Electric Mail Bridges the Gap Between the LAN and the Internet with New Global Messaging Service.

VANCOUVER, British Columbia--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 14, 1998--

Electric InterConnect Links E-mail Systems to the Internet Without Complex and Expensive Connections

The Electric Mail Company (VSE:ELE), a leading provider of business Internet messaging services, today introduced Electric InterConnect (EIC). This new service offers businesses around the world a simple and inexpensive method for connecting LAN-based e-mail systems, such as Microsoft Mail or Lotus cc:Mail, to the Internet.

Electric InterConnect eliminates the expense and management headaches associated with an SMTP gateway, while providing exceptional performance and high-end features such as MIME/UUencoding, spam filtering and address aliasing. EIC achieves these efficiencies by using a local modem connection, eliminating the costs associated with using 1-800 or long-distance telephone connections. It also allows companies with multiple locations anywhere in the world to create a private and inexpensive E-mail Wide Area Network.

"Electric InterConnect provides companies with an alternative to purchasing, installing, managing, and supporting SMTP gateways," noted Cathy Munn, President, The Electric Mail Company. "Whether for 5 users or 5,000, companies can outsource their Internet messaging, access high-end capabilities not normally available with messaging gateways, and spend their time and money focusing on core business requirements."

For major customers, such as Fujifilm Canada, the new Electric InterConnect service was welcomed. "Zero administration is the greatest thing about using a service like Electric InterConnect, and we also realize a substantial financial advantage," states Carey True, Director of Information Systems at Fujifilm Canada. "We have an older legacy e-mail network currently installed, and using Electric InterConnect reduces messaging costs dramatically. Getting stable, reliable Internet messaging without the investment or administrative overhead of managing an Internet connection is a great combination in my book."

At the customer site, Electric InterConnect queues messages and manages the modem or dedicated connection to the Electric Mail Distribution Hub. Security is maintained by the "dial out" only nature of the service and the use of client ID and password to authenticate the dedicated session with the Distribution Hub. Electric InterConnect uses compression and efficient message transfer, which provide greater throughput than an SMTP gateway with a direct ISDN Internet connection. The benefit is that the expense and maintenance of a "network firewall" is not required. Both MIME and UUencode formats are supported.

In addition to LAN-to-Internet connectivity, businesses can use Electric InterConnect to link various branch office e-mail systems, creating a private E-mail Wide Area Network (E-WAN) via the Internet. This can eliminate both the management headaches associated with LAN gateways and the cost for long-distance dial-up connections.

Price and Delivery

Base price is $150 per month for 50 users, plus an initial set-up fee. Electric InterConnect service requires a dedicated Windows 95 or NT system on the LAN, and supports either a modem or dedicated Internet connection. Electric InterConnect services for Microsoft Exchange, Lotus Notes, and Novell GroupWise are in development.

Complementary Messaging Services

Businesses that use the Electric InterConnect service can also receive automatic spam filtering at no extra charge. All incoming messages are filtered at the Distribution Hub using multiple industry-proven tools for detecting and discarding unsolicited commercial bulk e-mail. Electric Mail's E-mmunity antivirus service stops virus-infected e-mail attachments before they reach the client's network. E-mmunity uses up-to-the-minute technology to detect and destroy Internet e-mail viruses without the need to install and maintain any software. These services effectively screen a business network from many of the risks associated with an Internet connection.

Electric InterConnect also works in conjunction with Electric Mail's AKA (Also Known As) service. AKA uses a web interface to give businesses control of their Internet e-mail addresses. A company can assign user addresses ([e-mail]), set up alias addresses ([e-mail]), manage domain aliasing and forward a user's messages to any other Internet address.

About Electric Mail

The Electric Mail Company provides value-added Internet messaging services for businesses. Founded in 1994, Electric Mail has more than 300 customers located throughout North America, including Panasonic, Campbell Soup Company, Pan Am Games, Delta Hotels & Resorts, Alliance Communications, Clark, Richardson & Biskup, and ICS Petroleum.

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CONTACT: The Electric Mail Company Inc. (Company Contact)

Cathy Munn, 800/419-7463

www.electric.net

or

Sterling Communications Inc. (US Media Contact)

Paul Forecki, 253/265-3358

[e-mail]

or

High Road Communications (Canadian Media Contact)

Sarah Burns, 416/368-8348

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