Fatbrain.com Integrates FINDitNOW Intranet Bookstore Program Into Ariba eCommerce Solution Using cXML.

SANTA CLARA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 28, 1999--

Solution will allow Ariba customers to access www.fatbrain.com

directly as part of Ariba requisition process

Fatbrain.com(TM) (Nasdaq: FATB), the Internet's most comprehensive professional bookstore, today announced that it is one of the key suppliers selected to use the Ariba(R) Network(TM) business-to-business eCommerce service at Hewlett-Packard Company (NYSE: HWP), an Ariba (Nasdaq: ARBA) customer. With the completion of its Commerce XML (cXML) interface to the Ariba Network service, Fatbrain.com has integrated its FINDitNOW online bookstore program for corporations into the Ariba solution, providing HP employees using the Ariba ORMS(TM) application with direct access to Fatbrain.com's world-class selection of professional books through HP's custom bookstore site. The result provides Ariba customers all the benefits and expert selection of Fatbrain.com's FINDitNOW program with the added cost savings of Ariba's fully-integrated eCommerce solution.

"We are pleased to add Fatbrain.com's offerings to our growing customer base," said Dave Rome, vice president of marketing at Ariba. "By making Fatbrain.com's successful FINDitNOW intranet bookstore program readily available to all organizations using Ariba eCommerce solutions, Ariba and Fatbrain.com will jointly provide our customers with the opportunity to conduct business more efficiently and to reap the benefits of eCommerce through acquiring and managing operating resources on the Internet."

Last March, Fatbrain.com joined Ariba Supplier Link, the Ariba supplier partner initiative designed to make goods and services readily available to buying organizations via the Internet. As an ASL charter member, Fatbrain.com provides its world-class selection of books and documentation for experts in their fields to all Ariba customers.

Leading companies already use Fatbrain.com's own FINDitNOW eCommerce program to provide custom intranet-based bookstores for their employee communities that work seamlessly with existing purchasing systems, including those from Ariba. Among the hundreds of organizations currently using FINDitNOW are Adobe Systems (Nasdaq: ADBE), Cisco Systems (Nasdaq: CSCO), Netscape (Nasdaq: NSCP), Nortel Networks (NYSE: NT), Oracle (Nasdaq: ORCL) and Sun Microsystems (NYSE: SUNW).

The Ariba Network service is Ariba's standards-based Internet service that provides buying organizations with access to supplier content, provides suppliers with eCommerce integration with their customers' buying processes, and routes transactions between buyers and suppliers. To provide a complete eCommerce solution, the Ariba Network service interfaces with the Ariba ORMS(TM) application, an intranet-based, enterprise-class application for buying organizations that automates and manages the acquisition of operating resources.

The Ariba solution's unique "Internet Catalog" cXML punchout feature enables end users at a buying organization to directly access http://www.fatbrain.com. As goods and services are selected for purchase, they are automatically added to the user's electronic purchase requisition within the Ariba ORMS application. Once a requisition is approved, the Ariba solution automatically goes back to the Fatbrain.com Web site and purchases the items.

"Our FINDitNOW program delivers organizations a quick and easy method for their employees to find and purchase critical resources from the best selection of professional books online today," said Dennis Capovilla, vice president of business development for Fatbrain.com. "As Fatbrain.com continues to add corporate customers and integrate FINDitNOW with new platforms, we're pleased to offer it to Ariba customers as well."

Fatbrain.com also said it will collaborate with Ariba on the continued development of Commerce XML (cXML) an emerging Internet standard for exchanging supplier content and transaction information between buyers and suppliers. Fatbrain.com uses cXML to make its FINDitNOW program available via the Ariba Network service. This integration will provide the opportunity for joint Ariba and Fatbrain.com's corporate customers to gain cost savings, efficiency, and convenience in acquiring and managing operating resources, including books, documentation and training materials for experts in their fields.

As an early member of ASL, Fatbrain.com gains an eCommerce distribution channel to domestic and international corporate buyers using Ariba eCommerce solutions. Ariba's customer base includes more than 10 percent of Fortune 100 and many Global 2000 companies representing over US$140 billion in aggregate spending on all operating resources. Ariba customers include Andersen Consulting, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Charles Schwab & Co., Chevron, Cisco, CNA, FedEx, General Motors, Hewlett-Packard, Lucent, Merck, MCI Worldcom, Morgan Stanley Dean Witter, Motorola, Nestle, Philips, SAirGroup, Sonoco Products, Staples, Transamerica, U S WEST, and Visa.

About FINDitNOW

Fatbrain.com's FINDitNOW intranet bookstore program allows businesses to provide customized professional bookstores on their corporate networks. These co-branded stores provide employees with a quick, easy way to find and order books and resources specific to their individual needs. FINDitNOW bookstores integrate with existing business processes to give organizations control over procurement. The program offers unique expertise in professional, technical and business books, training materials and documentation. Corporations may realize significant cost savings by leveraging the FINDitNOW program with the corporate intranet and existing processes.

About Ariba, Inc.

Ariba is the leader in business-to-business eCommerce solutions for operating resources. The company's intranet- and Internet-based products and services connect requestors to approvers and buyers to suppliers to deliver an automated solution for improving the acquisition and management of operating resources, the goods and services required to operate a company. The Ariba(R) Network(TM) service, a global business-to-business electronic commerce network for operating resources, enables buyers and suppliers to efficiently conduct business on the Internet. The Ariba ORMS(TM) application enables organizations to automate the procurement cycle within their intranets, lowering the costs of acquiring and managing operating resources. Together, the Ariba Network service and Ariba ORMS application provide a business-to-business electronic commerce solution for operating resources that benefits both buyers and suppliers. Ariba customers include Cisco Systems, FedEx, General Motors, Hewlett-Packard Company, MCI WorldCom, Merck & Co., Philips, and Visa. Ariba can be contacted at +1.408.543.3800 or at http://www.ariba.com.

About Fatbrain.com

Fatbrain.com, the Internet's most comprehensive professional bookstore, is the first e-commerce provider to deliver secure digital publishing. Recently named the number two fastest-growing public company in Silicon Valley, Fatbrain.com offers a world-class selection of books, training materials and documentation for professionals in business and finance, technology and other industries. Through its corporate intranet bookstore program, Fatbrain.com is accessible from the desktops of more than 1.3 million employees at customer sites. Fatbrain.com offers discounts of up to 40 percent, and all in-stock orders placed by 4 PM PST ship the same business day. Visit Fatbrain.com on the Web at http://www.fatbrain.com.

Fatbrain.com is a trademark of Fatbrain.com, Inc. Ariba and the Ariba logo are registered trademarks and Ariba Network and Ariba ORM are trademarks of Ariba, Inc. All company and product names may be trademarks of the respective companies with which they are associated.