At Axeda Systems' DRM Leadership Forum, Industry Leaders Agree Device Relationship Management is Key Driver to the New Proactive Enterprise.

Business Editors/High Tech Writers

MANSFIELD, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 21, 2002

Survey Reports 85% of Service Executives Consider DRM Important to

Business Strategies

Axeda Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: XEDA), the leading provider of device relationship management (DRM) enterprise software and services, joined together with industry leaders on Monday, October 7 for the first DRM Leadership Forum(SM) at the Association for Services Management International (AFSMI) S-Business Summit & Expo in Atlanta, GA.

Over the course of a 90-minute discussion entitled "DRM: Fundamentally Changing Customer Service", leading companies including Forrester Research, AFSMI, BearingPoint (formerly KPMG Consulting), Nokia, and Axeda, provided their perspectives on the growing DRM marketplace to a standing-room-only crowd of customer service executives. The panelists explained how device relationship management is a key application for enabling enterprises to become more competitive through proactive customer service and business operations.

At the panel discussion, AFSMI shared preliminary results of its recent survey of service executives worldwide that conclusively demonstrates the immediate need for device relationship management as a key driver for more competitive and profitable customer service. AFSMI will present the complete findings from this survey at a joint Axeda-AFSMI web seminar to be held on November 5 at 11 a.m. ET. To register for this live web seminar event, please go to www.axeda.com/AFSMI.

"At AFSMI we are interested in leading our members in a direction that is good for our customers and ourselves," said Pim Bonsel, vice president and executive director of research & studies for AFSMI. "We are looking for killer applications that will bring us to the next stage that will grow our businesses, as well our effectiveness, and DRM is offering a fantastic opportunity based on what our members are saying."

Concluding that the "market is ready for DRM," Mr. Bonsel presented findings from an AFSMI survey of international service executives, conducted in late September with Strategies for Growth(SM), which demonstrated that:

- 92% of service executives are aware of DRM and that it enables devices to send and receive data in real time over the Internet.

- 85% believe DRM is important to their present/planned overall business strategy, with 22% believing it to be "essential."

- 39% are planning to deploy a DRM system in the next +/-12 months to provide Internet-based remote service. Another 33% presently have a DRM system under consideration.

- Over 50% see the top benefits from DRM as being less customer downtime and improved customer satisfaction, while others point to improved service, operational benefits such as lower costs, improved revenues and more competitive service offerings.

- More than two thirds believe DRM will effect departments all across the organization beyond customer service, including sales, marketing, design and logistics.

Navi Radjou, senior research analyst, Forrester Research, outlined the course of this next wave of the Internet - the X Internet - in which digital assets are completely linked with physical assets to enable a service-driven supply network. Mr. Radjou projected that there would be 14 billion devices connected to the Internet by 2010, representing an investment of $3 trillion dollars by that time in X Internet-enabling technology.

In his presentation, Mr. Radjou discussed how many manufacturers today, once they sell products, have no way of gaining real-time visibility into how their products are performing in the field. He detailed how, by using remote sensing technology, some companies have already begun to track, in real time, three aspects related to their products: product usage, product quality, and spare parts inventory availability data. Mr. Radjou expects smart companies to convert raw data into insight that will allow them to continuously tune their upstream activities such as design, sourcing, manufacturing and sales.

Joseph Basalla, managing director, CRM & Industrial Markets, BearingPoint Inc., discussed how field service organizations could transform from reactive service to predictive service with device relationship management. He shared that DRM can be used by service management to achieve return on investment in three target areas: "cost take-out" which improves efficiency and productivity through consolidation of processes; "top-line growth" which enables them to perform better, faster and with lower costs; and "customer focus" which builds customer loyalty through enhanced service.

Dale Calder, president & founder of Axeda Systems, explained how the Axeda DRM(TM) System works and how it can transform businesses with improved operations and increased return on investment across the enterprise. "We believe DRM will fundamentally change the way businesses operate by tapping the value of information from products in the field. We see this as the fulfillment of how enterprises have been automating over the last 15 years with applications like ERP and CRM, now allowing companies to have a full circle view of their operations. DRM lets businesses leverage their assets so they can become proactive and increases the value of capital equipment, capital software, and their most valuable asset - the value of their employees."

Mr. Calder concluded, "We view DRM as an important and integral enabler of S-business technology. This significant inaugural event was a time to assess the current state of the DRM marketplace and outline the course for future applications of this technology. DRM Leadership Forum events at upcoming technology industry conferences worldwide will continue to foster understanding, adoption and evolution of this important market."

About Axeda

Axeda Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: XEDA) is the leading provider of device relationship management (DRM) enterprise software and services. Axeda helps businesses become more competitive by using the Internet to extract real-time information hidden in their intelligent devices. The company's flagship product, the Axeda Device Relationship Management System(TM), is a distributed software solution that lets businesses remotely monitor, manage and service intelligent devices, deployed around the world, allowing them to optimize their service, development, sales and manufacturing operations. Axeda customers are Global 2000 companies in many markets including Medical Instrumentation, High-technology, Enterprise Storage, Industrial and Building Automation, Office Automation and Semiconductor Equipment industries. Axeda has sales and service offices in the US, Europe and Japan, and distribution partners worldwide. More information about Axeda is available at www.axeda.com.

About Device Relationship Management

Everyday intelligent devices such as copiers, elevators, vending machines, building control units, medical devices, computers and storage systems, and industrial machines are an important new source of business information. Device relationship management systems allow companies to tap into this valuable information anytime anywhere. Pioneered by Axeda, device relationship management technology provides a distributed information management system that leverages the Internet to allow timely, accurate, and unbiased information to be communicated automatically between intelligent devices, wherever they are deployed around the world, and service personnel or enterprise business systems. Device relationship management helps turn reactive businesses into proactive businesses providing new sources of revenue, increased operational efficiency and lower costs, with an ROI that is often measured in months.

(c)2002 Axeda Systems. All rights reserved. Axeda, Axeda Systems, Axeda DRM, Axeda Device Relationship Management System, Axeda Enterprise, Axeda Applications, Axeda Agents, Axeda Connector, Axeda Gateway, Axeda Supervisor, Axeda Builder, Axeda Time-Lens, Automatic eCommerce, Firewall-Friendly, DRM Leadership Forum, and Access. Insight. In Real Time. are trademarks of Axeda Systems. DRM Leadership Alliance, DRM Leadership Forum, DRM Leadership Council, and DRM Integration Program are service marks of Axeda Systems. The Axeda logo and stylized bitstream design are trademarks of Axeda Systems. All other trademarks are either property of Axeda Systems or property of their respective owners.

This press release may contain certain forward-looking statements that relate to Axeda's future performance. These forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, those regarding Axeda's products and markets, product functionality in future installations and benefits derived therefrom, and may include implied statements concerning market acceptance of Axeda's products and its growing leadership role in the DRM market. Such statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that may cause the actual events or future results to differ from those discussed herein. Such factors include, among others: Axeda's customers' ability to implement or integrate Axeda's DRM solutions successfully and in a timely fashion, receive expected functionality and performance, or achieve benefits attributable to Axeda's DRM solutions; uncertainties in the market for DRM products and the potential for growth in the DRM market; the long sales cycle for DRM products; limited distribution channels; the difficulty of protecting proprietary rights; present and future competition; and Axeda's ability to manage technological change and respond to evolving industry standards. Investors are advised to read Axeda's Annual Report on Form 10-K and quarterly reports on Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, particularly those sections entitled "Factors Affecting Operating Results" and "Risk Factors" for a more complete discussion of these and other risks and uncertainties. Axeda assumes no obligation to update the forward-looking information contained in this press release.