JBoss, Inc. Unveils the JBoss Enterprise Middleware System; Driven by Customer Demand, New Open Source Architecture Delivers on Flexibility, Technology Choice and Innovation.

ATLANTA -- JBoss(R), Inc., the Professional Open Source company, today introduced the JBoss Enterprise Middleware System (JEMS), a true open source architecture designed for plug and play with leading technologies to bring greater flexibility and technology choice to the end user. Until now, enterprise customers have been locked into monolithic, proprietary middleware stacks where the tradeoff has been quality or cost. In contrast, JEMS offers cutting-edge technology components, from persistence to caching to workflow, which customers can mix and match and roll out into their line of business infrastructure--all at zero-cost software licenses.

Driven entirely by customer demand, JEMS offers a true open source architecture that any vendor--proprietary or open source--can plug into. Whether at the application, microkernel or Java runtime level, customers and vendors can integrate any product with the JEMS architecture. JEMS features key technologies that have long been the core of the company's flagship JBoss Application Server. Moreover, JBoss has blended the JBoss Microkernel with the innovative JBoss AOP framework, resulting in the JBoss MicroContainer, which enables any service to plug in and expose its features to plain old Java objects (POJOs) quickly and easily.

"With JEMS, JBoss is delivering the Open Source Architecture of the future to the market, giving customers choice in technology, control over their applications and the ability to write any services into these applications," said Marc Fleury, chairman and CEO, JBoss, Inc. "This completely open middleware system will free end-users from the yoke of monolithic commercial middleware stacks that leave little room for flexibility or bargaining power. With Professional Open Source, JBoss is making open source safe for the enterprise and, in the process, proving that open source delivers better technology at a lower total cost of ownership."

With such core foundational technologies as an application server and workflow engine in place, JEMS provides a reliable alternative to pricey and heavy-handed offerings from proprietary vendors. JBoss customers can deploy on JEMS and grow their open source environments as JBoss expands the JEMS stack. As enterprises increasingly roll out open source software across their computing infrastructure, they can rest assured that JBoss Professional Open Source will deliver the highest levels of support services.

"The JBoss Enterprise Middleware System uniquely responds to NLG's needs as a company at the forefront of implementing open source software wherever possible," said Jamie Cash, vice president, technology at NLG. "This flexibility of the JEMS architecture enables us to implement those technologies we need today, evaluate what we might need tomorrow and have room to grow in future--all supported by JBoss Professional Open Source."

In the coming months, JBoss will be supplementing the JEMS stack with new and innovative open source middleware. Plug-and-play open source technologies available today for the JEMS architecture include:

--JBoss Application Server, the only J2EE compliant, open source application server;

--Hibernate, the de facto leader in object-relational mapping (ORM) and persistence;

--Tomcat, the leading web servlet engine in use;

--JBoss jBPM, the leading open source workflow engine;

--JBoss IDE, a world-class development environment based on Eclipse;

--JBoss Cache, the only fine-grained caching technology on the market;

--JGroups, a toolkit for reliable multicast communications; and

--JBoss Portal, formerly JBoss Nukes, the company's powerful content management system.

The JBoss Enterprise Middleware System is fully backed by professional support services from JBoss, Inc., which include professional support, consulting and training to assist users at every stage of the application lifecycle. JBoss Professional Support is delivered from the source--that is, technical experts with direct access to the core developers of the JBoss federation of open source projects. Support and services are also available through the company's extensive network of JBoss Authorized Service Partners (JASP). For more information, please visit http://www.jboss.com/services/index.

JBoss will be showcasing its federation of open source projects and their latest advances at the company's upcoming user conference, JBoss World 2005, which will take place at the Omni/CNN Center in Atlanta, Ga., March 1-2, 2005. The show will be a learning and networking opportunity for the JBoss community. The JBoss architects and developers behind the projects will share their technical expertise as well as provide insight into new innovations to come. Registration is now open at http://www.jboss.com/company/events/jbossworld2005.

About JBoss, Inc.

Through its Professional Open Source model, JBoss, Inc. is making open source a safe choice for the enterprise. JBoss provides resources, technology direction and core development for popular open source projects and stands behind them with enterprise-grade support and services. JBoss is building a complete Enterprise Middleware System based on the Professional Open Source model that now includes Tomcat, Hibernate, JBoss jBPM, JBoss Cache, the JBoss Microkernel and the JBoss Application Server, the industry's fastest growing J2EE application server in use, with over five million downloads. Corporate Express, La Quinta and Nielsen Media Research, among others, rely on JBoss open source middleware for mission-critical enterprise applications. Partners who embed or bundle JBoss products and resell JBoss services include Computer Associates, HP, Novell and Unisys. JBoss has headquarters in Atlanta, Ga. and Neuchatel, Switzerland. For additional information, please visit www.jboss.com.

JBoss is a registered trademark of JBoss, Inc. in the United States and other countries. Java and J2EE are trademarks or registered trademarks of Sun Microsystems, Inc. in the United States and other countries. All other trademarks or registered trademarks herein are property of their respective owners.