Melinda Mattei, USWeb/CKS, (650) 558-0890,
[email protected]
Investor contact: Kate Wagner, USWeb/CKS, (408) 987-3268,
[email protected]
USWeb/CKS E-Services Outlines E-Commerce Solutions and Announces Availability of Business-to-Consumer Offering
Based upon Microsoft Commerce technology, e-commerce services include custom application development and integration, hosting and ongoing applications management
SANTA CLARA, Calif. - March 4, 1999 - USWeb/CKS E-Services, a division of USWeb/CKS (Nasdaq: USWB), today outlined the family of e-commerce solutions it will offer as part of its portfolio of outsourced application management services. The e-commerce group will include solutions for business-to-consumer sales (or "direct sales") and for business-to-business sales, including corporate purchasing and supply chain management. The e-commerce solutions from USWeb/CKS E-Services are intended to provide businesses with a fast, cost-effective way to leverage the Internet by making their goods and services rapidly available online. The solutions will also automate and integrate the steps needed internally and with suppliers to deliver products into customers' hands.
USWeb/CKS E-Services, in conjunction with Microsoft Corp., also announced availability of its initial e-commerce direct sales solution based on Microsoft Complete Commerce, a packaged, hosted electronic commerce solution. The bundled Microsoft Complete Commerce solution enables mid-market companies to quickly and easily implement sophisticated, personalized, transaction-based storefronts without costly infrastructure investments or the need to develop and maintain these systems internally.
Unlike many packaged e-commerce solutions, the E-Services package of the Microsoft Complete Commerce solution includes Internet strategy consulting, Web development, hosting services, integration with the customer's existing back office systems, and can include end-to-end services through order processing, inventory management and shipping.
Microsoft Complete Commerce features Microsoft Site Server Commerce Edition, Cybercash and other secure payment systems for flexible payment processing, TanData Progistics for shipping and logistics, and TAXWARE for calculating taxes on orders. In addition, E-Services will extend Complete Commerce through reusable components developed from dozens of USWeb/CKS e-commerce engagements.
"USWeb/CKS has helped hundreds of businesses utilize the Internet to support business, sales and transaction-based processes, including Levi Strauss & Co., Ocean Spray, DVD Express, Ingram Micro, Furniture.com, Warner/Chappell and others," said Bob Wise, COO of USWeb/CKS E-Services. "Our track record contributes to our e-commerce expertise and the ability to leverage intellectual property to support the development of packaged applications. By combining value-added technology with managed services, USWeb/CKS E-Services helps to ensure businesses get exactly the solution they require, from basic management of an application to a complete end-to-end e-commerce solution that integrates with existing back office systems. The Microsoft Commerce platform is an integral part of our strategy to provide these solutions to customers. We anticipate that the number of e-commerce engagements we implement on the Microsoft Commerce platform will grow significantly over the next year."
"USWeb/CKS is a proven Internet solutions leader with unique expertise in the e-commerce space, and we are pleased they have chosen to base their initial outsourced e-commerce solutions on Microsoft's commerce platform," said Ian Rogoff, general manager, enterprise partnerships for Microsoft. "Application outsourcing is an important emerging trend for our customers, and we believe that the USWeb/CKS E-Services division is well-positioned to serve this market."
USWeb/CKS E-Services will offer clients a variety of packaged solutions that meet many of the e-business needs of a broad range of customers and vertical markets. In addition to the business-to-consumer direct sales solution, E-Services plans to offer corporate purchasing and supply chain management solutions. Corporate purchasing solutions reduce paperwork and streamline purchasing processes by empowering employees to conveniently purchase and route appropriate approvals for business supplies and other goods over the Internet. Supply chain management solutions link inventory, billing and shipping between customers and suppliers to ensure more efficient supply/demand coordination.
The E-commerce solutions from USWeb/CKS E-Services for business-to-consumer direct sales give businesses the tools they need to strengthen customer relationships, differentiate products and services, and improve business efficiency.
Availability and Pricing
The USWeb/CKS E-Services direct sales e-commerce offering based on Microsoft Complete Commerce is available immediately. The corporate purchasing and supply chain management offerings are expected to be available in Q2 1999.
Pricing is set on a per-month subscription basis. For more information, contact the USWeb/CKS E-Services division at 408-987-3200 or mailto:[email protected]/.
About USWeb/CKS E-Services
USWeb/CKS E-Services, a division of USWeb/CKS, is an emerging leader in the Application Service Provider (ASP) market, offering comprehensive outsourced management of Internet-based, entry- and enterprise-level applications for mid-market and Fortune 1000 companies. The subscription-based services within the E-Services Portfolio give corporate business professionals and resource-constrained IT organizations cost-effective, accelerated access to the latest technologies to enhance existing business systems while enabling them to focus on core competencies. The E-Services Portfolio solutions will include E-commerce, Communications and Knowledge Management, Customer Relationship Management and Back Office. All E-Services solutions will feature Internet strategy consulting, expert implementation, back-end integration, 24x7 operations management, a reliable and secure network infrastructure, and customer support by USWeb/CKS professionals. The USWeb/CKS E-Services division can be contacted at 408-987-3200 or mailto:[email protected]/.
This press release contains "forward-looking statements" (as defined under securities law) regarding the E-Services Portfolio and related services offerings of the E-Services division of USWeb/CKS. USWeb/CKS' actual results, including its ability to establish a comprehensive offering of services, grow the E-services business, effectively assist customers, or reach any expected revenue or earnings objectives, may differ materially and adversely from those discussed in this press release. Factors that may cause such a difference include, without limitation, risks associated with establishing a new set of service offerings, such as building and maintaining a base of employees with the required expertise, selling the new service offerings to customers, competition, managing growth, technological changes, and other factors. There can be no assurance that the E-Services division will be able to realize its objectives. For additional information about factors that could affect the business of USWeb/CKS, see the documents filed by USWeb and CKS Group with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission.
USWeb/CKS and the USWeb/CKS logo are trademarks of USWeb/CKS Corp.