Market (Nasdaq: NVTL). For more information, please visit the Novatel Wireless web site: http://www.novatelwireless.com or call 
(888) 888-9231.

About Certicom
Certicom is a leading provider of information security software and services, specializing in solutions for mobile e-business. The company's products and services are specifically designed to address the challenges imposed by a wireless data environment. Certicom's solutions incorporate its efficient encryption technology and are based on industry standards for information security that utilize public key cryptography. Certicom's products are currently licensed to more than 150 customers including ePocrates, Inc., Motorola, Inc., NeoPoint, Inc., Nortel Networks, Openwave Systems, Palm, Inc., Pixo, Inc., QUALCOMM, Inc., Research In Motion Ltd. and Sony International (Europe) GmbH. Certicom's headquarters and worldwide sales and marketing operations are based in the Silicon Valley in Hayward. For more information, visit Certicom's Web site at http://www.certicom.com.

The Novatel Wireless logo, Minstrel, Merlin, Sage, Lancer 3W and Expedite are trademarks of Novatel Wireless, Inc. Minstrel and Sage are registered with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Certicom, movian and movianVPN are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of Certicom Corp. All other brands, products and company names mentioned herein are trademarks of their respective holders.

In Respect to Novatel Wireless: 
This release contains forward-looking statements, which are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties. A number of important factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. These factors include risks relating to technological changes, continued acceptance of Novatel Wireless' products and dependence on intellectual property rights. These factors, as well as other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially, are discussed in more detail in Novatel Wireless' filings with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission and other regulatory agencies.

In respect to Certicom:
Except for historical information contained herein, this press release contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ materially. Factors that might cause a difference include, but are not limited to, those relating to the acceptance of mobile and wireless devices and the continued growth of e-commerce and m-commerce (mobile e-commerce), the increase of the demand for mutual authentication in m-commerce transactions, the acceptance of Elliptic Curve Cryptography (ECC) technology as an industry standard, the market acceptance of our principle products and sales of our customer's products, the impact of competitive products and technologies, the possibility of our products infringing patents and other intellectual property of third parties, and costs of product development. Certicom will not update these forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof. More detailed information about potential factors that could affect Certicom's financial results is included in the documents Certicom files from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission and Canadian securities regulatory authorities including Certicom's current Annual Report on Form 10-K.
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