London, England; October 19, 2000 – OASIS, the XML interoperability consortium, introduced two new technical committees (TCs), as part of its expanded process for the development of industrial XML standards. The Consortium added the OASIS Customer Information Quality TC for customer profile management and the OASIS Entity Resolution TC for XML tools development. These TCs are expected to be the first in a series of new OASIS technical programs to develop XML application standards both for ubiquitous business functions as well as for specific industries. “OASIS is the best forum available for developing cross-industry XML application standards,” said Norbert Mikula of DataChannel, chief technical officer of OASIS. “The Consortium brings together the best minds in the XML community in a non-competitive arena to advance the state of the industry at large. It has the resources and the expertise to develop standards for solving critical business problems with XML.” Lauren Wood of SoftQuad Software, chair of the new OASIS Entity Resolution TC, agreed, “Members of OASIS recognize the importance of having forums for the discussion, development, and promotion of XML-related standards. The Entity Resolution TC is a good example, since it will update the successful and widely implemented OASIS catalog mechanism that was developed for SGML, and apply it to XML.” While these new OASIS TCs address broad applications of XML and are intended for use across many industries, the Consortium’s expanded technical agenda also focuses on specific business segments. “Under the Consortium’ s new model of technical committee organization, vertical industry groups are now free to develop XML standards within OASIS,” said Karl Best, director of technical operations at OASIS. “We invite those interested in developing XML industry standards to discover the benefits of working within the Consortium.” About OASIS OASIS (http://www.oasis-open.org) is the world’s largest independent, non-profit organization dedicated to the standardization of XML applications. In addition to its technical work on areas as varied as XML conformance and XML repository standards, OASIS hosts several independent initiatives. ebXML (http://www.ebxml.org) is a joint effort of the United Nations CEFACT and OASIS to establish a global framework that will enable XML to be used in a consistent manner for the exchange of all electronic business data. CGM Open (http://www.cgmopen.org), is a consortium within OASIS dedicated to advancing CGM and other web graphics standards. The XML Cover Pages (http://www.oasis-open.org/cover) is widely regarded as the most comprehensive online reference work for XML and other structured information standards. OASIS also hosts the XML.ORG Registry (http://xml.org/registry), the open community clearinghouse of XML application schemas. 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, IPNet Solutions, ISOGEN, ITEDO, JetForm, Keyfile, Logistics Management Institute, Mediaplex, Mercator Software, Micrografx, Microsoft, Netfish, 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. For more information: Carol Geyer Media Relations Consultant OASIS carol.geyer@oasis-open.org +1 978.667.5115 x209 ###

London, England; October 18, 2000-OASIS, the XML interoperability consortium, introduced two new technical committees (TCs), as part of its expanded process for the development of industrial XML standards. The Consortium added the OASIS Customer Information Quality TC for customer profile management and the OASIS Entity Resolution TC for XML tools development. These TCs are expected to be the first in a series of new OASIS technical programs to develop XML application standards both for ubiquitous business functions as well as for specific industries. “OASIS is the best forum available for developing cross-industry XML application standards,” said Norbert Mikula of DataChannel, chief technical officer of OASIS. “The Consortium brings together the best minds in the XML community in a non-competitive arena to advance the state of the industry at large. It has the resources and the expertise to develop standards for solving critical business problems with XML.” Lauren Wood of SoftQuad Software, chair of the new OASIS Entity Resolution TC, agreed, “Members of OASIS recognize the importance of having forums for the discussion, development, and promotion of XML-related standards. The Entity Resolution TC is a good example, since it will update the successful and widely implemented OASIS catalog mechanism that was developed for SGML, and apply it to XML.” While these new OASIS TCs address broad applications of XML and are intended for use across many industries, the Consortium’s expanded technical agenda also focuses on specific business segments. “Under the Consortium’s new model of technical committee organization, vertical industry groups are now free to develop XML standards within OASIS,” said Karl Best, director of technical operations at OASIS. “We invite those interested in developing XML industry standards to discover the benefits of working within the Consortium.” About OASIS OASIS is the world’s largest independent, non-profit organization dedicated to the standardization of XML applications. In addition to its technical work on areas as varied as XML conformance and XML repository standards, OASIS hosts several independent initiatives. ebXML is a joint effort of the United Nations CEFACT and OASIS to establish a global framework that will enable XML to be used in a consistent manner for the exchange of all electronic business data. CGM Open, is a consortium within OASIS dedicated to advancing CGM and other web graphics standards. The XML Cover Pages is widely regarded as the most comprehensive online reference work for XML and other structured information standards. OASIS also hosts the XML.ORG Registry, the open community clearinghouse of XML application schemas. 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, IPNet Solutions, ISOGEN, ITEDO, JetForm, Keyfile, Logistics Management Institute, Mediaplex, Mercator Software, Micrografx, Microsoft, Netfish, 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. For more information: Carol Geyer Media Relations Consultant OASIS carol.geyer@oasis-open.org +1 978.667.5115 x209 ###

Boston, MA and Lexington, MA, USA (October 12, 2000) – Excelergy Corporation today announced that it has become a sponsor of the Organization for the Advancement of Structured Information Standards (OASIS) to promote the industry-wide acceptance of XML standards for open electronic data exchange among retail energy companies. Excelergy, a provider of e-infrastructure technology to the restructuring energy marketplace, first proposed a set of XML (eXtensible Markup Language) standards for the retail energy industry in October 1999 named Partner Interface Processes for Energy (PIPE). “The Internet is becoming the primary means of business-to-business communication in the retail energy industry, and XML in particular is emerging as the key to open, efficient web-based data transactions,” said Chris Cazer, vice president of Development and Chief Technology Officer at Excelergy. “Excelergy is committed to working collaboratively with OASIS and other industry participants in the effort to standardize electronic communications within the retail energy marketplace.” By publishing PIPE and supporting OASIS, Excelergy opens the door to industry discussion about the most efficient ways for retail energy companies to communicate electronically via the Internet. In the absence of universally accepted standards, utilities and energy companies all along the generation, transmission and distribution chain have been forced to manage widely varying forms of business-to-business data exchange, leading to inefficiencies, errors and higher transaction costs. “We’re enthusiastic about Excelergy’s participation in OASIS,” said Laura Walker, executive director of OASIS. “Excelergy’s expertise in web-based data exchange in the energy marketplace, and their contributions and input will help OASIS promote the adoption of XML standards in the retail energy industry.” Excelergy created its core products – billing and customer care software and trading partner data transaction management software – with energy industry restructuring in mind. While this software supports the EDI-based standards in place in a number of markets today, it is designed to fully leverage the emerging trend of using XML as the standard protocol for electronic data exchange. Sharing its knowledge and expertise in promoting efficient standards in the retail energy market, Excelergy will also benefit from OASIS’ experience in advancing XML in other industries. About OASIS OASIS (http://www.oasis-open.org) is the world’s largest independent consortium dedicated to XML application standards. With the United Nations, OASIS sponsors ebXML, a global framework for electronic business data exchange. OASIS hosts XML.ORG Registry, the open community clearinghouse for application schemas. OASIS technical committees advance XML conformance, repositories and other vital issues. 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, IPNet Solutions, ISOGEN, ITEDO, JetForm, Keyfile, Logistics Management Institute, Mediaplex, Mercator Software, Micrografx, Microsoft, Netfish, 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. About Excelergy Excelergy delivers complete e-infrastructure solutions to retail energy companies operating in the global energy market. Excelergy’s innovative suite of EDI- and XML-enabled products includes Excelergy ABP™ 3000 customer billing and information system, the Excelergy eXACT™ family of business-to-business transaction management solutions, and the web-based Energymarketplace energy portal. Headquartered in Lexington, MA, Excelergy also has U.S. offices in Santa Monica, CA and Atlanta, GA. More information including office addresses is available at http://www.excelergy.com. Contact: Carol Geyer Media Relations Consultant OASIS carol.geyer@oasis-open.org +1 978.667.5115 x209 Jay O’Brien Excelergy jobrien@rasky.com +1.617-443-9933 ext. 353 ###

Leading OASIS members have proposed the Entity Resolution Technical Committee, the goals and purpose are shown at the end of this announcement. The initial member group is comprised of Lauren Wood, SoftQuad Software Inc.; Norman Walsh, Sun Microsystems; Paul Grosso, Arbortext, Inc.; and John Cowan, Reuters Health. The request for a new TC meets the requirements of the OASIS TC process, and is attached below. The purpose and goals of the committee are below. To become a member of this new TC you should notify Lauren Wood, the committee chair, of your interest, and participate in the first meeting. For the procedure for joining after the first meeting see the TC process at http://www.oasis-open.org/committees/process.shtml Name of TC: Entity Resolution TC. Statement of Purpose: The objective of the Entity Resolution TC is to provide facilities to address issue A of the OASIS catalog specification (TR 9401). These facilities will take into account new XML features and delete those features of TR 9401 that are only applicable to SGML, as well as those features applicable only to issue B in TR 9401. Deliverables: The Entity Resolution TC will produce a Committee Specification that uses XML syntax and provides a DTD (potentially also an XML Schema) for that syntax. This specification will be ready by August 2001. The Entity Resolution TC intends to submit the Committee Specification as an OASIS Standard after sufficient implementation experience has been gathered. The Entity Resolution TC will conduct its business in English. The Entity Resolution TC will meet by telephone on alternate Monday afternoons at 2 pm Pacific time, starting on November 27, 2000. Meetings will last for one hour. The Entity Resolution TC will not hold face-to-face meetings. Meetings will not be held on public holidays that affect the majority of the participants. The OASIS PEOTCPs that are committed to the meeting schedule are Lauren Wood, SoftQuad Software Inc. Norman Walsh, Sun Microsystems, Inc. Paul Grosso, Arbortext, Inc. John Cowan, Reuters Health The chair of the Entity Resolution TC will be Lauren Wood of SoftQuad Software Inc. The telephone bridge will be sponsored by Sun Microsystems, Inc. Since there are no face-to-face meetings, there are no face-to-face meeting sponsors. Lauren Wood Director of Product Technology SoftQuad Software Inc. ###

OASIS members propose new Technical Committee to address Customer Information Quality

A second new OASIS technical committee is being formed today. The Customer Information Quality TC has been proposed by Ram Kumar, Cognito, Inc; Vincent Buller, AND Data Solutions; John Bennett, Parlo.com; and Graham Lobsey, Cognito, Inc. The request for a new TC meets the requirements of the OASIS TC process, and is attached below. The purpose and goals of the committee are below.

To become a member of this new TC you should notify Ram Kummar, the committee chair, of your interest, and participate in the first meeting. For the procedure for joining after the first meeting see the TC process at http://www.oasis-open.org/committees/process.shtml

TECHNICAL COMMITTEE ON CUSTOMER INFORMATION QUALITY

STATEMENT OF PURPOSE

The objective of the Technical Committee (TC) on Customer Information Quality (CIQ) formed by OASIS is to deliver XML standards for customer profile/information management to the industry. Research tells us that it is much more cost effective to retain and invest in our existing customer base than to build or buy market share. One customer lost through ineffective marketing means a massive expenditure on acquiring new customers to make up the lost revenue. This is more apparent as we move into the e-business environment. The Internet has created the need to rethink the issue of customer profile/information management for many, if not most, large organisations. In the highly competitive world being driven by dot-coms, organisations have to provide customers, vendors, and potential employees with accurate, up-to-date on-line information. Customer data forms the foundation to build effective customer relationships. To be effective, customer data must meet the highest possible standards of both quality and integrity. Therefore, customer information/profile management is critical.

Many XML standards have been developed for various applications. But despite the realisation by organisations on the importance of customer relationship management particularly due to the potential of e-business, no XML standards for customer profile/information management have been developed. Despite the exponential growth of the Internet that is shaping the way we do our business, no standard for managing customer profile/information has been developed yet. This technical committee aims at delivering these standards

LIST OF DELIVERABLES AND PROJECTED DATE

Unification of NAML with AND’s address structures February 25, 2001

Release of a preliminary draft on the specifications (document and DTD/Schemas) of NAML to the CIQ mailing list

March 25, 2001

LANGUAGE IN WHICH THE TC WILL CONDUCT BUSINESS: English

DATE, TIME AND PLACE OF THE FIRST MEETING

Date : December, 2000

Time : 10:30am

Venue : GCA Conference, Washington DC

TC MEMBERS

Ram Kumar, Cognito, Inc rkumar@msi.com.au
Chairman

Vincent Buller, AND Data Solutions, vincent.buller@and.com
Co-Chairman

John Bennett, Parlo.com, john@parlo.com

Graham Lobsey, Cognito, Inc, globsey@msi.com.au

DISCUSSION LIST

Customer Information Quality (CIQ) – CIQ@lists.oasis-open.org

PROPOSED MEETING SCHEDULE FOR THE FIRST YEAR

Date

Time

Meeting Type

Location

Participants

Nov 10, 2000

TBA

Conference Call

–

CIQ TC

Dec 15, 2000

10:30am

Face-to-Face

GCA Conference, Washington DC

CIQ TC

Jan 15, 2001

TBA

Conference Call

–

CIQ TC

Feb 15, 2001

TBA

Conference Call

–

CIQ TC

Mar 15, 2001

TBA

Conference Call

–

CIQ TC

NAME OF MEETING SPONSORS

• OASIS will sponsor the first conference call
• Cognito will sponsor the travel of Ram to Washington DC
• AND to sponsor the travel of Vincent Buller to Washington DC

###

XML Consortium Adopts Bylaws to Foster Open XML Standards

Boston, MA USA and London, England; October 3, 2000–OASIS, the XML interoperability consortium, has expanded its technical process for the development of industrial XML standards. The Consortium recently expanded its bylaws to implement a new model of technical committee organization that, in essence, allows OASIS to become a home for industry-specific XML application development. Instead of establishing separate governance and infrastructure, vertical industry groups are now free to develop XML standards within OASIS. The new OASIS development process is open, accountable, democratic, language-neutral, flexible and scalable.

“XML is a framework for the development of industry data standards,” said Jon Bosak of Sun Microsystems, who organized and led the working group that created XML. “Without a legally accountable, open development process, XML standards are likely to be established by, and engineered to benefit, just a few large corporate players, locking out small- to medium-size enterprises. By establishing a framework for the open development of XML standards, OASIS puts the present and future control over such standards firmly in the hands of those who will use them. “

Bosak chaired the OASIS Process Advisory Committee (PAC), which drafted the new bylaws.

“XML standards developed over the next few years will form an essential part of the IT infrastructure for decades to come,” commented Laura Walker, executive director of OASIS. “OASIS is widely recognized as the open forum where industry leaders put aside competitive differences and come together to solve business problems with XML. We have the critical mass to insure standards developed within OASIS will be adopted by industries around the world.”

About OASIS

OASIS is the world’s largest independent, nonprofit organization dedicated to the standardization of XML applications. In addition to its technical work on areas as varied as XML conformance and XML repository standards, OASIS hosts several independent initiatives. ebXML is a joint effort of the United Nations CEFACT and OASIS to establish a global framework that will enable XML to be used in a consistent manner for the exchange of all electronic business data. CGM Open, is a consortium within OASIS dedicated to advancing CGM and other web graphics standards. The XML Cover Pages is widely regarded as the most comprehensive online reference work for XML and other structured information standards. OASIS also hosts the XML.ORG Registry, the open community clearinghouse of XML application schemas.

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, eXcelon, Extensibility, Extricity Software, First Call, IBM, InformIT, Informix, Infoteria, Interwoven, IPNet Solutions, ISOGEN, ITEDO, JetForm, Keyfile, Logistics Management Institute, Mercator Software, Micrografx, Microsoft, Netfish, 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.

For more information:
Carol Geyer Media Relations Consultant OASIS carol.geyer@oasis-open.org +1 978.667.5115 x209

Boston, MA and Geneva, Switzerland; September 11, 2000

Members of the Global Commerce Initiative (GCI) announced plans to use ebXML as the backbone of their new data exchange standard for business-to-business trade in the consumer goods industry. ebXML, an initiative of the United Nations CEFACT and OASIS, will provide the technical infrastructure for the Global Commerce Internet Protocol, a set of recommendations governing the management of data for Internet communication and other B2B interactions. GCI members include 40 major manufacturers and retailers as well as eight trade associations, which in total represent 850,000 companies around the world. Exchanges such as Transora, the WorldWide Retail Exchange, GlobalNetXchange, and CPGmarket.com are taking active roles in the GCI development.

"The adoption of ebXML by the world’s largest manufacturers and retailers is a significant sign that the ebXML initiative is moving forward from development to deliverables," said Klaus-Dieter Naujok of NextERA Interactive, Chair of ebXML and member of the UN/CEFACT Steering Committee. "Although we have much work ahead of us, ebXML specifications are robust and usable today."

"The Global Commerce Internet Protocol is a fine example of how ebXML fits in the B2B arena," added Robert S. Sutor, Ph.D. of IBM, Vice Chair of ebXML and Chair of the OASIS Board of Directors. "ebXML defines a common set of standards that can be used across all vertical industries. It provides the infrastructure for e-business using XML and Internet-based technologies."

EAN and the UCC have made a major contribution to GCI’s effort to quickly standardize Internet trading in the consumer products industry with the first in a series of electronic commerce standards. In order to support the GCI Internet Protocol, the UCC and EAN undertook an ambitious effort to provide GCI with a series of electronic commerce standards for the following processes: Item Synchronization, Party, Simple Purchase Order and Dispatch (Advance Ship Notice). This project encompassed the creation of business models, global data dictionaries, and XML schemas. GCI proof-of-concept trials are underway and the organization plans to demonstrate its protocol at the upcoming ebXML meeting in Tokyo, November 6, 2000.

About GCI

Founded in October 1999, the Global Commerce Initiative is the result of joint industry efforts in North and South America, Europe and Asia where, since the early-nineties, strategic collaborations have been developing between stakeholders of all sizes across the complex supply chain for consumer goods. Made possible by some of the world’s best-known companies, they include the Efficient Consumer Response (ECR) movements in Europe, North and South America and Asia, together with the Voluntary Interindustry Commerce Standards Association (VICS) in North America, EAN International and UCC, CIES, The Food Business Forum, FMI, AIM, the European Brands Association, and GMA.

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 (Extensible 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 world’s largest independent, non-profit organization dedicated to the standardization of XML applications. OASIS sponsors include Adobe Systems, Aerospatiale, AND Data Solutions, Arbortext, B-Bop Associates, BEA Systems, Boeing, Bowstreet, Bridge, BroadVision, Chrystal Software, Cohesia, Commerce One, Corel, DataChannel, Dataloom, DMSi, Documentum, Dun & Bradstreet, eCredit.com, Enigma, eXcelon, Extensibility, Extricity Software, First Call, IBM, InformIT, Informix, InterCAP, Interwoven, ISOGEN, ITEDO, JetForm, Keyfile, Logistics Management Institute, Mercator Software, Microsoft, NextPage, NII Enterprise Promotion Association, Nimble Technology, NIST, 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, Whitehill Technologies, Xerox, XMLSolutions and XyEnterprise.#

For more information:

Carol Geyer Media Relations Consultant OASIS carol.geyer@oasis-open.org +1 978.667.5115 x209

Boston, MA, USA and Geneva, Switzerland; September 5, 2000 ebXML, a joint initiative of the United Nations/CEFACT and OASIS, announced plans to standardize electronic contracts and trading partnerships using XML. The newly formed ebXML Trading-Partners Project Team will develop a specification to define the technical parameters of trading partner profiles and agreements (TPA). The Trading-Partners team will complement other ebXML project teams working to develop an open XML-based infrastructure that will enable business information to be exchanged consistently on a global basis.

Standardizing on a specification for the electronic trading partner agreement is essential to widespread e-commerce, said Klaus-Dieter Naujok of NextERA Interactive, chair of ebXML and member of the UN/CEFACT Steering Committee. TPAs capture critical information upon which organizations must agree in order for their applications and business processes to communicate. TPA will be a key element for interoperability among B2B server implementations.

Martin W. Sachs of IBM, leader of the ebXML Trading-Partners Project Team, defines an electronic TPA as an XML document that records specific technology parameters for conducting electronic business. Partner identification, communications protocol, security for message exchanges (including encryption, authentication, and non-repudiation), definition of requests and responses are all part of a typical TPA.

Much of the new project team’s initial focus will be based on previously proposed OASIS technical work surrounding tpaML (the Trading Partners Agreement Markup Language). tpaML was originally developed by IBM.

OASIS recognizes the expediency of continuing its tpaML development within the ebXML framework, explained IBM’s Robert S. Sutor, Ph.D., Vice Chair of ebXML and Chair of the OASIS Board of Directors. ebXML and tpaML are a natural fit. Accomplishments of other ebXML project teams will directly feed into the TPA effort, and the final outcome will be an integrated, interoperable set of ebXML standards.

Participation in ebXML is open and representatives from all industries are invited to contribute to the development of the initiative.

About ebXML

The Electronic Business XML Initiative (www.ebxml.org) is a worldwide project to standardize the exchange of electronic business data. Sponsored by the UN/CEFACT and OASIS, ebXML will lower the barrier-of-entry to electronic business and facilitate trade, particularly for small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and developing nations. ebXML is supported by hundreds of industry consortia, standards bodies and companies from around the world.

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 world’s largest independent, non-profit organization dedicated to the standardization of XML applications. 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, Corel, DataChannel, Dataloom, DMSi, Documentum, Dun & Bradstreet, eCredit.com, Enigma, eXcelon, Extensibility, Extricity Software, First Call, IBM, InformIT, Informix, Interwoven, IPNet Solutions, ISOGEN, ITEDO, JetForm, Keyfile, Logistics Management Institute, Mercator Software, Micrografx, Microsoft, Netfish, NextPage, NII Enterprise Promotion Association, Nimble Technology, NIST, 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, XMLSolutions and XyEnterprise.#

For more information:

Carol Geyer Media Relations Consultant OASIS carol.geyer@oasis-open.org +1 978.667.5115 x209

###

Boston, MA; August 28, 2000-B-Bop Associates, Inc., provider of XML solutions for eBusiness content management and information exchange, became the newest sponsor member of OASIS, the international XML interoperability consortium. B-Bop joined OASIS to support the industry-wide organization and its efforts to ensure open technical standards for the Internet. B-Bop uses XML to deliver dynamic, personalized content to e-commerce, customer relationship management and information portal sites.

"OASIS has experienced remarkable growth and progress in both its membership and the technical work of the Consortium," says Sanjay Manchanda, Chief Marketing Officer and Co-founder of B-Bop Associates, Inc. "As a standards-based company, B-Bop’s sponsor membership with OASIS will allow us to make ongoing contributions in achieving standardization across all industry segments."

"We welcome B-Bop Associates to the Consortium and look forward to their participation," commented Laura Walker, executive director of OASIS. "B-Bop recognizes the benefit of being part of OASIS’ vendor-neutral forum for advancing XML standards throughout the industry. Their focus on eBusiness processes will be a valuable asset to our technical work on XML applications standardization."

About B-Bop

B-Bop (www.b-bop.com) provides a standards-based XML platform that powers eBusiness processes centered on content management and information exchange. B-Bop products and services enable businesses to transform, store and re-purpose critical information between their sources, customers and business partners. Whether the data comes from internal, external or a combination of sources, the B-Bop Xfinity Server dynamically synchronizes the information specifically to the needs of each customer or application. As a result, B-Bop Xfinity delivers dynamic, personalized and up-to-date content.

About OASIS

(http://www.oasis-open.org) is the world’s largest independent, non-profit organization dedicated to the standardization of XML applications. In addition to its technical work on areas as varied as XML conformance and XML repository standards, OASIS hosts several independent initiatives. ebXML is a joint effort of the United Nations CE/FACT and OASIS to establish a global framework that will enable XML to be used in a consistent manner for the exchange of all electronic business data. CGM Open is a consortium within OASIS dedicated to advancing web graphics standards. The XML Cover Pages is widely regarded as the most comprehensive online reference work for XML and other structured information standards. OASIS also hosts the XML.ORG Registry, the open community clearinghouse of XML application standards.

OASIS sponsors include Adobe Systems, Aerospatiale, AND Data Solutions, Arbortext, B-Bop Associates, BEA Systems, Boeing, Bowstreet, Bridge, BroadVision, Chrystal Software, Cohesia, Commerce One, Corel, DataChannel, Dataloom, DMSi, Documentum, Dun & Bradstreet, eCredit.com, Enigma, eXcelon, Extensibility, Extricity Software, First Call, IBM, InformIT, Informix, InterCAP, Interwoven, ISOGEN, ITEDO, JetForm, Keyfile, Logistics Management Institute, Mercator Software, Microsoft, NextPage, NII Enterprise Promotion Association, Nimble Technology, NIST, 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, Whitehill Technologies, Xerox, XMLSolutions and XyEnterprise.

For more information:

Carol Geyer Media Relations Consultant OASIS carol.geyer@oasis-open.org +1 978.667.5115 x209

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San Jose, 2 August 2000-The United Nations/CEFACT and OASIS, sponsors of the Electronic Business XML Initiative (ebXML), announced plans to demonstrate the first phase of ebXML at the group’s upcoming meeting in San Jose, California 7-11 August 2000. Working together, ebXML participants including Fujitsu, NetFish, Sun Microsystems, Viquity, Vitria and webMethods will simulate a dynamic trading network based on the ebXML Transport, Routing and Packaging Specification (publicly available on ebxml.org). With each vendor assuming the role of a trading partner, the demo will highlight the applicability of ebXML in three typical models of B2B communication–point-to-point, hub-and-spoke and federated. “This is a big step forward in demonstrating to the world how ebXML will facilitate global trade,” said Klaus-Dieter Naujok, chair of ebXML and member of the UN/CEFACT Steering Committee. “It shows without a doubt that critical aspects of ebXML are useable today.” Robert S. Sutor, Ph.D., Vice Chair of ebXML and Chair of the OASIS Board of Directors, agreed, “We’re not just generating solutions on paper-this cross-vendor effort proves that ebXML is based in reality and has the support of the industry. In addition to the companies involved in this proof-of-concept demonstration, we expect more than 130 organizations to be represented in San Jose.” As part of the ebXML transport demonstration, trading partners will initiate and respond to RosettaNet PIP3A4 business processes, dynamically creating scenarios from a variety of industries using different payload types (e.g., OTA, GCI, etc.). “We chose RosettaNet for this demo because it is well defined and widely used,” explained Nick Kassem of Sun Microsystems, ebXML Proof-of-Concept Project Team Leader. “In developing ebXML, we appreciate the reality that there are legacy infrastructures and business processes that must be taken into account. We’re therefore designing the specifications so that people can support ebXML without abandoning existing investments.” Kassem added that future demonstration scenarios will feature processes and messages from other standards and industries. The ebXML meeting in San Jose is being sponsored by Boeing, CommerceOne, General Motors, IBM, Muzmo Communication and Sun Microsystems. Attendance is open to the public; registration information can be found on ebxml.org. About ebXML ebXML 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 (Extensible 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 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 is the world’s largest independent, non-profit organization dedicated to the standardization of XML applications. OASIS sponsors include Adobe Systems, Aerospatiale, AND Data Solutions, Arbortext, B-Bop Associates, BEA Systems, Boeing, Bowstreet, Bridge, BroadVision, Chrystal Software, Cohesia, Commerce One, Corel, DataChannel, Dataloom, DMSi, Documentum, Dun & Bradstreet, eCredit.com, Enigma, eXcelon, Extensibility, Extricity Software, First Call, IBM, InformIT, Informix, InterCAP, Interwoven, ISOGEN, ITEDO, JetForm, Keyfile, Logistics Management Institute, Mercator Software, Microsoft, NextPage, NII Enterprise Promotion Association, Nimble Technology, NIST, 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, Whitehill Technologies, Xerox, XMLSolutions and XyEnterprise.# For more information: Carol Geyer Media Relations Consultant OASIS carol.geyer@oasis-open.org +1 978.667.5115 x209 Sun and Sun Microsystems are trademarks or registered trademarks of Sun Microsystems, Inc. in the United States and other countries.

Boston, MA, USA; July 19, 2000–OASIS, the world’s largest XML interoperability consortium, today announced the appointment of three new members to the organization’s board of directors. Patrick J. Gannon of Netfish Technologies, Una Kearns of Documentum and Amy Krane of Enigma will serve two-year terms as OASIS directors, providing business leadership to advance the Consortium’s technical work. Norbert H. Mikula of DataChannel will begin his second consecutive term on the OASIS board as Chief Technical Officer. The OASIS board of directors also includes Eric Garcia of Sabre, Alan Hester of Xerox, Bill Smith of Sun Microsystems and Robert S. Sutor of IBM. “The use of XML to advance e-commerce globally is already having a tremendous impact, and OASIS is instrumental in the development of interoperable standards that support the XML adoption worldwide,” said Patrick Gannon of Netfish Technologies. “OASIS is well-positioned to support other industry groups in their deployment of XML-based business communication standards.” In addition to serving on the OASIS board, Gannon was also recently appointed to the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, where he advises governments in transitional economies on best practices for electronic commerce. Netfish Technologies provides XML-based business-to-business eCommerce solutions with a broad range of industry protocols. Una Kearns of Documentum agreed. “To exchange information over the Web using XML, industries must first reach agreement on how they’re going to communicate. OASIS, as a non-profit, vendor-neutral organization, plays a vital role in helping industries reach consensus on issues such as XML schemas and vocabularies. I am excited by the opportunity to advance that work as a member of the OASIS Board.” Kearns also serves on the XML.ORG Steering Committee and Documentum 4i eBusiness Edition is the content management platform powering the XML.ORG Registry, an open clearinghouse for the exchange of XML schemas and vocabularies. “With organizational and individual members from around the world, OASIS brings a global perspective to the adoption of XML. A priority for the OASIS Board as we move forward will be to continue our work on projects that garner the support of the entire XML community. ebXML, the joint UN/CEFACT OASIS initiative to establish a framework using XML to faciliate global trade, is just one example of the important work ahead of us,” commented Amy Krane, whose role as director of global alliances for Enigma gives her insight into initiating and managing strategic relationships with organizations worldwide. Enigma provides high-value business-to-business e-commerce solutions where product support content drives the sale of spare parts and aftermarket support. Laura Walker, executive director of OASIS, described the new board members as “possessing a rare combination of experience and enthusiasm. Their leadership, skills and standing in the international XML community will help OASIS continue to make great strides in our expanding technical work.” About OASIS OASIS is the world’s largest independent, non-profit organization dedicated to the standardization of XML applications. In addition to its technical work on areas as varied as XML conformance and XML repository standards, OASIS hosts several independent initiatives. ebXML is a joint effort of the United Nations CEFACT and OASIS to establish a global framework that will enable XML to be used in a consistent manner for the exchange of all electronic business data. CGM Open , is a consortium within OASIS dedicated to advancing CGM and other web graphics standards. The XML Cover Pages is widely regarded as the most comprehensive online reference work for XML and other structured information standards. OASIS also hosts the XML.ORG Registry , the open community clearinghouse of XML application schemas. OASIS sponsors include Adobe Systems, Aerospatiale, AND Data Solutions, Arbortext, B-Bop Associates, BEA Systems, Boeing, Bowstreet, Bridge, BroadVision, Chrystal Software, Cohesia, Commerce One, Corel, DataChannel, Dataloom, DMSi, Documentum, Dun & Bradstreet, eCredit.com, Enigma, eXcelon, Extensibility, Extricity Software, First Call, IBM, InformIT, Informix, InterCAP, Interwoven, ISOGEN, ITEDO, JetForm, Keyfile, Logistics Management Institute, Mercator Software, Microsoft, NextPage, NII Enterprise Promotion Association, Nimble Technology, NIST, 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, XMLSolutions and XyEnterprise. About XML.ORG XML.ORG is an open community resource for advancing XML industry standardization. Hosted by OASIS, XML.ORG features the XML.ORG Registry , a central clearinghouse that provides public access to the fast-growing body of XML schemas being developed for vertical industries and horizontal applications. Committed to open industry standards, the XML.ORG Registry offers a non-commercial forum for developers and standards bodies to publicly submit, publish and exchange XML application standards. Sponsors of XML.ORG include DataChannel, Documentum, Commerce One, GCA, IBM, Mercator Software, Oracle Corporation, SAP, SoftQuad, Software AG and Sun Microsystems. # For more information: Carol Geyer Media Relations Consultant OASIS carol.geyer@oasis-open.org Tel: +1 978.667.5115 x209 Fax: +1.505.210.2878

New York, NY; June 26, 2000–OASIS, the non-profit XML interoperability consortium, today announced it has received overwhelming community support for the first phase of its XML.ORG Registry , a public clearinghouse for XML industry schemas, specifications and vocabularies. In less than a week since the XML.ORG Registry began accepting submissions, industry groups and developers from around the world have registered to submit their XML schemas and vocabularies at the site. New content at the XML.ORG Registry will include XML schemas for industries as varied as e-commerce, human resources, petrochemicals, finance, mining, education and scientific research. “Response to our call for participation in the XML.ORG Registry has been tremendous,” said Laura Walker, executive director of OASIS. “The community clearly appreciates the need for an unbiased forum where developers and standards bodies can publicly submit, publish and exchange XML specifications-with no strings attached.” Jon Bosak, organizer of the working group that created XML and Distinguished Engineer at Sun Microsystems, explained the need for the XML.ORG Registry. “To effectively exchange information over the Internet, industries must agree on specific ways to use XML for their applications. New schemas, vocabularies, namespaces and stylesheets for XML are being developed at such a fast pace that overlap, duplication and confusion are concerns. By providing the community with a non-commercial resource for accessing these XML specifications, the XML.ORG Registry serves as an essential piece of the XML infrastructure.” Initial response to the XML.ORG Registry’s call for submissions has been global. Karl Best, director of technical operations for OASIS noted, “In the five days since we began accepting registrations, OASIS has had organizations and companies from Australia, Canada, Germany, India, Japan, Korea, Pakistan, the Ukraine and the United States–all wanting to register as submitters. We are working now to validate their submissions and will soon be inviting users to access the XML.ORG Registry to find schemas for their particular needs.” The XML.ORG Registry was developed by Documentum and Sun Microsystems using software components from Documentum, the Sun-Netscape Alliance (iPlanet), and Oracle. Documentum 4i eBusiness Edition, the content management platform powering the registry application, drives the entire process from the submission of a schema to its availability for public access via Documentum Site Delivery Services. The application runs on the Oracle 8i(tm) database, while the serving of resources to users is achieved through the iPlanet Web Server from the Sun-Netscape Alliance. The implementation is deployed on hardware servers from Sun Microsystems. The XML.ORG Registry was made possible by the donation of resources from Documentum, Sun Microsystems, Oracle Corporation, IBM and DataChannel and demonstrates their commitment to providing the community with an open, independent resource for publicly available XML specifications. Funding for the XML.ORG Registry was provided by DataChannel, Documentum, Commerce One, GCA, IBM, Mercator Software, Oracle Corporation, SAP, SoftQuad and Sun Microsystems. About OASIS OASIS is the world’s largest independent, non-profit organization dedicated to the standardization of XML applications. OASIS engenders participation from across the industry, bringing together competitors and overlapping standards bodies. Through open discussion and debate, OASIS reconciles conflicting perspectives in order to create specifications that are representative of the industry as a whole. OASIS sponsors include Adobe Systems, Aerospatiale, AND-USA, Arbortext, BEA Systems, Bentley Systems, Boeing, Bowstreet, Bridge, BroadVision, Chrystal Software, Cohesia, Commerce One, CommerceNet, CompTIA, Corel, DataChannel, DMSi, Documentum, Dun & Bradstreet, eCredit.com, Enigma, eXcelon, Extricity Software, GCA, Health Level Seven, IBM, InformIT, Informix, InterCAP, Interwoven, ISOGEN, ITEDO, JetForm, Keyfile, Logistics Management Institute, Mercator Software, Microsoft, NextPage, NII Enterprise Promotion Association, Nimble.com, NIST, Object Management Group (OMG), Open Applications Group, Oracle Corporation, Pick Systems, POET Software, ProNet Technology Partners, Reed Technology, Reuters, Sabre, SAP, Sequoia Software, SoftQuad, Software AG, STEP, StreamServe, Sun Microsystems, Synthbank, Visa, Wavo, Webb Interactive Services, webMethods, Whitehill Technologies, Xerox, XMLSolutions and XyEnterprise. About XML.ORG XML.ORG is a vendor-neutral resource for advancing XML industry standardization. Sponsors of XML.ORG include DataChannel, Documentum, Commerce One, GCA, IBM, Mercator Software, Oracle Corporation, SAP, SoftQuad and Sun Microsystems. # # # Documentum is a trademark of Documentum, Inc. in the US and other countries. Sun, Sun Microsystems and the Sun logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Sun Microsystems, Inc. in the United States and other countries. Oracle is a registered trademark and Oracle8i is a trademark or registered trademark of Oracle Corporation. All other company and product names are used for identification purposes only and may be trademarks of their respective owners. For more information: Carol Geyer Media Relations Consultant OASIS +1 978.667.5115 x209 carol.geyer@oasis-open.org