iXmatch and Softface Partner to Create and Leverage Catalog-Ready Content

Minneapolis, Minnesota - Wednesday, December 18, 2001 - iXmatch Inc., the leading provider of matching software, and Softface, Inc., The Enterprise Automation Company, today announced a strategic alliance. The companies’ complementary technologies will create an end-to-end system to turn unstructured text into structured, classified content, and use it to create transactions by efficiently matching buyers and sellers.

iXmatch’s Dynamic Catalog Navigator (DCN) provides buyers with a powerful tool to describe and find exactly what they want, especially when the supplier's data is structured feature and attribute data. Unlike other search tools, including parametric search and hierarchical product catalogs, iXmatch’s DCN determines selection criteria dynamically, enabling buyers to navigate the available products quickly and accurately. There is no need to set up or maintain a product hierarchy or pre-program static search strings. iXmatch’s DCN also provides buyers with Best Bets - the products most likely to interest a buyer based on realtime and prior selections and other users’ behavior and selections.

Softface’s automated solution of converting the unstructured data found in many product catalogs into structured feature and attribute data is more consistent and cost effective than manual cleansing. Without it, e-business site managers must resort to manual data entry, which can take months and costs hundreds of thousands of dollars. “Softface provides an ideal technology relationship for us,” stated Prakash Puram, iXmatch President and CEO. “By using Softface to structure their data, iXmatch customers can fully leverage the power of our matching software.”

The combination of Softface’s attribute-rich data and the power of iXmatch’s software eliminates the inherent problems with search engines. Tim Braman, Softface's Director of Corporate and Business Development, said, "By implementing iXmatch, Softface customers can fully leverage their structured data and increase transactions by effectively matching their products to their buyers’ requirements.”

About Softface
Softface is the emerging de-facto standard for Enterprise Content Automation. Softface's Content Solution Suites speed and simplify unstructured data classification and attribute extraction, enabling Global 2000 customers to leverage untapped corporate knowledge in order to make more cost-effective decisions, increase revenues, and enhance profits. Softface's patent-pending, highly scalable core technology is the first and only software that automatically generates structured content and relevant attributes from plain-text descriptions with a high degree of precision. Softface is a privately held company located in Walnut Creek, California. For more information on Softface, visit the company's web site at www.softface.com or call 1-925-279-1097.

About iXmatch
iXmatch is the leading provider of matching software. The company's patented software products maximize profitability and customer satisfaction by matching buyers with best-fit products and services. Customers deploying the next generation of applications in eProcurement, Strategic Supplier Sourcing, eCommerce, Human Capital Management, and CRM, will enable their business transactions with cutting-edge iXmatch software. iXmatch offers two innovative products: its flagship iXmatch Engine, which enables buyers to describe exactly what they're looking for and delivers ranked, best-fit results; and the iXmatch Dynamic Catalog Navigator, which dynamically guides buyers through product catalogs to find best-fit products. iXmatch is a Minneapolis, Minnesota company.