“Intranets have emerged as the strategic tool for how departments communicate across the enterprise,” said Morris Taradalsky, executive vice president and general manager, Enterprise Division, NetObjects. “NetObjects Authoring Server Suite 2000 is ideally positioned to enable large enterprises to rapidly build, deploy, and maintain a communication infrastructure throughout departments.  Consequently, NetObjects is insuring that today’s corporate Intranets provide a critical competitive advantage for companies in today’s global business environment.”

Illustrating the critical nature of today’s Intranets, International Data Corporation (IDC) recently reported that more than half of larger U.S. organizations had an Intranet in place by the end of 1998.   The report demonstrates that one out of every four dollars spent on U.S. company Web initiatives in 1998 was spent on Intranets, and two-thirds of those sites are using team-based web site building tools to accomplish corporate objectives.

NetObjects’ Authoring Server’s built-in workflow, publishing and site management capabilities provide a comprehensive end-to-end Intranet management solution that can significantly streamline and enhance internal communications. The new review/approval workflow publishing system creates an efficient and enforceable process between content contributors and content publishers which facilitates collaboration among members with different roles and skill sets.  Other new features include; instant messaging, automated task scheduling, versioning, change control, site histories, cross-site linking, cross-site shared assets, mirror publishing; providing increased control, security, ease-of-use and performance for its users.

Infineon Technologies Corporation, formerly Siemens Semiconductor Group, needed an Intranet solution that could apply collaborative workflow and disseminate information in a timely manner throughout the company. Infineon provides semiconductor solutions for the telecommunications, automotive, data networking, consumer electronics, and industrial automation markets.

“We’ve implemented NetObjects Authoring Server for internal communications across almost every division in our North American operation,” said Susanne Wortmann, manager of internal communications at Infineon Technologies Corporation.  “Developing the site with NetObjects Authoring Server has helped us to execute tasks in a timely manner, avoid bottlenecks, and insure control of the standard look and feel of the site.”

Powerful Workflow Management through Control and Collaboration
Corporate Web sites have evolved from grass-roots efforts in departments to mainstream company-wide Intranet applications requiring the efforts of many people throughout the enterprise; each with different roles, responsibilities and skills. In order to enable such diverse teams to work together, NetObjects Authoring Server 2000 provides roles-based privileges that can be assigned or revoked based on the roles and responsibilities of each member of the team. An administrator can assign privileges based on the team member’s role or by site, giving someone who works on multiple sites, different privileges.

As a result, different team members can perform different functions depending on their assigned role. Some members of the Intranet team contribute content such as product news, others define site architecture and navigation, and still others contribute to page layout; for example, by placing graphic elements and text on different pages. The process of mapping privileges that match the user’s roles simplifies the building of the Intranet site while using the full potential of each team member.

However, without the ability to control multiple people working on an Intranet site, the process can quickly result in chaos. NetObjects Authoring Server 2000 controls the process through its workflow system, routing work in process from start to finish in a roles-based environment so that many people may work on a site simultaneously and still maintain the integrity of the site.  In addition, NetObjects Authoring Server has a powerful Intranet site management system that insures that every page within the entire site gets the proper review. This allows for critical sections of the Intranet site to be reviewed and approved before the Intranet site gets published.

Wind River Systems, Inc. (Nasdaq:WIND) uses NetObjects Authoring Server to administer both their Internet with 900 pages and 8 sites and their Intranet with over 40 internal sites.  The Intranet allows the sales field to get marketing information immediately and disseminates various types of departmental information throughout the company.   With NetObjects Authoring Server, different departments, from as far away as the UK, are able to contribute content from various tools as well as from within the Fusion client while the web manager maintains overall control and consistency.  Wind River Systems, Inc. provides real-time operating systems, development software and professional services for non-PC computing environments.

“The days of funneling work load are long over. NetObjects Authoring Server provides control and user administration benefits unlike any tool I’ve used before,” said Paul Schilling, web specialist at Wind River Systems, Inc.. “Whether you're a code geek adding custom scripts or a complete novice, the TeamFusion Client makes building web pages fun and easy with it's powerful component tools and intuitive interface.”

Rapid Web Site and Page Design
The trend in large enterprises is to rapidly enable an expanding number of people in the organization to take control of their own content creation and management.  As a result more people with little or no Web authoring or HTML skills are becoming members of the site building team and need an easy way to submit text, graphics, or data. Simple textual content contribution is enabled through a browser-based applet that eliminates the need to install and manage additional software. The user

simply launches a browser and fills out a template, which is transferred to the authoring server, where the text is merged into the appropriate page.  As a result, both the information architect, who is laying out the entire Intranet site, and the page layout designer, can quickly contribute to the site without having to know how to program or code.

Extended Team Support & Multiple Site Administration
NetObjects Authoring Server 2000 also enables technical Web development team members to inter-operate with web site contributors across the enterprise due to its compatibility with a variety of Web content creation techniques, including dynamic database integration, rich media, scripts, text, and graphics. NetObjects Authoring Server 2000 also supports the incorporation of JAVA, HTML, XML, JavaScript, Shockwave, Active X, and QuickTime components created by the more technical members.  With Connectors for Microsoft FrontPage and Macromedia Dreamweaver, Web developers using these tools can also participate in the controlled collaboration environment of NetObjects Authoring Server 2000.

NetObjects Authoring Server 2000 uniquely supports the concept of multi sites so that every business unit, corporate function, and department can have its own Intranet site. Even though Intranet sites tend to be separate and distinct, NetObjects Authoring Server 2000 manages cross-site linking where one Intranet site can automatically be referenced as part of another Intranet site. In addition, NetObjects Authoring Server 2000 features a new shared asset manager feature that allows multiple Web sites to define and manage shared common assets eliminating the need to replicate common files.

BackWeb Technologies, Ltd. (Nasdaq:BWEB) uses NetObjects Authoring Server to build master templates and manage content development for its entire Web site. BackWeb is a leading provider of Priority Internet communication software for the extended enterprise.  “NetObjects Authoring Server has greatly reduced bottleneck and version control problems imposed by single-user and page-level editors," said Hamilton Meyer, Web services manager at BackWeb Technologies. “With NetObjects Authoring Server, both local and remote content providers can produce their own content with minimal training or supervision. At the same time, NetObjects Authoring Server gives me the flexibility I need to create and maintain a highly sophisticated, professional-looking web site.”

Although NetObjects Authoring Server 2000 allows each Web site to be managed separately, it also allows for centralized administration of all the sites – an important requirement for

managing multiple sites. NetObjects Authoring Server 2000 also supports a variety of authentication schemes including NT Domain, Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP), Novell Directory Services (NDS), as well as its own built-in user/password authentication.

NetObjects Authoring Server 2000 supports versioning, archiving, and rolling back to a specific site version. In addition, the publishing manager feature now allows for mirror publishing, which enables a Web site to be published to more than one remote Web server at the same time. The backup, publishing and other functions can also be automated with a new scheduled task administration feature.

Openness and Connectivity
Although many Web sites require some form of dynamically generated pages, Intranet Web sites require the ability to dynamically generate pages from many different database and application servers. NetObjects Authoring Server 2000 easily integrates with popular database servers such as Oracle, IBM DB2, Microsoft SQLServer, Informix, and Sybase. Through NetObjects Authoring Server Integration Suites, NetObjects Authoring Server 2000 integrates with application servers which include IBM WebSphere, Lotus Domino, Allaire ColdFusion, and Microsoft IIS/ASP.

“This announcement puts NetObjects Authoring Server Suite 2000 in the forefront of team-based Intranet site building,” said Michele Deziel, Lotus' general manager, Web applications. “Coupled with Domino, NetObjects Authoring Server Suite 2000 provides not only powerful workflow management, but also Domino's rapid Intranet development and deployment.”

NetObjects Authoring Server 2000 is fully compatible with Microsoft Office 2000. Documents that are created with Microsoft Office 2000 applications can be directly submitted into any site built using NetObjects Authoring Server 2000. NetObjects Authoring Server 2000 is also compatible with a wide range of common desktop applications such as Microsoft Office, Lotus SmartSuite, and Corel WordPerfect. These documents can be easily imported into a NetObjects Authoring Server 2000 site and will contain the same navigation and look-and-feel that already exists on the site.

NetObjects Professional Services
NetObjects Professional Services provide end-to-end solutions for NetObjects Authoring Server 2000.  A network of technology experts provides services ranging from consulting to product training; including migration and installation, information architecture, application design and prototyping.  Partnerships between NetObjects Professional Services and its customers result in the development and implementation of Intranet sites that are scalable, manageable and cost effective.

Pricing and Availability
NetObjects Authoring Server 2000 will be available immediately in September 1999, direct from NetObjects and authorized resellers.  Pricing for NetObjects Authoring Server 2000 will begin at $1,985 for a 2 client and 2 concurrent user system.  Online events, seminars, promotions, related products, and information about professional services are available at http://www.netobjects.com/enterprise.

About NetObjects
NetObjects, Inc. (NASDAQ: NETO), majority owned by IBM (NYSE:IBM), is a leading provider of e-Business software and services that enable small businesses as well as large-scale enterprises to build, deploy and maintain Web sites on the Internet and corporate Intranets. The NetObjects product family includes NetObjects Fusion™ and NetObjects Authoring Server Suite. In addition, NetObjects offers its customers on- line solutions, including content, products and services to help them register, host, build, maintain and promote their Web sites.

NetObjects has been ranked by Softletter 100, NewMedia 500 and as one of Fortune's 25 Very Cool Companies. Its products have won over 50 awards including Windows Magazine’s Win 100 award, InfoWorld's Analyst Choice award, CNET's Internet Excellence award, PC Magazine's Editors Choice award and InternetWorld's Industry Award. More information about  NetObjects and its products can be found at www.netobjects.com.

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws. Such statements can be identified by the words "believes", "anticipates", "plans", "expects", and similar expressions.

These forward-looking statements include, without limitation, statements about the market opportunities for web site building software and services, our strategy, and competition. Our actual results could differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements due to various factors, including the risk factors described in our Form 10-Q filed with the SEC pursuant to the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. We undertake no obligation to update publicly any forward-looking statements for any reason, even if new information becomes available or relevant events occur in the future.