Netscape Communications Corporation (Nasdaq: NSCP) today announced agreements with the leading providers of customer service and help desk software applications to drive the development of sophisticated Web-enabled customer service applications for enterprise customers. Aurum, Clarify, Remedy, Scopus, Silknet, and Vantive plan to develop their second -- and third -- generation Internet-based applications using the Netscape(R) platform including standards such as Java, JavaScript, Dynamic HTML and SSL (Secure Sockets Layer). These products will enable enterprise customers to provide important information to their employees, customers and partners through Extranets while controlling access to sensitive data.

Customer service and help desk Extranets not only allow the employees of a company to access customer service knowledge databases, but also provide controlled access to a company's customers and partners. Today's announcement is the most recent in a series of enterprise application initiatives undertaken by Netscape, expanding the solutions for customers building Networked Enterprises.

First generation Web-enabled customer service and help desk applications allowed access to information placed on an Intranet, but this valuable data was not accessible by the customers or partners because of its sensitivity. The new generation of applications, based on Netscape open software and industry standards, will enable companies to better protect data outside the firewall and will increase the accessibility of information for employees, customers and partners. These new security standards, combined with the encryption features currently available in Netscape Communicator client software and Netscape SuiteSpot 3.0 server software, provide an important foundation for these Networked Enterprise applications.

"Companies realize that they have enormous value both for employees as well as external customers and partners in their service knowledge bases," said Danny Shader, vice president of industry and developer relations at Netscape. "Using Netscape client and server software, companies can now place this information on Extranets and deliver this information directly to selected partners, suppliers and customers -- using appropriate security limitations."

Netscape Communicator client software and SuiteSpot 3.0 server software provide the basis for these second -- and third -- generation encrypted Extranet applications. Netscape Certificate Server allows digital certification code to be attached to email identification. The server verifies each information request based on specified authorizations. Netscape Directory Server 3.0, one of the first commercial servers based on the new proposed Internet standard draft of the Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) version 3, provides access to data residing on a server by using assigned attributes. As a universal client and user interface, Netscape Communicator software provides data integrity features so that developers don't need to modify client software to add enhanced Extranet encryption capabilities.

"We were one of the first vendors to launch a Web-enabled gateway for the help desk almost two years ago, and now more than 20 percent of our 3,800 customer sites are using the application," said Larry Garlick, chairman and CEO at Remedy. "We are eager to continue our leading-edge efforts in the exploding Web marketplace, and look forward to working with a best-of-breed partner like Netscape to support this growth."

Under the agreements, the customer service and help desk companies have begun to develop easy-to-use, on-demand access to customer service knowledge bases using highly interactive and dynamic interfaces written in HTML, JavaScript and Java. Netscape software's encryption features such as SSL help to protect the confidential information from security risks.

By increasing the depth and breadth of marketing and support information available directly to employees, customers and partners, companies can improve communications, increase customer satisfaction, and reduce resource-intensive support costs, opening up new markets and sales opportunities in the process. These new applications exemplify Crossware, a new category of encrypted, on- demand applications that run across networks, operating systems, and platforms and are based on open standards.

"We believe customer service is the 'killer app' for Extranets," said Tim Guleri, vice president of product marketing at Scopus. "We've developed one of the first customer care Web-based solution utilizing our unique architecture. Now our partnership with Netscape will allow us to continue to offer a robust solution using the latest technology."

Netscape Communications Corporation is a leading provider of open software for linking people and information over enterprise networks and the Internet. The company offers a full line of clients, servers, development tools and commercial applications to create a complete platform for next- generation, live on-line applications. Traded on Nasdaq under the symbol "NSCP," Netscape Communications Corporation is based in Mountain View, California.

Additional information on Netscape Communications Corporation is available on the Internet at http://home.netscape.com by sending email to info@netscape.com or by calling 415-937-2555 (corporations) or 415-937-3777 (individuals).

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Source: Netscape Communications Corp.