Ascential Software Highlights Web Services to Meet Real-Time Integration Challenges of the Active Data Warehouse

Ascential Software VP of Advanced Technology Details Data Enrichment and Transportation Solutions at 2003 Annual Teradata Partners User Group Conference

SEATTLE,WA, Sept. 22, 2003 -- The problem has haunted data warehouse administrators for years: How do I make massive volumes of constantly changing corporate data available at a moment's notice without spending inordinate time implementing and supporting real-time integration technologies? The short answer is Web services, and an Ascential Software Corporation (Nasdaq: ASCL) executive elaborated on them yesterday at the 2003 Annual Teradata Partners User Group Conference and Expo in Seattle.

"Active data warehouses require that massive volumes of detailed, accurate and reliable data be available with near zero latency," said Robert Zurek, Ascential Software's vice president of advanced technology. "But the technologies associated with integrating data in real-time and loading/updating these high-performance warehouses have often been difficult to implement and support. Web services capabilities now make it easy for Teradata users to integrate data in real-time from any source, such as Siebel, PeopleSoft, SAP, other enterprise applications, message brokers, databases and mainframes. Combined with the right platform, Web services transform data into 'intelligent information' by profiling, cleansing, validating and re- engineering data via a service-oriented architecture, all with unlimited scalability."

Zurek used examples to illustrate how business and technical users can benefit from a Teradata warehouse whose data is enriched and transported by Web services. Attendees also learned how to contend with the "data deluge" Web services can bring.

Web services are at the heart of the new Ascential(TM) Enterprise Integration Suite 7.0, the most advanced version of the company's flagship enterprise integration solution, and Ascential Real-Time Integration Services (RTI Services). These breakthrough technologies extend the reach of Ascential Software's powerful data profiling, data quality, data transformation, parallel processing, meta data and connectivity solutions by enabling the seamless interoperability of Ascential Software's data integration solutions within an enterprise's service-oriented architecture (SOA).

About Ascential Software

Ascential Software Corporation is the leading provider of enterprise data integration solutions to organizations worldwide. Customers use the Ascential Enterprise Integration Suite to integrate and leverage data across all transactional, operational, and analytical applications with confidence in the accuracy, completeness and timeliness of critical information. Ascential Software's powerful data profiling, data quality, data transformation, parallel processing, meta data and connectivity solutions enable customers to reduce total cost of ownership and increase return on IT investment. Headquartered in Westborough, Mass., Ascential Software has offices worldwide and supports more than 3,000 customers in such industries as financial services, telecommunications, healthcare, life sciences, manufacturing, consumer goods, retail, and government. More information on Ascential Software can be found on the Web at http://www.ascential.com.

Safe Harbor Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: This release contains forward-looking statements based on current expectations or beliefs, as well as a number of assumptions about future events, and these statements are subject to important factors and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements in this release address a variety of subjects including, for example, the functionality, characteristics, quality and performance capabilities of Ascential Software's products and technology; results achievable and benefits attainable through deployment of Ascential Software's products; anticipated innovation and product development; customer requirements and expectations as well as benefits to customers from Ascential Software's products and services; impact of the combination of Ascential Software products with third party products; the impact of Web services; and reduction of cost of ownership by customers and return on IT investment. The following factors, among others, could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in these forward-looking statements: the ability of Ascential Software to expand its market share; growth rates for the enterprise data integration software market; general business conditions in the software industry, the technology sector, and in the domestic and international economies; rapid technological change in the markets served by Ascential Software; dependence on international operations; global and geopolitical instability; and difficulties that Ascential Software may experience integrating technologies, operations and personnel of completed or future acquisitions. For a detailed discussion of these and other cautionary statements, please refer to the filings made by Ascential Software with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including, without limitation, the most recent Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q. Ascential Software disclaims any intent or obligation to update any forward-looking statements made herein to reflect any change in Ascential Software's expectations with regard thereto or any change in events, conditions, or circumstances on which such statements are based.

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SOURCE Ascential Software Corporation

Web Site: http://www.ascential.com