Cape Clear Appoints Senior Executives; Annrai O'Toole and Colin Newman Join XML Software Company.

Business/Technology Editors

DUBLIN, Ireland--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 3, 2000

Cape Clear Software announced today that Mr. Annrai O'Toole has been appointed Executive Chairman, and Mr. Colin Newman, has been appointed Head of Marketing. Each joins the board of Cape Clear as full-time executive directors, and each will also acquire a substantial shareholding in the company. Cape Clear Software, founded in August 1999, is a leading provider of XML (eXtensible Markup Language) technology for business-to-business (B2B) applications.

Cape Clear's CEO David Clarke said: "We are delighted that Annrai and Colin have chosen to bring their wealth of experience to the Cape at this important stage in the company's development. As we move into our next phase of growth, Annrai and Colin's experience in building a world-leading software corporation will be invaluable."

Annrai is the former CTO of IONA Technologies, and he and Colin Newman were founding Directors of IONA. In addition to O'Toole's board duties as Executive Chairman he will also assume responsibility for the next generation of Cape Clear products. "Cape Clear has already put in place the XML products to allow businesses to communicate across the Internet," said O'Toole. "The forthcoming generation of Web Native Applications will run on an XML-powered Internet. Cape Clear is in a prime position to lead this generation."

As head of marketing, Newman will take charge of promoting Cape Clear on a worldwide basis. "Technologies such as XML and SOAP are right at the core of next-generation Internet applications" he commented. "With CapeConnect(TM), the team at Cape Clear have established an early lead in this key Internet market."

I'm excited for Annrai, and I look forward to working with him and his colleagues at Cape Clear," commented Barry Morris, IONA's CEO. "IONA and Cape Clear have worked together before and share the belief that XML will be the foundation of the next-generation Internet. To cement the relationship between the two companies, IONA has taken an equity stake in Cape Clear, and I look forward to exploiting the business synergies between Cape Clear's leadership in XML Applications and the IONA leadership in Enterprise Portals. The Cape Clear flagship product, CapeConnect, is a natural complement to our market-leading iPortal Suite."

Both directors will take up their positions at the company immediately.

Mr. Annrai O'Toole

Annrai is a co-founder, board member and former Chief Technical Officer of IONA Technologies PLC. He holds a MSc in Computer Science from Trinity College Dublin. He has worked on multiple European wide and international standards bodies and projects, defining the direction of the computer industry.

Annrai serves on the board of several high tech companies, including IONA.

Mr. Colin Newman

Colin was one of the founders of IONA Technologies. While at IONA he held responsibility for Business Development and International Marketing. Previously he worked in the systems group in Lehman Brothers, New York. Colin holds a MBA from Universita Bocconi in Italy, and a MSc and Electronic Engineering degree from Trinity College Dublin.

About Cape Clear Software Limited

With offices in Dublin, Ireland and Campbell (CA), United States, Cape Clear Software produces a range of Internet infrastructure products. These products are built on eXtensible Markup Language (XML), the standard for business-to-business interaction on the Net. Founded in 1999, the company completed its first round of institutional investment, led by ACT Venture Capital, in April 2000.