REDMOND, Wash., Dec. 10, 1996 — Microsoft Corp. today announced its agreement to acquire NetCarta Corp., the Scotts Valley, Calif.-based developer of highly regarded client/server Web management and navigation solutions. NetCarta is majority owned by CMG Information Services Inc., based in Andover, Mass.
Microsoft plans to integrate NetCarta’s best-of-breed WebMapper Web-site management tool into theMicrosoft BackOffice
™family, giving Microsoft a comprehensive intranet and Internet Web site life-cycle solution that spans authoring, dynamic Web application development, and complex site management and content analysis. Web site professionals who use Internet server products from the Microsoft BackOffice family, including the Windows NT® Server network operating system version 4.0 with Microsoft Internet Information Server (IIS) version 3.0, will gain the ability to manage Web content and structure across multiple servers. They will also gain powerful content analysis and reporting features for greater administration and control of high-quality Web sites.
“Microsoft is committed to delivering a comprehensive content management solution that enables customers to easily track, monitor, control and replicate Web content and changes throughout an enterprise intranet or Internet site,”
said Anthony Bay, general manager for the Internet services business unit at Microsoft.
“The combination of Microsoft Content Replication System and WebMapper is the solution that professional Web-site administrators have been waiting for.”
WebMapper provides comprehensive site visualization, content analysis, link management and reporting capabilities for Web servers. The site management capabilities in WebMapper will complement the administration and management features of Microsoft’s Web tools, such as the Microsoft FrontPage
™
Web authoring and management tool and Microsoft Visual InterDev (formerly called Internet Studio).
“WebMapper is the best tool we’ve found to handle the sophisticated site management requirements of a large, dynamic Web site,”
said Kevin Woodward, producer for the San Jose Mercury News Mercury Center Web site.
“We use it to check the load size of our pages to ensure they download quickly. And we use it to check the integrity of the links in the more than 5,000 pages on our site, which WebMapper performed in seconds.”
Microsoft plans to use its marketing and distribution channels to bring WebMapper to a broader customer base. In addition, key NetCarta employees, including Rory Stark, NetCarta co-founder and chief technical officer, will join Microsoft’s Internet services business unit within the server applications division to support the integration and continued development of NetCarta technologies in Microsoft products.
In addition to the acquisition of NetCarta, Microsoft is entering into a broader relationship with CMG whereby Microsoft is making a minority equity investment in CMG. Further, the companies will explore Internet-related business opportunities between Microsoft and CMG’s portfolio companies.
CMG Information Services Inc. (NASDAQ
“CMGI”
) is a majority shareholder in NetCarta Corp. through its @Ventures strategic investment and development business unit. CMG is a direct marketing services organization that invests in and integrates advanced Internet, interactive media and database management technologies. NetCarta is a leading provider of client/server solutions for managing Web content and accelerating navigation.
Founded in 1975, Microsoft (NASDAQ
“MSFT”
) is the worldwide leader in software for personal computers. The company offers a wide range of products and services for business and personal use, each designed with the mission of making it easier and more enjoyable for people to take advantage of the full power of personal computing every day.
Microsoft, BackOffice , Windows NT and FrontPage 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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