The Dot.commonwealth Road Show Highlights Worcester and Central Massachusetts for Its Role in 'Accelerating the New Economy'.

Business/Technology Editors

WORCESTER, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 23, 2001

The Dot.commonwealth Coalition today traveled to Central Massachusetts, making its fourth stop in a series of statewide road shows positioning the state as a center of technology leadership and innovation. This stop highlighted the region as an established pocket of technology that has helped accelerate Massachusetts into the new economy.

Internet2 was a special focus of the half-day event held at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI). Internet2 is a consortium led by over 180 universities including WPI to recreate the partnership among academia, industry and government that fostered the growth of today's Internet. The promise of Internet2 is virtually unlimited with emphasis being placed by the consortium on network capability. Internet2 will enable a new generation of software applications; technology transfer to enhance distance learning, virtual laboratories as well as other educational tools.

"The Internet that exists today, from a research and academic viewpoint, has limitations, according to Thomas Lynch, VP for Information Technology, WPI. "The Internet2 project addresses bandwidth, delay, and end-to-end performance limitations and leverages intellectual, physical, and virtual assets enabling people to create and share knowledge while collaborating freely."

Keynote speaker Howard Anderson, founder of Yankee Group, Battery Ventures and senior managing director of YankeeTek Ventures spoke of the abundant intellectual and financial capital in the region. "It is the combination of academic excellence and the availability of smart entrepreneurial venture capital that has made Central Massachusetts an exciting hotbed of new technology," continued Howard Anderson.

Also featured at the Road Show was Mark Love, president and CEO, Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce. Love spoke about two-year old Worcester InfoTech Corp, a private not-for-profit subsidiary of the Chamber. It was formed to capitalize on the expanding bandwidth resources being created in the city and to aggressively build upon this technology in Worcester. The $30 million state-of-the-art bandwidth infrastructure has the speed and capacity to support mission-critical telecommunications. "We possess amazing assets such as a wealth of intellectual capital, central proximity to major markets, and extraordinary telecommunications infrastructure that new high-tech companies are looking for," said Mark Love.

Mark Love also introduced three Area organizations and their Presidents, who each spoke about their initiatives that are helping create new jobs in the region: Dr. Martin Drexage spoke on behalf of the Center for Advanced Fiber Optics Applications (CAFA); Joseph Gormley, president, and Kevin O'Sullivan, executive director, on behalf of Massachusetts Biomedical Initiatives; and Robert Ansin, CEO, Massachusetts Innovation Center, Fitchburg.

The half-day event culminated with Frank Loew, president of the Consortium of Worcester Colleges who discussed workforce development in the region. He also introduced several area CEO entrepreneurs who shared information on their respective companies. Companies represented included: Blackstone Technologies, InterGlobal Services, Lightband Communications, Mosaicad.com and Vitel Software.

Congressman James McGovern (D-3rd District) was on hand to welcome the Dot.commonwealth Coalition in celebrating his district as one of the noted technology hotbeds across the state. "There are tremendous opportunities in Worcester and Central Massachusetts as increasing numbers of technology companies establish themselves in the area. We have become a viable and affordable alternative, especially for start-ups," said Congressman Jim McGovern.

"Massachusetts is extremely fortunate," said Joyce Plotkin, president of the Massachusetts Software & Internet Council. "We are number one in innovation and education. We have the broadest range of technology sectors, and we have the strongest network of industry influencers and opinion leaders. The mission of these road shows is to highlight our technology assets and showcase the strengths they bring to the Massachusetts economy."

The Dot.commonwealth Road Show has stopped on Cape Cod (May 2000), in the Berkshires (September 2000) and on the North Shore (December 2000). The next road show will be held in Springfield in June 2001.

About the Dot.commonwealth Coalition

Formed in 1999, the Dot.commonwealth Coalition is comprised of the State's five major information technology associations. The Coalition's mission is to highlight the Commonwealth's leading role in the new information economy and the "dot-com" world and convey that Massachusetts is an ideal place to start and grow technology companies, conduct research and development, invest in technology products and companies, and access world-class technical and business talent. Sponsors include: Alpha Industries, FleetBank, Informix Software, Lotus Development Corporation and Verizon. For more information on the Dot.commonwealth Coalition, see: www.dotcommonwealth.com or contact the following representatives:

Joyce L. Plotkin

Massachusetts Software & Internet Council

www.msicouncil.org

[phone]

Katherine Raphaelson

Massachusetts Telecommunications Council

www.masstel.org

[phone]

Leslie Smith

Massachusetts Interactive Media Council

www.mimc.org

[phone]

Anne Doherty Johnson

AeA, New England Council

www.aeanet.org

[phone]

Tom Hopcroft

Massachusetts Electronic Commerce Association

www.massecomm.org

[phone]