IBM Introduces New Collaborative Software Products for the Lotus Workplace Platform.

Business Editors/High-Tech Writers

SOMERS, N.Y.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 5, 2003

Lotus Workplace Family of Portal-Ready Products Links Employees,

Information and Business Processes in an Integrated Platform

IBM today announced four new Lotus Workplace software products that will enable customers to add modular collaborative capabilities -- such as e-mail, instant messaging, and Web conferencing -- to their business applications and corporate portals. The new Lotus Workplace products can help increase productivity by giving employees a set of collaborative tools that can be tailored to their specific work environment. Whether a user works from a remote location, in a team environment, or on several projects at once, the new Lotus Workplace products provide an integrated platform that can help enhance employee productivity and enable collaboration across an entire value chain.

Many IBM customers have indicated that collaborative technologies play a key role in the productivity of their organization but that up to 40% of their IT budget(1) is spent integrating the various collaborative technologies they need to drive their business. Instead of dealing with a dozen separate collaborative applications or paying for components that are rarely used, the Lotus Workplace strategy consolidates collaborative capabilities into a single, integrated view that can be licensed in a 'pay as you go' manner. As a result, people can quickly collaborate to address customer demands and react to changing market dynamics and competitive threats -- with the software providing employees, customers and business partners with e-business on demand capabilities at their fingertips.

For example: A salesperson can draft an e-mail proposal for a customer, while at the same time instant messaging with accounting to get the most up-to-date pricing information and conducting an e-meeting with the project team to discuss customer feedback on a new product. With the Lotus Workplace, all of the top collaborative activities -- e-mail, instant messaging, Web conferencing -- can take place simultaneously within the same platform, instead of forcing the user to log-off and sign on to different applications to perform different tasks.

The Lotus Workplace brings a full set of flexible, portal-ready collaboration components, that can be customized to fit a specific industry or business need, such as business controls and reporting, retail operations or sales force management. These new Lotus Workplace products integrate functionality from the Lotus software core portfolio and build on IBM's years of success and expertise in the collaboration industry.

Using a single user name and password, users can work with many of today's most important collaborative tools in a consolidated, personalized, portal-based view. Without having to open and close multiple collaborative applications, Lotus Workplace products allow users to quickly and easily maneuver between managing e-mail, initiating instant messaging chat sessions, participating in an on-line learning course or publishing a memo for their company's intranet. This seamless integration can help companies lower the overall cost of running their collaborative software system, and help increase the business returns of their IT investments.

"The demand for integrated, collaborative software with security features is driving the convergence of several major markets, including collaboration, portal and content management. According to IDC, this combined market opportunity is expected to reach $13 billion by 2007(2), and IBM is well-positioned to lead this emerging market with the Lotus Workplace family of products and overall strategy," said Larry Bowden, vice president of Lotus Workplace products, IBM. "Instead of dealing with a dozen different stand-alone applications that don't work together and need separate sign-ons, Lotus Workplace products provide customers with a consolidated view that makes collaboration part of their overall business."

Lotus Workplace products include:

IBM Lotus Workplace Messaging 1.1

Lotus Workplace Messaging provides a cost-effective way to extend the reach of messaging infrastructure across the organization. This standards-based messaging product integrates easily with a variety of messaging infrastructures, including IBM Lotus Domino, as well as with portals, browsers, standards-based e-mail clients and other Lotus Workplace products. It can be used for mail only or with other functions including personal calendaring. Scalable and easy-to-use, Lotus Workplace Messaging with security features can provide a cost-effective "on demand" messaging solution for dynamic organizations. Lotus Workplace Messaging 1.1 now includes personal calendar support, expanded client and server platforms and an updated user interface based on WebSphere Portal technology.

IBM Lotus Workplace Team Collaboration 1.1

Lotus Workplace Team Collaboration seamlessly blends the synchronous capabilities of instant messaging (including presence awareness) and Web conferencing with the asynchronous capabilities of team spaces (including discussion forums and document management) and is designed to help streamline IT management and administration, centralize and reduce IT costs and minimize user complexity. Lotus Workplace Team Collaboration enables all types of users to gain instant access to the right people and information, virtually bring together geographically dispersed team members and help improve productivity overall.

IBM Lotus Workplace Collaborative Learning 1.1

Lotus Workplace Collaborative Learning is an advanced learning management system that helps streamline the management of an organization's classroom-based and e-learning programs, resources and course materials, allowing organizations to address their ongoing training requirements in a cost-efficient, timely manner. Lotus Workplace Collaborative Learning 1.1 is the next release of IBM Lotus Learning Management System (LMS), and gives customers an open, scalable, standards-compliant suite of software modules that deliver learning resources to groups of students, wherever they are located, and keeps track of their activities and performance.

IBM Lotus Workplace Web Content Management 1.1

Based on technology acquired through IBM's acquisition of Aptrix, Lotus Workplace Web Content Management will give customers the ability to quickly and easily create, publish, manage and archive Web-based content within a company's intranet, extranet and Internet environments. This product addresses the growing customer demand for flexible, integrated solutions that combine portal, collaboration and content technology onto a single platform.

Pricing and Availability

The 1.1 version of the Lotus Workplace family of products will be available for download in Q4 2003. IBM Lotus Workplace Messaging 1.1 will be available for $29 per user, while the IBM Lotus Workplace Team Collaboration 1.1 will be available for $89 per user. IBM Lotus Workplace Collaborative Learning 1.1 will be available for $35 per user, and IBM Lotus Workplace Web Content Management 1.1 will be available for $49,999 per CPU.

All prices are in US dollars and reflect Suggested Retail Price (SVP) for introduction price point for Passport Advantage, and additional discounts may be available based on volume purchases. Pricing includes licensing and 1-year software maintenance.

Platform Support

IBM Lotus Workplace server products are currently available on Linux for Intel 32 bit: SuSE 7.2 and 7.3, IBM AIX, Version 5.2 and Microsoft Windows 2000 Server. Supported client operating systems include Microsoft Windows 2000 sp3, Microsoft Windows XP, SuSE Linux 7.2 and 7.3 on Intel. Supported browsers include Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.5 service pack 2, Microsoft Internet Explorer 6.0 and Mozilla 1.3 on SuSE Linux.

For more information on the IBM Lotus Workplace products, please visit www.ibm.com/lotus/workplace.

About Lotus Software from IBM

Lotus software from IBM sets the standard for truly innovative software and services that reflect the brand's unique representation of the new ways individuals and businesses work together to achieve success. Lotus software is further redefining the concept of conducting business through practical knowledge management, e-business and other ground-breaking ways of connecting ideas, thinkers, buyers, sellers and communities around the world via the Internet. Lotus software is marketed in more than 80 countries worldwide through direct sales and extensive Business Partner channels.

IBM, AIX, DB2, Domino, Lotus and WebSphere are trademarks of IBM Corporation in the United States, other countries, or both. Microsoft and Windows are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States, other countries, or both. Java and all Java-based trademarks are trademarks of Sun Microsystems, Inc., in the United States, other countries, or both. Other company, product or service names may be trademarks or service marks of others.

(1)- According to the results of a report from Gartner Group that appeared on InternetNews.com, "Big Blue Unveils Commerce Integration Platform" by Thor Olavsrud, June 17, 2002

(2)- International Data Corp. (IDC), 2003