Folio Corp. and Novell Team Up to Provide Professional Electronic Publishing Solutions for NetWare Connect Services; Professional Publishers, ISVs, Telecommunications Providers to Benefit

Business Wire, Oct 2, 1995

GENEVA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 2, 1995--Folio Corporation and Novell, Inc. are teaming up to provide state-of-the-art electronic publishing tools to professional publishers, independent software vendors (ISVs), and telecommunication companies. These software tools will enable commercial distribution of high-value content over networks incorporating Novell's NetWare Connect Services (NCS) technology and the Internet.

Folio and Novell will work together to integrate Folio products with key Novell technologies such as NetWare Directory Services (NDS), enabling businesses and professional organizations to seamlessly post information over the Internet and NCS networks through an electronic "yellow pages" service. Users will be able to search and browse the yellow pages to identify and easily access available business and professional information resources.

Today's announcement is one of many that Folio plans to make over the next several months in fulfillment of its Information Marketplace strategy for enabling secure, metered, commercial electronic publishing over wide-area networks.

"Folio's Information Marketplace strategy maps perfectly to our goals for NetWare Connect Services," said Steve Markman, Executive Vice President and General Manager of Novell's Information Access and Management Group. "NCS is our program to help create a `Business Internet' and is explicitly targeted at professional knowledge workers. Folio has both the technical and market leadership necessary to enable the commercial delivery of rich business and professional content needed by these users."

Folio and Novell have enjoyed a mutually beneficial relationship since 1987. Today's expansion of that relationship will yield products with Novell's endorsement for use on networks incorporating NCS technology and the Internet.

Tracy Scott, president of Folio Corporation, said, "Our publishers are eager to take advantage of a secure business Internet where they can confidently market their proprietary business and professional content. NetWare Connect Services is that opportunity. NCS is certain to broaden our publishers' reach and market penetration. We are pleased with the recognition given us by Novell and look forward to making NCS the global networking standard for business and professional publishing."

Content a Key to the Novell/Folio Relationship

Folio's infobase publishing platform is rapidly becoming a standard for professional and business content providers in industries such as legal, accounting, tax, medical, pharmaceutical, and insurance. The tools and network channels being developed by Folio for NCS and the Internet will provide a clear migration path for content providers who have committed to the Folio infobase standard.

"Folio's nearly 600 commercial publishers represent many of the world's major professional and business content providers, each of whom is a potential contributor to the NCS networks," said Steve Markman. "Counted in that opportunity are the massive collections of business and professional information represented by Folio's sister company, LEXIS-NEXIS."

ISVs and Telecommunication Companies to Benefit

Among the products being developed by Folio are toolkits which will enable ISVs to create InfoApps, which are custom applications for accessing specific content or categories of content across the Internet and NCS networks. InfoApps can include any combination of standard Folio software functionality (such as search and retrieval, hyperlinking, editing, annotation, "sticky notes," highlight pens, etc.). They can also be customized to access any number of specific sources on the Internet or NCS networks to simplify the process of locating information.

"We are committed to leveraging the strengths of our channels to develop a wide range of applications for NCS," said Tom Arthur, General Manager of Business Internet Services at Novell. "The Information Marketplace will empower our many VARs, ISVs and telecommunication partners to deliver custom solutions that meet specific customer requirements and generate a continuing revenue stream."

Novell and Folio to Conduct Joint Marketing Activities

Under the agreement, Folio and Novell plan to jointly promote Folio's electronic publishing tools for NCS networks. The companies plan to conduct joint press and analyst presentations, publishing seminars and customer briefings to evangelize Folio's publishing tools and Novell's NCS technology. Folio's infobase products will be certified by Novell as a recommended electronic publishing platform for NCS.

Folio and Novell will also cooperate on joint demonstration software that highlights the strengths of the two companies' technologies. These demonstrations will be shared with Novell's NCS partners for use in customer briefings and trade shows.

About Folio Corporation

Folio Corporation is the world's leading provider of infobase software with its products installed on an estimated 30 million desktops in the form of Folio VIEWS, on-line help for various software products, and as the delivery mechanism for some 2,000 commercial electronic titles. Folio excels in providing the software needed to empower front-line service providers with instant access to information and the ability to adapt information to the unique needs of their enterprise.