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Adobe Announces Support for IBM DB2 Content Manager

Press release from the issuing company

WASHINGTON & SAN JOSE, Calif.--April 7, 2003-- Adobe Systems Incorporated, the leader in network publishing, today announced it is working with IBM to deliver integrated document solutions based on Adobe Form Solutions and IBM DB2 Content Manager. Initially aimed at the government market, the new solutions will integrate capabilities for intelligent, Web-based forms from Adobe with the robust infrastructure of IBM DB2 Content Manager, giving organizations the ability to automate their existing paper-based processes. "IBM provides industry-leading enterprise content management software that enables governments and businesses to solve the critical problem of managing all forms of content," said Brett MacIntyre, vice president of Enterprise Content Management, IBM Software. "Adobe brings expertise in solving specific and complex document processing problems for its customers. Together, IBM and Adobe are closing the gap between documents, people and enterprise systems to ensure efficient business processes across government agencies and to the constituents they serve." Mandates such as the Federal Enterprise Architecture, the Government Paperwork Elimination Act in the United States and the Millennium Project in Japan are requiring government agencies to replace paper processes with automated workflows to increase efficiencies and improve constituent services. With combined solutions from Adobe and IBM, agencies will be able to implement electronic workflows that ensure accuracy of data, decrease transaction-processing time, eliminate duplicate paperwork and reduce program administration costs. "Governments and businesses must find new ways to make operations more efficient, while at the same time enhancing services for constituents," said Ivan Koon, senior vice president, ePaper Business Unit at Adobe. "By working with IBM, our combined solution will deliver greater efficiency and ultimately better service by integrating document processes with business transactions." The key area of product integration between the two companies will be with Adobe Form Server, an intelligent data capture product that enables governments and businesses to publish Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF) and HTML forms to the Web. The software improves the quality of data captured by including embedded calculations and validations, speeds data capture into backend databases and improves the accuracy of forms submissions. The information will then be stored in IBM DB2 Content Manager, a comprehensive enterprise content management infrastructure that manages and integrates unstructured data in a wide variety of content -- from HTML, PDF and XML Web content to electronic office documents to rich media. More than half-a-billion copies of the Adobe Reader have been distributed to date, making PDF the de facto standard for reliable and secure exchange of electronic documents. With this new integration of Adobe Forms Server and IBM DB2 Content Manager, organizations will now be able to leverage their existing processes and infrastructure to ensure better communication and interaction across the extended enterprise.