IONA Completes End-to-End Business Scenario Based on ebXML; IONA Teams with International Standards Groups to Produce Extensive ebXML Proof-of-Concept

Business Wire, May 11, 2001

Business/Technology Editors

WALTHAM, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 11, 2001

IONA(R), the leading e-business platform provider for Total Business Integration(TM) (NASDAQ:IONA), today announced the successful completion of the most extensive ebXML proof-of-concept (POC) to date and the first to showcase ebXML's security specification. The demonstration took place in Vienna, Austria on May 9 and 10, 2001 at the final meeting of the 18-month ebXML initiative sponsored by UN/CEFACT and OASIS, and consisted of two end-to-end tracks - electronic business and healthcare. IONA teamed with international standards groups and 28 influential vendors from around the world to implement the ebXML specifications and demonstrate how ebXML can be used to meet the needs of electronic business today.

IONA was a major contributor in the electronic business POC, which simulated a complete end-to-end B2B transaction using messages from RosettaNet, Open Applications Group (OAG), Automotive Industry Action Group (AIAG), EDI X12, SWIFT, and ebXML Core Components. POC participants played the roles of buyer, supplier, registry, marketplace, credit authorization agency and financial institution. The simulation began with the buyer discovering the seller through the ebXML registry. It then highlighted a seller catalog update through the e-marketplace, followed by the buyer's purchase order request. A request for credit was sent by the e-marketplace to the authorization agency, which responded with an invoice. Following an advance shipment notification, the credit agency transmitted messages to the banks of both the buyer and the seller to reflect the completion of the end-to-end business scenario.

"IONA has contributed to all ebXML standards efforts for the past 18 months and is very excited about the rapid evolution of ebXML specifications," said Klaus-Dieter Naujok, chief scientific officer at IONA, chair of ebXML, and member of the UN/CEFACT Steering Committee. "This latest POC demonstrates how far ebXML has come as a global electronic business standard."

For its part in the electronic business simulation, IONA participated as a seller receiving an EDI X12 purchase order from the General Electric e-Marketplace and responded with a purchase order acceptance, using the ebXML Messaging Service. Additionally, IONA took part in the creation and execution of ebXML Business Processes during the design time of the demonstration.

The healthcare track of the POC used Health Level Seven (HL7) messages and documents as payloads within ebXML transport and routing envelopes. The demo began with a patient visit to a physician's office. The office sent a registration message pre-admitting the patient to a hospital for testing. At the hospital, the patient was examined and lab work was ordered and transmitted via ebXML to a remote lab. The record of the original patient appointment at the physician's office, plus the registration message, lab order and lab results were all sent to two clinical information portals where the virtual patient record is stored and accessed.

About ebXML

ebXML (www.ebXML.org) is an International Initiative established by UN/CEFACT and OASIS in late 1999 with a mandate to undertake an 18-month program of work to research and identify the technical basis upon which the global implementation of XML (Xtensible Markup Language) can be standardized. The goal of ebXML is to facilitate open trade between organizations regardless of size by enabling XML to be used in a consistent manner to exchange electronic business data.

About UN/CEFACT

UN/CEFACT (www.uncefact.org) is the United Nations body whose mandate covers worldwide policy and technical development in the area of trade facilitation and electronic business. Headquartered in Geneva, it has developed and promoted many tools for the facilitation of global business processes including UN/EDIFACT, the international EDI standard. Its current work programme includes such topics as Simpl-edi and Object Oriented EDI and it strongly supports the development and implementation of open, interoperable global standards and specifications for electronic business.

About OASIS

OASIS (http://www.oasis-open.org) is the international, not-for-profit consortium that advances electronic business by promoting open, collaborative development of interoperability specifications. OASIS sponsors include Adobe Systems, Aerospatiale, AND Data Solutions, Arbortext, Auto-trol Technology, B-Bop Associates, BEA Systems, Bentley Systems, Boeing, Bowstreet, Bridge, BroadVision, Chrystal Software, Cohesia, Commerce One, DataChannel, Dataloom, Deutsche Post AG, DMSi, Documentum, eCredit.com, Enigma, Excelergy, eXcelon, Extensibility, Extricity Software, First Call, IBM, InformIT, Informix, Infoteria, Interwoven, IONA, IPNet Solutions, ISOGEN, ITEDO, JetForm, Keyfile, Logistics Management Institute, Mediaplex, Mercator Software, Micrografx, Microsoft, NextPage, NII Enterprise Promotion Association, Nimble Technology, NIST, ObjectSpace, Oracle Corporation, Pick Systems, ProNet Technology, Reuters, Sabre, SAP, Sequoia Software, SoftQuad, Software AG, STEP, StreamServe, Sun Microsystems, Synth-Bank, Visa, Wavo, Webb Interactive Services, webMethods, Whitehill Technologies, Xerox, XML Global, XMLSolutions and XyEnterprise.