BackWeb Technologies to be Premier Active Channel Partner for Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.0.

SAN JOSE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 1, 1997--BackWeb Technologies, a leading provider of comprehensive push solutions, today announced it will be a premier Active Channel partner for Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.0.

BackWeb's powerful push server will be able to push content and software to Internet Explorer 4.0 users once users have installed a BackWeb client extended to work specifically with the Internet Explorer 4.0 channel user interface. BackWeb-based channels will be channel definition format (CDF)-compliant and be listed in the Internet Explorer 4.0 Channel Guide.

The relationship between BackWeb and Microsoft has also produced the BackWeb-based Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.0 Preview Channel, which allows BackWeb users to receive Internet Explorer product information, content and software updates.

"Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.0 was designed to bring users 'the Web the way you want it'," said Brad Chase, vice president of the application and Internet client group at Microsoft Corporation. "We are pleased to have BackWeb Technologies as a premier Active Channel partner to provide strong third-party application functionality to our Internet Explorer customers. BackWeb's use of the Internet Explorer 4.0 technology demonstrates the openness and flexibility of the Internet Explorer 4.0 platform."

Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.0 Active Channel content reinforces the goal of Internet Explorer 4.0 delivering "the Web the way you want it": premier content optimized for easy, fast and personalized delivery. Microsoft Active Channel partners are leading Internet content providers who are designing their channels to exploit the new functionality in Internet Explorer 4.0 such as Dynamic HTML and CDF-based webcasting.

With Dynamic HTML, channel publishers can create highly interactive Web pages whose colors, images, text styles, data and even 2-D positioning can change quickly based on user interaction. Active Channel technology will also support CDF-based webcasting, which enables customers to easily define and schedule automatic downloading of their favorite content. CDF-based webcasting offers customers a more convenient Web browsing experience.

"Internet Explorer is a tremendously powerful, open browser product," said Bill Heye, Director of product management at BackWeb. "We are happy to be a premier Active Channel partner, so that BackWeb server customers can deploy push applications to Internet Explorer 4.0 users."

BackWeb-based Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.0 Preview Channel

The BackWeb-based Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.0 Preview Channel, announced earlier this month, utilizes BackWeb's push technology to deliver targeted Internet Explorer 4.0 information, content and software updates to users. The channel enables BackWeb users who do not have Internet Explorer 4.0 to receive up-to-date software downloads and information about Microsoft's newest browser.

Once installed, BackWeb's patented Polite Agent technology will allow Internet Explorer 4.0 users, upon their approval, to receive large multimedia and software files automatically and discreetly in the background. The channel also supports the channel definition format standard for broadcast content and is a result of the relationship announced last March between Microsoft and BackWeb.

Availability

The BackWeb client optimized for Internet Explorer 4.0 will be available from the BackWeb web site at http://www.backweb.com by October 31.

The Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.0 Preview Channel is now available for download from BackWeb or from Microsoft's Internet Explorer authors and developers page at http://www.microsoft.com/ie/authors .

About BackWeb

BackWeb Technologies is the leading provider of comprehensive enterprise push solutions for intranets, extranets and the Internet. BackWeb offers a fully scalable push server that enables companies to capitalize on multiple push applications with a single technology investment. Corporations are currently using BackWeb in such business-critical areas such as software deployment, application management, process control, attention management and customer retention. For more information visit http://www.backweb.com . -0-

Note to Editors: BackWeb and Polite Agent are trademarks of BackWeb Technologies.

CONTACT: BackWeb Technologies

Debbie Lacy, 408/933-1752

[e-mail]

or

Wilson McHenry Company

Wendy Barbour, 650/638-3400

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