IBM AND EZGOV ALLIANCE BRINGS E-BUSINESS TO LOCAL GOVERNMENTS.

IBM (NYSE:IBM) and EzGov, Inc. has announced a strategic alliance to jointly market and deliver solutions that will bring the benefits of e-business to local governments in the U.S.

Under the terms of the agreement, the two companies will jointly market EzGov's e-government software and IBM's pSeries* and lead with xSeries* eServers*, as well as WebSphere*, WebSphere Commerce Suite*, and DB2* Universal Database as the development platforms of choice for EzGov applications. The EzGov LocalSuite TM** includes a citizen portal tool kit, online payment of property taxes, utility bills, parking tickets, and moving violations.

"The alliance enables us to offer robust, integrated solutions that enable governments to provide more convenient and responsive services to both businesses and individual citizens," said Todd Ramsey, General Manager, IBM Global Government Sector.

By combining EzGov's software with IBM's middleware and hardware, government customers will get the reliability, scalability and security required to provide transactional services over the Web. This combination lets both companies aggressively target the emerging opportunity for e-business solutions in the fast-growing e-government marketplace. Gartner Group projects that spending for state and local government solutions will exceed $1.1 billion by next year, up from $600 million in 1999. According to Forrester Research, Inc., more than 14,000 e-government services will be available online nationwide by 2006. The majority of these services will come from the nation's 35,000 cities and towns.

"This partnership creates a leading team in e-government," said Ed Trimble, president and CEO, EzGov. "By working closely with IBM, we will combine the strengths of both companies to deliver an affordable, effective e-government solution to the meet the needs of increasingly resource-challenged local governments throughout the nation."

The IBM - EzGov alliance is part of a developer initiative through PartnerWorld for Developers in which IBM forms strategic alliances with leading application developers. Under this initiative, developers gain access to new customers and revenue opportunities through IBM's extensive marketing, sales, and solutions, resources. At the same time, developers lead with IBM's middleware, server platforms, and services.

With more than 60 customers across 17 states, EzGov is the leading e-government technology company, building the software that enables government to become more efficient and better serve citizens and businesses. From delivery and implementation of portal and e-transactional software, to professional services that help government agencies define an e-government strategy, EzGov provides a comprehensive foundation for e-government. Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, EzGov can be found on the Internet at www.ezgov.com.