RatchetSoft Integrates StrikeIron's Marketplace API to Deliver Enhanced Contact Management Solutions; Web Services Enable Developers to Add New Capabilities to Applications without Any Modifications

Business Wire, Feb 7, 2006

RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C. & COMMACK, N.Y. -- StrikeIron Inc., the worldwide leader of Web services commercialization through the StrikeIron Web Services Marketplace, today announced that it has partnered with RatchetSoft to deliver integrated Web services to the Ratchet-X platform. Ratchet-X is an end-user focused desktop integration platform that allows users to add new capabilities to existing applications via Web services without requiring changes to those applications. Also released is Contact Xtend, the first of a series of free Ratchet-X plug-ins to integrate with the StrikeIron Marketplace Web Services API. The recently launched API is a full-service interface that allows Independent Software Vendors to integrate StrikeIron Marketplace Web services into their on-demand applications.

Contact Xtend is a free plug-in module that allows developers and system integrators to integrate Web Services into any application. Powered by StrikeIron's Marketplace API, Contact Xtend allows users to link a number of StrikeIron's Marketplace Web services to existing applications such as Salesforce.com, Outlook and FreeCRM. These capabilities include: address and email verification, residential, business and reverse phone number look-ups, national do not call screening and location mapping services.

"We created Contact Xtend to allow business users to integrate Contact Management data directly into applications," said Joe Labbe, CEO of RatchetSoft. "StrikeIron's comprehensive set of Marketplace Web Services combined with their Marketplace API allowed us to seamlessly create a plug-and-play environment directly into our platform."

An example of how a company would use this is if they want their CRM system to automatically update address information for each contact in their database. With Ratchet-X and Contact Xtend, business users can easily create this functionality directly into their application without any modification to that application. Developers will never have to batch contacts, send out for an update, and reintegrate into their system.

"Contact Xtend is an excellent demonstration of how the Ratchet-X platform can dramatically increase user productivity by bringing the promise of Web services to the business user," said Bob Brauer, president and CEO of StrikeIron. "Our customers tell us they want to integrate our Marketplace Web services into their applications but don't have the pre-requisite expertise or access to the source code required to implement these integrations. Ratchet-X removes this barrier for them."

About RatchetSoft, LLC

RatchetSoft, LLC is dedicated to the empowerment of software users by giving them greater control over systems integration. Unlike portal or service aggregation solutions that require users learn and access data via alternative user interfaces, RatchetSoft products and services are all about delivering information at the point of need - directly within the applications people use everyday.

RatchetSoft is a privately held, New York-based Limited Liability Company founded in 2002.

About StrikeIron

Based in Research Triangle Park, NC, StrikeIron, Inc. is the leader in Web services commercialization with its breakthrough StrikeIron Web Services Business Network (WSBizNet). WSBizNet includes the premier StrikeIron Web Services Marketplace as the central ecommerce location for anyone to easily buy and sell Web services. The StrikeIron Web Services Marketplace provides the most reliable and trusted commercial Web services available in the market across the broadest spectrum of business needs. The Aurora Funds, Inc. and NC IDEA provided funding for StrikeIron after recognizing the significant opportunity presented by Web services and this unique management team. For more information, visit www.strikeiron.com.

StrikeIron, Web Services Business Network, WSBizNet, StrikeIron Web Services Marketplace, StrikeIron Marketplace Powered, and Web Services Marketplace are trademarks of StrikeIron, Inc. All other brands or product names are the property of their respective holders.