webMethods, Inc. unveiled webMethods for Trading Networks, a software package that will provide Global 2000 companies and B2B marketplaces with a packaged infrastructure for building, managing and analyzing B2B trading networks. With webMethods for Trading Networks, organizations now have a point-and-click solution for profiling partner interactions, defining document exchange, and establishing business process rules between companies. In addition, this product offers operational and business-level views of the flow of information through the network, allowing companies to understand the business impact and R.O.I. of their entire range of B2Bi initiatives. webMethods for Trading Networks bundles a configurable trading network infrastructure with graphical monitoring, management and analysis tools. With streamlined profiling capabilities and robust operational management tools to maintain the health of the network, webMethods for Trading Networks enables integration of trading partners regardless of their level of technological sophistication. Additionally, webMethods for Trading Networks offers visibility into an organization’s trading network processes and adds intelligence to their B2B initiatives through sophisticated data analysis. webMethods for Trading Networks is priced on a per CPU basis with prices starting at $350,000 and will be generally available at the end of September. www.webMethods.com
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W3C announced the advancement of the XML Base specification to Candidate Recommendation status. The document describes a mechanism for providing base URI services to XLink and to other XML applications benefiting from control over relative URIs. The Candidate Recommendation period ends 8 December, 2000, when the XML Linking Working Group expects to deliver proof of use of XML Base in new specifications, and a report of successful XML Base implementations in applications based on them. Implementors are invited to contact the Working Group chairs to participate. Comments may be sent to the public mailing list www-xml-linking-comments@w3.org. Also, the fourth Working Draft of Canonical XML Version 1.0 has been released, addressing comments received during Last Call that ended 28 July. It is the goal of this specification to establish a method for determining whether two documents are identical, or whether an application has not changed a document, except for transformations permitted by XML 1.0 and Namespaces in XML. Please send comments to the editor with a cc: to the public mailing list w3c-ietf-xmldsig@w3.org. The DOM Working Group has published the first public Working Drafts of the Document Object Model (DOM) Level 3. The DOM is a platform- and language-neutral interface that allows programs and scripts to dynamically access and update the content, structure, and style of documents. Comments are invited on the public mailing list www-dom@w3.org. www.w3c.org
Optika Inc. and webMethods, Inc. announced a partnership to enhance Optika’s web collaboration and resolution offerings. Optika will use webMethods’ end-to-end B2Bi Solutions to build the Acorde XML Gateway, a conduit for dynamic exchange of B2B transaction information. Through this partnership, Optika will leverage the open architecture of webMethods B2Bi solutions to create an XML gateway that allows real-time direct exchange of transaction information between disparate systems both internal and external to the organization, facilitating quick and efficient resolution of B2B transaction discrepancies. webMethods has relationships with B2B software providers and offers pre-built adapters to their systems — the same systems that Optika’s existing and potential customers use to operate their businesses. Through this partnership, Optika and webMethods will pursue joint sales and marketing opportunities with both new and existing clients in a wide variety of industries. www.webMethods.com, www.optika.com
Documentum announced enhancements to DocControl Manager (DCM), a controlled content services option for their content management platform, Documentum 4i eBusiness Edition. Specifically, the enhancements to DCM ensure the authenticity of electronic content and the integrity of business processes associated with content creation, validation and approval, management, and distribution — key requirements in meeting the compliance demands of securities regulations, food and drug regulations, environmental agencies, patent regulations, and international quality standards. Typical controlled content expedited with the product include standard operating procedures (SOPs), specification sheets, Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDSs), and engineering change notices (ECNs). Companies can now provide secured access to the most current versions of controlled content at any specified location. This is achieved using a defined change management process to assure the content is always reviewed and approved by the appropriate personnel. The solution also ensures that content release is always a consistent, tightly managed, and documented process. In addition, DCM will now integrate with Documentum’s Content Authentication Services, another add-on to 4i eBusiness Edition, to support electronic signatures and generate detailed audit trails for the creation, modification and approval of controlled content. The new product also provides centralized print control functionality, like restricting printing, tracking printed copies, and enabling recall of printed copies. www.documentum.com
A broad coalition of business and technology companies announced the Universal Description, Discovery and Integration (UDDI) Project, a cross-industry initiative designed to accelerate and broaden B2B integration and commerce on the Internet. American Express Co., Andersen Consulting, Ariba Inc., Bowstreet, Cargill Inc., Clarus Corp., Commerce One Inc., CommerceQuest Inc., Compaq Computer Corp., CrossWorlds Software Inc., Dell Computer Corp., Descartes, Extricity Software Inc., Fujitsu Ltd., Great Plains, i2, IBM Corp., Internet Capital Group, Loudcloud Inc., match21, Merrill Lynch & Co. Inc., Microsoft Corp., NEON, Nortel Networks Corp., NTT Communications Corp., Rational Software Corp., RealNames Corp., Sabre Holdings Corp., SAP AG, Sun Microsystems Inc., TIBCO Software Inc., Ventro Corp., Versata Inc., VeriSign, VerticalNet Inc. and webMethods Inc. are among the first to endorse and collaborate on UDDI. Growth of B2B commerce on the Internet faces challenges in scaling to universal adoption due to the multitude of technologies and standards used by businesses and e-marketplaces. UDDI will address these challenges by providing two things: First, UDDI defines a platform-neutral set of specifications to enable businesses to describe themselves and indicate their preferred means of conducting e-commerce transactions. Second, UDDI includes the shared operation of a globally distributed UDDI Business Registry. Through the UDDI Business Registry, companies publish information describing how they conduct commerce and search for other businesses that provide the capabilities, Web services or products they need. The goal of the UDDI Project is to offer the basic infrastructure for dynamic, automated integration of all e-commerce transactions and Web services. Similar to the impact HTML had for consumers on the Internet by providing a common Web site publishing format that fueled the Internet explosion, UDDI aims to make business-to-business commerce adoption universal by providing businesses with a common mechanism to publish Web services on the Internet. The UDDI Project is an open industry initiative in which any organization can participate and implement the specifications. The specifications build on core Internet standards — including TCP/IP, HTML and XML — and are independent of any underlying platform, language, object model, business application or marketplace. It is the intention of the UDDI members to transition the specifications to an industry standards body in the next 18 months. The open draft of the UDDI specification can be found at www.uddi.org. The final specification will be available shortly after public comments and feedback are incorporated. The UDDI Business Registry provides an implementation of the UDDI specification. Any company can access the registry on the Internet, enter the description of its business, reach a UDDI site, or search through all business services listed in the UDDI registry. There is no cost to access information in the registry. Although based on XML, the registry can also describe services implemented using HTML, Java, CORBA, Microsoft Windows DNA, or any other type of programming model or language. The registry is implemented as a Web service and thus can be discovered, integrated and programmatically invoked using XML like any other Web service. Beta implementations of the UDDI Business Registry will be available from Ariba, IBM and Microsoft within 30 days. These implementations will interoperate with each other, ensuring that information registered at one site is shared with all other operator registries. Other interoperable implementations are expected in the future. www.uddi.org
BroadVision and H&Q Asia Pacific announced the formation of a new company, a Business Services Provider (BSP) to deliver B2B mobile commerce (m-commerce) services to the worldwide wireless market. The joint venture is the first initiative to integrate the explosive wireless market with the global enterprise B2B market. The new company will develop and rapidly deliver a new generation of “small but smart” e-business applications and services that will integrate an enterprise with its mobile workforce and its mobile business end-users. The new company is a joint venture between BroadVision, H&Q Asia Pacific, ACCESS Co. Ltd., a supplier of browser technology for non-PC devices, including NTT DoCoMo’s i-mode phones, and ITOCHU TECHNO-SCIENCE Corporation (CTC), a system integrator and services company, and ITOCHU Corporation, the global company that promotes positive business development in the B2B and wireless fields. The venture will base its offerings on BroadVision One-To-One e-business applications and the company’s next-generation XML content management and XSL device-independent rendering technologies. The new company, tentatively named B-Mobile Corporation is slated to be established October 1, 2000 to provide a service for Internet-based business transactions via wireless networks such as mobile phones and PDAs. The company will also begin development of new applications for mobile B2B e-commerce by combining BroadVision’s technology and ACCESS’s mobile-enabled browser system for the use of client companies inside and outside Japan. The new company will be based in Chiyoda-ward, Tokyo. www.broadvision.com, www.access-us-inc.com, www.ctc-g.co.jp
Artesia Technologies, Inc., announced the release of its TEAMS 4.0 software solution. The latest version of Artesia’s digital asset management solution features increased support for streaming media applications, improved metadata management capabilities, and inclusion of new web-accessible functionality. With the addition of these features to TEAMS’ existing enterprise-class architecture and support for all types of rich media, TEAMS 4.0 provides a platform for the management and use of digital assets within the Global 2000, media, entertainment, publishing, and dot-com markets. Artesia Technologies’ TEAMS 4.0 provides a media-independent framework for the ingestion, management and re-expression of all types of digital content, including text, images, graphics, audio, video, Quark and 3-D raster images. Early releases of TEAMS 4.0 have already been in use, with general availability slated for this October. One of the principal new features of TEAMS 4.0 is its increased optimization for the management and delivery of streaming media content. Seamless integration with Virage Video Logger enables TEAMS 4.0 to automatically capture thumbnail proxies and key frames on import from Real, QuickTime, and Microsoft digital formats and easily export to these formats as well. Users will also benefit from being able to utilize multiple resolutions of a video asset while continuing to track and manage them as a single asset. In addition, the new Clip Identifier (CI) lets the user select a segment from a video storyboard and express it as a new asset. The Clip-Time Adjuster (CTA) makes it possible to manipulate video in and out points on a frame-by-frame basis. Finally, the Play Decision List (PDL) will use the XML-based SMIL recommendation to allow for selection and synchronization of parts of videos from many different sources. TEAMS 4.0 will also offer several other key enhancements, including fortification of its Web client framework through the use of standards-based J2EE JSP technology. www.artesiatech.com
Interwoven, Inc. and TIBCO Software Inc. announced a strategic alliance to provide comprehensive solutions for business-to-business marketplaces and portals. The recently announced Interwoven Content Interchange Framework will include the TIBCO ActiveEnterprise e-business product suite as a key enterprise integration component, enabling Interwoven customers to manage content from their enterprise applications in real-time. The TIBCO ActiveEnterprise suite will enable joint customers to become real-time e-businesses by seamlessly integrating back-end systems such as ERP, product databases and customer databases, with their Web initiatives. Interwoven and TIBCO also announced that Interwoven’s XML-based TeamSite Templating software will be integrated with the TIBCO ActivePortal product suite, delivering integrated content management and presentation for TIBCO’s portal customers. TeamSite Templating allows easy content entry and tagging including tagging for use across multiple TIBCO ActivePortal-based sites. The TIBCO ActivePortal suite also works seamlessly with TIBCO ActiveEnterprise, enabling enterprises to leverage their integrated application network and B2B commerce infrastructure to provide an integrated, unique set of real-time content and interactive services to their portal audience. www.tibco.com, www.interwoven.com
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