BURLINGTON, MA -- (MARKET WIRE) -- 12/18/06 -- Nexaweb Technologies, Inc., provider of the leading standards-based platform for building and deploying Enterprise Web 2.0 (EW2.0) applications, today announced the availability of Nexaweb Platform 4.5. Version 4.5 builds on the success of earlier editions by delivering the industry's first EW2.0 solution in compliance with Section 508 Accessibility, the only universal client framework supporting both Ajax and Java, and enhanced integration support with data services and relational databases.

Section 508 Accessibility, an amendment to the Workforce Rehabilitation Act created to eliminate barriers in IT for people with disabilities, is now a critical component for enterprises that work with the Federal market and is mandated for software used by the public sector. Compliance with this requirement is achieved through user interface (UI) controls interfacing with the Java accessibility package in Nexaweb's Java client. This enables applications to be designed with automatic screen reader-ready capabilities to ensure operability for disabled users.

"The key to staying ahead of the curve in the rapidly growing enterprise Web 2.0 market is to accurately anticipate the needs of businesses, developers and end-users," said Ron Schmelzer, senior analyst with ZapThink. "To this end, Nexaweb has successfully identified SOA, Web services, database integration, and rich Internet application capabilities provided by Ajax, Java, and .NET as key focus areas for its new Platform 4.5 release. In addition, the new Section 508 Accessibility is not only a competitive differentiator in the financial services and public sector markets, but it also demonstrates Nexaweb's commitment to meeting the evolving needs of end users and regulatory bodies."

Nexaweb Platform, which is comprised of Nexaweb's Universal Client Framework(TM) (UCF), Internet Messaging Bus(TM) and Enterprise Data Services, was designed from the ground up to simplify the development and deployment of EW2.0 applications. Nexaweb's enhanced Web services support provides a universal data format that unites information distributed between business critical applications running on various operating systems, platforms and development languages. It allows developers to set up Web services calls, either declaratively or programmatically, using industry protocols and architectural approaches including SOAP and REST. With UCF, enterprise customers are able to leverage their existing IT assets, including legacy systems, to build rich, reliable and secure business applications that can be deployed in any browser, anytime, over any network using Ajax or Java.

"Aberdeen's research has found that composite applications can be built and implemented with Web services and SOA standards even if the organization has yet to fully develop an SOA," said Peter S. Kastner, Research VP for technology integration at Aberdeen Group. "Two-thirds of our recent survey respondents view improving services to IT users as a key business requirement. Nexaweb's Platform 4.5 will deliver a rich, cross-platform experience that improves user productivity while retaining the best of legacy IT assets."

"Our goal with this release is to provide a user-friendly, end-to-end enterprise Web 2.0 platform that eliminates the need for developers to choose between Java and Ajax, while making it easier to integrate with disparate backend data sources and services," said David McFarlane, COO of Nexaweb. "True to our vision, Nexaweb continues to raise the bar around technology innovation and interoperability, which results in investment protection for businesses and greater productivity for developers. Induction of Section 508 accessibility is another industry first, representing Nexaweb's commitment to meeting end-user needs."

The new and enhanced features offered in Platform 4.5 include:

--  Section 508 Accessibility -- Nexaweb's implementation of Java
    Accessibility API exposes Java UI controls rendered to assistive and
    adaptive technologies such as screen readers and magnifiers. This allows
    the technologies to interpret and present content to disabled users in an
    understandable format.
--  Universal Client Framework -- Nexaweb UCF allows enterprise developers
    to deploy their applications using an Ajax or Java client based on the
    specific business objectives and end-user requirements of the application.
    Both clients download automatically (in seconds) to a standard Web browser,
    and intelligently download and cache data and program components on-demand,
    to minimize network overhead and optimize response times. Nexaweb has
    submitted portions of the Universal Client Framework as an open-source
    project with the Apache Software Foundation. The project is now underway as
    an Apache Incubator project titled: eXtensible Ajax Platform (XAP).
--  Web Services Integration -- Nexaweb's enhanced Web services ensure
    developers can declaratively set up Web Service calls and invoke them using
    SOAP or REST. SOAP headers support allows the sending of username, password
    and additional session information.
--  Database Integration -- Nexaweb's new SQL support enables server-side
    access to relational databases declaratively, allowing XML to fully execute
    SQL statements and stored procedure calls. This is extremely important for
    application event handling surrounding changes or updates to backend data
    sources.
    

Availability

Nexaweb Platform 4.5 is generally available today. Visit Nexaweb's Development Center at: http://dev.nexaweb.com to learn more.

Related News

Nexaweb today announced Nexaweb Studio 3.0 -- the latest version of its Eclipse-based Integrated Development Environment (IDE) toolset (see separate press release).

About Nexaweb

Nexaweb's Enterprise Web 2.0 solutions enable enterprises to rapidly deploy Richer, Thinner, Faster applications over the Web. With Nexaweb, building Ajax and Java UI applications that access legacy and service-oriented data systems is simple and doesn't require re-writing code. And only Nexaweb's EW2.0 solution is proven by more than 5,000 successful global deployments. Founded in February 2000 and rooted in the MIT community, Nexaweb is based in Burlington, Massachusetts. The company is privately held and funded by institutional investors. For more information, visit www.nexaweb.com or call (781) 345-5500.

Nexaweb and the Nexaweb logo are registered trademarks of Nexaweb, Inc. All other trademarks and service marks are the property of their respective owners. No use of a third-party mark is to be construed to mean such mark's owner endorses Nexaweb products or services.

Press Contacts:

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Martha Babbit
Nexaweb
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