ASCL Ascential Software - Common Stock (MM)

Ascential Software Completes BEA Validation Program The Ascential Enterprise Integration Suite(TM) SOA Edition Integrates with BEA WebLogic Platform to Provide Reliable and Accurate Data Across Global Organizations WESTBORO, Mass., April 25 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Ascential Software Corporation (NASDAQ:ASCL), an enterprise data integration leader, today announced that the Ascential Enterprise Integration Suite(TM) SOA Edition has completed the BEA Validation Program and is now verified to integrate with BEA WebLogic Platform 8.1. By completing this program, Ascential Software has demonstrated that its complete, end-to-end enterprise data integration platform is designed to integrate with BEA Systems, Inc. unified software infrastructure platform to help support the building, extending, and integrating of applications as end-to-end business processes. Ascential Software is designed to enable organizations to transform data into accurate, reliable and complete business information to help improve operational performance and help enable better decision-making across critical business dimensions. "Service oriented architectures (SOA) are being widely adopted by our customer base as a way to help improve consistency and interoperability across technologies," said Michael Curry, senior product marketing manager, Ascential Software. "This certification gives our joint customers with BEA the confidence to develop and deploy services in their environments." An SOA helps to enable common software components to operate as shared services with standardized interfaces, which can help to minimize development redundancies and remove the barriers between multiple IT initiatives. The BEA Validation Program provides a testing framework to verify the technical readiness of partner solutions that complement, operate with, or extend the BEA WebLogic Platform 8.1. Partners can validate the integration of their software applications and solutions with BEA WebLogic Platform 8.1 or test the interoperability of Java controls and integrated development environment (IDE) extensions with BEA WebLogic Workshop 8.1. The BEA Validation Program is open to all partners enrolled in the BEA Partner Program. "By validating Ascential Enterprise Integration Suite SOA Edition on BEA WebLogic Platform 8.1, Ascential has taken an important step that can help reduce total cost of ownership for our mutual customers," said Larry Aronovitz, director of worldwide partner program for BEA Systems. "The BEA validation program is designed to help accelerate adoption of partners' solutions and help to increase market opportunities by assuring mutual customers that these partners' technology solutions are designed to integrate with the BEA WebLogic Enterprise Platform," The Ascential Enterprise Integration Suite is a comprehensive data integration solution that is designed to profile, cleanse, and transform data from virtually any application or system regardless of data volume or latency. Ascential Software's integrated offering is designed to help companies streamline operations, improve customer support, expedite business transactions, and make better tactical and strategic decisions on the basis of the best available information. The Suite can provide scalability through parallel processing, complete meta data management, any-to-any data source and application connectivity, and can deliver on-demand data integration seamlessly within an enterprise's service-oriented architecture. About Ascential Software Ascential Software Corporation (NASDAQ:ASCL) is a leader in enterprise data integration. Customers and partners worldwide use the Ascential Enterprise Integration Suite(TM) to confidently transform data into accurate, reliable and complete business information to improve operational performance and decision-making across every critical business dimension. Our comprehensive end-to-end solutions provide on demand data integration complemented by our professional services, industry expertise, and methodologies. Ascential Software is headquartered in Westboro, Mass., and has more than 3,000 customers and partners globally across such industries as financial services and banking, insurance, healthcare, retail, manufacturing, consumer packaged goods, telecommunications and government. For more information call 1-800-966-9875 (508-366-3888 if calling from outside the US or Canada) or visit the Ascential Software website at http://www.ascential.com/. Media and industry analysts, contact Chas Kielt, director of media and analyst relations, at 1-508-599-7256 or . 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 and BEA's products and technology; results achievable and benefits attainable through deployment of Ascential Software's and BEA's products and provision of services; improve customer support, expedite business transactions, and make better tactical and strategic decisions on the basis of the best available information and improvements in operational performance and decision-making. The following factors, among others, could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in these forward-looking statements: any software errors in either BEA's or Ascential Software's products or the integration thereof; any unforeseen changes in technology or industry standards that could render BEA's or Ascential Software's products less competitive, useful or functional; the ability of the company 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 the company; dependence on international operations; global and geopolitical instability; compliance costs associated with regulations to which the company is subject, including the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, and the impact of such regulations; and difficulties that the company 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 BEA Systems, Inc and Ascential Software with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including, without limitation, their respective most recent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q. Ascential Software and BEA Systems each disclaim any intent or obligation to update any forward-looking statements made herein to reflect any change in their expectations with regard thereto or any change in events, conditions, or circumstances on which such statements are based. Ascential Software is not responsible for statements attributed to third parties within this release or in any materials referenced herein. Partnerships described herein shall be deemed to be strategic alliances only, and shall not imply the power of either partner to bind the other partner or to incur obligations on behalf of the other partner. Ascential, Ascential DataStage and Ascential Enterprise Integration Suite are trademarks of Ascential Software Corporation or its affiliates and may be registered in the United States or other jurisdictions. Other marks are the property of the owners of those marks. Contact: Chas Kielt Mary Keith Ascential Software Corporation Porter Novelli (508) 599-7256 (617) 897-8281 DATASOURCE: Ascential Software Corporation CONTACT: Chas Kielt of Ascential Software Corporation +1-508-599-7256, , or Mary Keith, Media Contact for Ascential Software Corporation, +1-617-897-8281, Web site: http://www.ascentialsoftware.com/

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