REDMOND, Wash., Dec. 6, 1999 — Microsoft Corp. today announced availability of the BizTalk TM Framework Document Specification 1.0, an updated component of the framework based on Extensible Markup Language (XML) schemas and industry standards for sharing information. The Microsoft® BizTalk Framework provides specifications for the design and development of XML-based solutions for communication between applications and organizations by leveraging standard Internet technologies such as XML, XML schema and MIME. This data-focused approach allows businesses to easily exchange XML documents with online trading partners and internal systems regardless of the platform, operating system or the underlying technology of their existing systems.
Microsoft submitted the BizTalk Framework Document Specification 1.0 to the BizTalk Steering Committee — composed of industry-leading vendors, standards bodies and corporate customers — for review in September. The committee finalized and published the document specifications on the BizTalk.Org Web site ( http://www.biztalk.org/ ), a public online library of shared XML information, resources and business document schema. Any individual or organization can access the specifications and use them to implement e-commerce and application integration solutions using the BizTalk Framework. With the final version of the specification now available, corporate developers and independent software developers can immediately embark on the development of BizTalk-compatible applications.
“Today’s IT professional is faced with the double challenge of not only integrating diverse applications, but doing so in a time frame relevant to the pace of business today,”
said Charles Fitzgerald, director of business development for the Developer Division at Microsoft.
“Getting different applications to ‘talk’ to each other is a major technical hurdle, which has grown more visible as companies try to integrate e-commerce applications with back-end systems and partners. The BizTalk Framework helps speed the integration of applications within a single organization or between trading partners over the Internet.”
About the BizTalk Framework
First introduced in March 1999, the BizTalk Framework makes it easier for businesses to exchange information between applications and conduct business over the Internet with trading partners and customers. This has been difficult in the past because of the lack of a single technical vocabulary for describing business data and processes. The challenge exists both across and within industries because no two businesses use data in exactly the same way. The BizTalk Framework includes design specifications for implementing business documents using XML schemas and a set of XML tags that provide BizTalk-enabled applications with document handling and routing information. They act as an
“envelope”
for the business information to be transmitted. Microsoft, other software companies and industry-standard bodies will use the BizTalk Framework to produce XML schemas in a consistent manner to enable integration across industries and between business systems regardless of platform, operating system or underlying technology.
“The biggest hurdle in business-to-business electronic commerce is the ability to trade with companies that have disparate systems and infrastructures,”
said Andy Berti, chief technology officer at Intelisys Electronic Commerce Inc.
“The BizTalk Framework is a remarkable step toward developing a more efficient information exchange platform that will facilitate the translation of information between extended purchasing communities. BizTalk truly capitalizes on the potential of Internet technologies by interpreting a broad spectrum of protocols.”
The BizTalk Steering Committee provides guidance on the future direction of the BizTalk Framework and includes American Petroleum Institute, Ariba Inc., The Baan Co., The Boeing Co., Clarus Corp., CommerceOne Inc., Concur Technologies Inc., Data Interchange Standards Association (DISA), J.D. Edwards & Co., Merrill Lynch & Co. Inc., Microsoft, New Era of Networks (NEON), The Open Applications Group (OAG), PeopleSoft Inc., Pivotal Corp., RosettaNet and SAP AG. More information about the BizTalk Framework is available at http://www.biztalk.org/ . More information about the Microsoft BizTalk Framework initiatives is available at http://www.microsoft.com/biztalk/ .
About the BizTalk.Org Web Site
The BizTalk.Org Web site serves as the online reference for the BizTalk Framework specifications, schemas, reference materials, tools, sample applications and a community newsgroup. The Web site is an open repository for the submission and publication of XML schemas, business documents and messages expressed in XML. The schemas allow organizations to exchange documents in generally understood business terminology and integrate the data from those documents with their existing applications. In addition, the Web site provides an updated submission and schema validation process. Users can freely use XML schemas from the BizTalk Web site within their applications, as long as the schemas are published for public use by the owner or author of the schema. Businesses also have the option of publishing the schemas in a secure area on the Web site for private use between trading partners.
About Microsoft
Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq
“MSFT”
) is the worldwide leader in software for personal and business computing. The company offers a wide range of products and services designed to empower people through great software — any time, any place and on any device.
Microsoft and BizTalk are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corp. in the United States and/or other countries.
Other product and company names herein may be trademarks of their respective owners.
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Support for BizTalk Framework From the Steering Committee Members
“The BizTalk Framework helps enable e-business and business-to-business integration in a heterogeneous environment. It enables the creation of partner and supply chain scenarios by providing a common XML-based dialogue. We are in full support of Microsoft BizTalk Framework.”
— Peter Hoversten
Senior Vice President for Product Strategy
New Era of Networks Inc. (NEON)
“BizTalk is an important business-to-business e-commerce accelerator. The inclusion of cXML in BizTalk Framework 1.0 now provides business suppliers of all sizes with a friction-free link to some of the world’s largest business buyers through the Ariba network.”
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Dave Rome
Vice President of Marketing
Ariba
“Compaq’s BusinessBus is enterprise application integration software for integrating applications and business processes. It offers an XML-compliant API that supports any XML schema, including Microsoft BizTalk Framework 1.0. Our BusinessBus software simplifies the integration of BizTalk and legacy applications on heterogenous platforms, giving customers a superior approach to business-to-business integration. XML documents from suppliers and external agents can be immediately integrated with the BusinessBus XML backbone without translation.”
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Rob Starkey
Director of Enterprise
Application Integration
Compaq Professional Services
Compaq
”
Concur is pleased to support the release of the BizTalk Framework 1.0 specification. Enabling businesses to securely send business documents and information from our workplace
e-commerce solutions to partners via BizTalk accommodates those who wish to communicate and conduct business over the Internet. This is an important initiative in the growth and continued success of today’s electronic commerce marketplace.”
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Michael Hilton
Chief Technology Officer
Concur Technologies
”
The biggest hurdle in business-to-business electronic commerce is the ability to trade with companies that have disparate systems and infrastructures. The BizTalk Framework 1.0 is a remarkable step toward developing a more efficient information exchange platform that will facilitate the translation of information between extended purchasing communities. BizTalk truly
capitalizes on the potential of Internet technologies by interpreting a broad spectrum of protocols.
“
-
Andy Berti
Chief Technology Officer
Intelisys Electronic Commerce
“We think the BizTalk Framework 1.0 advances the state of XML for customer’s e-business and application integration challenges. Our customers want a single envelope for sending and managing XML-based messages and the BizTalk Framework is instrumental in making this happen.”
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David Connelly
President
Open Applications Group
“As a proponent of standards-based e-business, as well as a leading member of the Microsoft ISV community, Pivotal enthusiastically endorses the BizTalk Framework 1.0. Our vision for personalized Internet Relationship Hubs, where corporate employees, business partners and customers converge to conduct commerce and manage relationships, will be greatly enhanced and facilitated as a result of this important initiative.”
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Keith Wales
CTO and Co-Founder
Pivotal
“The BizTalk Framework 1.0 solves the issue of interface description in e-commerce. SAP AG has seen this vision come true, and we expect tremendous progress moving forward as part of this initiative. SAP is excited to support the BizTalk Framework 1.0 release, which will enable businesses to easily exchange information over the Internet in a standard way.”
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Thomas Becker
Development Manager of Business Process Technology
SAP AG
