3Com Acquires Internet Consultant IWC to Enhance Global E-networks Strategy; Acquisition Strengthens 3Com's Ability to Deliver Total E-business Solutions - Company Business and Marketing

Edge: Work-Group Computing Report, Dec 27, 1999

3Com Corporation Monday announced that it has acquired Interactive Web Concepts Inc. (IWC), a privately held Internet business consulting, creative design and software engineering firm.

The acquisition reinforces 3Com's e-Networks strategy by expanding the company's capabilities to provide total, turnkey e-business solutions for customers worldwide. The transaction will be accounted for as a purchase and is not material to 3Com's fiscal 2000 results.

IWC, based in Mountain View, Calif., will become part of 3Com's Consulting Services organization. Bruce von Herrmann, IWC's chief executive officer, will become 3Com Consulting Services' vice president for e-business solutions.

"The IWC acquisition is the latest in a series of steps 3Com is taking to address customer requirements for e-business consulting," said Chu Chang, vice president and general manager of 3Com Consulting Services. "The acquisition brings to 3Com more than 40 highly skilled Internet service professionals, IWC's proven methodologies and tools, and a strong portfolio of e-business clients. The layering of IWC's Internet applications consulting talent onto 3Com's e-Networks infrastructure will give us the ability to deliver a full range of innovative e-business solutions to enterprise customers and to organizations in industries such as education and healthcare."

The acquisition of IWC is the latest in a series of alliances and acquisitions 3Com has made in its aggressive, multi-pronged approach to deliver the e-Network promise to customers worldwide. 3Com's e-Networks solutions meet enterprise customer demand for:

-- Comprehensive support for voice, video and data applications;

-- A broader range of products allowing people to access those applications via the Internet, intranets or extranets; and

-- Comprehensive systems for ensuring network reliability/availability.

3Com Consulting Services develops solutions that leverage 3Com's e-Networks technology offerings. Building from core competencies in network design, performance consulting and project management, 3Com Consulting Services has built e-Networks infrastructure solutions in a number of areas such as convergence, enterprise mobility and virtual private networks. With the IWC acquisition, critical application development and business strategy components are added to this portfolio of core competencies, allowing 3Com to market complete e-business solutions.

With over 300 million customer connections worldwide, 3Com Corporation connects more people and organizations to information and each other in more innovative, simple and reliable ways than any other networking company. 3Com delivers e-Networking solutions through information access products and network systems to enterprises, small businesses, consumers, carriers and network service providers. 3Com -- More connected. For further information, visit 3Com's World Wide Web site at www.3com.com.