The company, which had been scheduled to give an on-campus demonstration of its products a week after April 16, was later re-invited to the school and ultimately selected by the university from a pool of more than 40 vendors, Owczarski said.
Headquartered at 505 N. Brand Blvd., 3n provides Web-based software applications that allow for instant mass communication via a variety of devices.
When activated by a registered administrator, the program initiates near-immediate contact with people listed in a community database — be it on a school campus or in a corporate office — and cycles through a variety of communication devices the recipient may use, said Cinta Putra, 3n chief executive officer and co-founder.
One factor leading to Virginia Tech's selection of 3n was its capabilities with devices and communications methods like cellphone text messaging and online instant messaging, Owczarski said.
"What 3n will allow us to do is to interface with communications media that are not part of the Virginia Tech infrastructure," he said.
"Things like instant messaging and text messaging. What it's doing is allowing us to expand our abilities to reach people in different media, obviously in light that communication methods are becoming more and more diverse."
The company has more than 400 clients in the U.S. and fewer than 100 international clients, Putra said.
Though the bulk of 3n's clients are corporations or government agencies, the company has increased its focus on educational institutions since the Virginia Tech massacre, Putra said.
Current clients include the Port of Los Angeles, the Port of Long Beach, Warner Bros., Sony and the University of Miami, she said.
Virginia Tech signed a four-year deal with 3n worth $200,000, Owczarski said.
The first year's worth of service was donated to the university for free, he said.
