Microsoft and Commerce One form global alliance to drive B2B e-commerce adoption

Microsoft and Commerce One have announced they are expanding and elevating their longstanding strategic relationship to collaborate on delivery of the industry`s next generation of business-to-business (B2B) e-commerce solutions worldwide. The companies will align on a global go-to-market strategy to drive the growth of e-marketplace adoption, including the integration of key technologies, collaboration on XML standards, global marketing and sales initiatives, as well as joint development programs.

Specifically, the two companies will collaborate on the development and delivery of Commerce One e-marketplace infrastructure technologies optimised for the Microsoft .NET Platform. Commerce One`s experience in delivering e-commerce solutions will be combined with Microsoft`s industry-leading technologies and products. The alliance aims to set a new standard for delivering advanced B2B e-commerce solutions. These solutions will maximise usage and drive e-marketplace liquidity by accelerating adoption and development of new services. Microsoft and Commerce One already have demonstrated effective teamwork, working with Fortune 500 clients and new e-businesses alike and the majority of Commerce One`s customers are deploying their B2B solutions on the Windows 2000 platform.

The alliance is expected to propel the global reach of e-marketplace solutions by lowering the technical barriers to adoption and in turn enabling more buyers and sellers to participate in marketplaces. Joint technology collaboration will further increase this performance. The long-term nature of the agreement and the significant resource commitments, reinforce the companies` mutual strategy to offer customers enhanced performance through a highly optimised .NET solution.

"In South Africa, Microsoft`s alliance with Commerce One will deliver B2B solutions to customers of all sizes, enhancing the business value of their technology investments," said Garry Hodgson, Internet development group director at Microsoft South Africa. "The combination of Commerce One`s global industry expertise and marketplace solutions with the business agility of the Microsoft .NET Platform will provide customers with increased speed to market, seamless product integration and new business opportunities, while reaping the benefits from the low cost of ownership of Microsoft technologies."

Built on Microsoft .NET enterprise servers and Framework, Commerce One`s leading e-marketplace infrastructure will deliver XML standards-based solutions that maximise buyer/supplier participation and deliver excellent price and performance. The highly optimised e-marketplace infrastructure, which will have the scalability to power the largest of global e-marketplaces, will initially be deployed with Commerce One`s Net Market Maker e-marketplace solution. Subsequent versions of the infrastructure will be included in the MarketSet solution jointly offered by Commerce One and SAPMarkets.

"This agreement solidifies the appeal of the Commerce One model, both in terms of its e-procurement application as well as its MarketSite e-marketplace infrastructure and the range of business services," says Derek Lubner, marketing director, Commerce One South Africa - Distributor Operations. "Locally, we will be working with Microsoft to further increase the appeal of e-Marketplaces where companies can both cut procurement costs across the board as well as increasing their reach as a buyer or supplier linking to MarketSite Africa, Commerce One South Africa`s regional trading hub. The global relationship between Commerce One and Microsoft will have enormous benefit to large and small companies in South Africa as the combined expertise resident in the two companies can only further increase the appeal and liquidity of business-to-business exchanges in South Africa."

The two companies also will optimise all current Commerce One e-marketplace and e-procurement solutions for the Windows 2000 operating system and Microsoft SQL Server 2000, which will include support for BizTalk Server 2000 and SOAP, as well as support for Commerce One`s XML business libraries, xCBL. As part of the alliance, Microsoft and Commerce One will establish a joint development laboratory in Redmond, USA, for testing, optimisation, benchmarking, architecture and development of robust interoperability between BizTalk Server 2000-based on-ramps and Commerce One e-marketplaces.

In addition, Microsoft Consulting Services will provide knowledge transfer and participate in the design, architecture and development of the joint solutions. Both companies will offer comprehensive and responsive product-support processes. This new level of technical intimacy will greatly benefit customers by lowering overall integration and implementation costs.