Wimba Creates a PowerLink to WebCT Campus Edition and WebCT Vista

Market Wire, July, 2003

Wimba, a member of the WebCT PowerLinks Network, announced today at IMPACT 2003, the 5th Annual WebCT User Conference, that it has extended the capabilities of WebCT Campus Edition™ and WebCT Vista™ by creating a PowerLink to WebCT's e-learning system with voice collaboration software that provides real-time voice conferencing and asynchronous voice communication.

WebCT PowerLinks™ provide a framework for institutions to customize their learning environment, integrate key campus technologies and extend the WebCT platform with innovative applications to meet their specific needs. Wimba Eduvoice and WebLab software combined with WebCT Campus Edition or WebCT Vista will allow WebCT users to easily collaborate, communicate and learn in voice -- online, anytime and anywhere.

WebCT, provider of the most flexible and widely used higher ed e-learning solutions, and Wimba, a leader in online voice software, together provide a compelling online learning platform that addresses the diverse learning styles of today's online learners. Wimba's PowerLink for WebCT allows teachers to easily create and deploy voice-based lessons for real-time or asynchronous teaching in their WebCT course environment. Teachers and students need only a microphone and speakers connected to their computer and a familiarity with their WebCT course environment to create and participate.

IT and academic administrators will appreciate the cost savings of the PowerLink integration as it will dramatically reduce support and teacher-training costs. Wimba's PowerLink will make Wimba voice tools fit the WebCT course metaphor and will control Wimba technology from within the familiar WebCT interface. System administrators will browse their networks for the PowerLink that Wimba has created and enable it just once for their entire faculty. Teachers and course developers will add Wimba tools simply by adding a page or tool to their WebCT course. Wimba's PowerLink integration will be available in September for both WebCT Campus Edition and WebCT Vista.

"Our online math courses have been greatly enhanced by Wimba voice tools," said John St. Clair, director of training & faculty development for the Tennessee Board of Regents Online Degree Program. "Students must be able to articulate, verbally, the symbol system used in mathematics and explain their thinking process to learn math well. Wimba voice tools allow us to easily foster this faculty-student vocal exchange online within our WebCT courses."

Tommaso Trionfi, CEO of Wimba, has welcomed the WebCT PowerLinks partnership and moved the company quickly to develop for the integration. "Ease of use is one of our primary development goals at Wimba," he said. "WebCT PowerLinks allows us to fulfill this goal for our clients who use WebCT. To allow educators to understand and use our voice technology through the powerful WebCT e-learning solution is really to allow all of us to take another step forward into the future of e-learning."

Carol Vallone, president and CEO of WebCT, said the integration is important for mutual customers. "Wimba, like our other WebCT PowerLinks Network partners, is helping institutions extract more value more quickly from their WebCT-powered e-learning programs, both educationally and economically," Vallone said. "The combination of our products clearly exceeds the sum of their parts, and we will work to compound these benefits in the future."

About Wimba, S.A.

Founded in October 1999, Wimba invents and develops vocal bi-directional streaming Web applications that require no special software installation or plug-in. This innovative, patented technology allows Internet users with a microphone and speakers to discuss in real-time or to listen to, send, download and manage vocal messages at times convenient to them with incomparable simplicity and power. The business model of the company is based on the sale of licenses for the use of its technology, housed on the client's server or Wimba's. Today Wimba is one of the world leaders in this fast-growing market.

Contact: Donovan Lytle Company: Wimba Title: Director of Business Development Voice: 406-542-7331 Email: donovan.lytle@wimba.com