INTERSHOP and Acta Enable Rapid Deployment of B2B Ecommerce; The Westlake Group builds eCommerce foundation with joint solution

Business Wire, May 9, 2000

Business Editors and Technology Writers

ATLANTA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 9, 2000

Acta Technology, Inc., the first and only provider of an eCommerce data platform designed to rapidly deliver the data essential for business-to-business (B2B) eCommerce, and INTERSHOP Communications, the world's leading provider of electronic commerce applications software and solutions, announced that they are working together to enable businesses to rapidly deploy B2B eCommerce projects.

Their strategic partnership leverages the expertise that the two companies have in implementing global B2B eCommerce. INTERSHOP and Acta have partnered to deliver projects that include a robust data platform and eCommerce solutions that support various business models with "Sell Anywhere" capabilities. Acta and INTERSHOP made this announcement at the America's SAP Users Group (ASUG) 2000 conference in Atlanta.

The Westlake Group, a leading chemical company, announced that it has chosen INTERSHOP and Acta to lay the foundation for its present and future plans for eCommerce. Among Westlake's chief reasons for selecting the two vendors are its need for rapid and scalable access to heavy data and an industry-leading sell-side solution.

"In the course of planning our eBusiness strategy, we decided to work with IT leaders who could bring us to market quickly and who also have the vision and expertise to meet our long-term objectives," said Jesse Rocha, SAP Project manager at Westlake. "The Acta eCommerce Data Platform gives us the foundation to compete across all channels, including direct eCommerce and heavily trafficked trading communities."

"INTERSHOP is a proven leader in eCommerce software," said Acta President and CEO Carol Mills Baldwin. "Our partnership helps enterprises such as Westlake set up a flexible and scalable eCommerce architecture. Additionally, our combined strengths in global markets benefit our joint customers."

Meeting the demands for heavy data

The Acta eCommerce Data Platform consists of ActaWorks RealTime(TM), an award-winning data movement-and-management server, and eCaches(TM), a suite of packaged data applications that speed the delivery of back-office data in specific subject areas of eCommerce. Acta's platform is the first to address an issue that has been challenging for B2B environments: the fact that back-office systems were not designed to provide click-speed response times to requests for heavy data -- e.g., order status, inventory, product availability, year-to-date purchases, open invoices, related early-payment incentives, and other critical information.

The platform solves the back-office scalability problem, while protecting the back-office from performance-threatening requests for information.

"Acta provides a powerful solution for making the back office scalable for the numerous and frequent requests that occur in B2B environments," said Jim Demetros, Vice President of Sales at INTERSHOP. "This capability allows customers to leverage the full benefit of back-office systems. Acta's highly scalable commerce platform, combined with INTERSHOP enfinity provides customers with state-of-the-art sell-side eCommerce technology."

The Westlake Group: need for heavy data

To lay down the data foundation for its B2B eCommerce activities -- which include immediate plans for direct eCommerce and future plans for vertical eMarketplaces -- Westlake bought all the components of the Acta eCommerce Data Platform. The platform consists of ActaWorks RealTime -- an award-winning data movement-and-management server -- and Acta eCaches, a suite of packaged data applications designed to provide rapid and scalable access to mission-critical back office data for eCommerce and analytic applications.

For Westlake, it was essential to invest in a data infrastructure that would support all of its enterprise data needs -- both inside and outside the company firewalls. "Only Acta provides a packaged solution for meeting the numerous data demands faced by companies today," said Rocha. "With Acta, Westlake trading partners and Westlake employees have access to the data they need, when they need it."

INTERSHOP enfinity, the first complete XML and Java(TM) 2 platform-based, sell-side eBusiness application offers Westlake advanced Sell Anywhere capabilities, integration with existing business systems and the flexibility to grow with rapidly changing eCommerce business models. Other features include multi-level buyer models and customizable pricing and discounting models based on authentication and authorization, which is key to the Westlake Group B2B implementation. INTERSHOP enfinity accesses the Acta eCache information for product information delivery via the new Internet channel while minimizing the increase in SAP transaction requests.

About INTERSHOP Communications, Inc.

INTERSHOP Communications is the world's fastest growing provider of eCommerce software and solutions for the enterprise. INTERSHOP software offers the quickest time-to-market today with the greatest flexibility for tomorrow. INTERSHOP eCommerce solutions enable customers to "Sell Anywhere" by supporting the widest range of current and rapidly emerging e-commerce business models.