IBM Homepage Creator for E-business Debuts
An improved and expanded solution for creating and hosting e-business Web sites
NEW YORK CITY (June 16, 1998) – To help companies take better advantage of the increasing number of consumers buying goods and services on the Internet, IBM today released a new version of IBM HomePage Creator, a Web site creation and hosting solution featuring updated technology, expanded services and first time availability in Europe.
The new version, called IBM HomePage Creator for e-business and located at http://www.ibm.com/hpc, can help organizations save time and money when developing e-business Web sites. Costing as little as $24.95 per month, the new version features:
Easy-to-use technology: Customers build online, using their browser to create the site via a new point and click Java 1.1 interface that provides significantly enhanced performance and usability for creating Web sites.
Five levels of service: Helps a business start small and grow fast without having to completely rebuild their site. The new IBM HomePage Creator for e-business allows customers to choose from five levels of service, easily growing a site from 5 Web pages to 50 Web pages and 500 catalog items.
Security: Online order processing with solutions for credit card transaction and check clearing capabilities are available through an independent vendor from the company’s Web site. Once a consumer has completed the order form and pressed submit, the information about their order is encrypted using SSL technology and transmitted to the appropriate processing network for validation and clearing.
Hardware alternative: Sites are hosted by IBM. Customers do not need to invest in personal computers or Web servers. The site product catalog and access is covered by the monthly fee.
“Companies have heard a multitude of reasons to be on the Internet — to grow business, to stay competitive, to be in touch with and educate customers, and, of course, to make money,” said Nancy Faigen, vice president, web application server solutions. “IBM HomePage Creator for e-business is a solution that allows any business to open their doors on the Web and maintain that endeavor with a minimum amount of effort and expense.”
In a recently published report, Forrester Research forecast that companies selling goods and services online will generate $4.8 billion in revenue in 1998, and that revenue will grow 260% to $17 billion by 2001.
Unlike many competing products that provide simple clip art and template guides to build a Web site, IBM HomePage Creator for e-business is a very cost-effective and more robust business solution. The new version provides for hosting the Web site, creating and posting the site, and developing e-commerce enabled catalogs.
The IBM HomePage Creator for e-business Web site offers a new Java 1.1 creation tool and is located entirely on the Internet. Pages are created online using a point-and-click interface and can be published with just one click of the mouse — all without the use of complicated file transfer tools or HTML coding. Content can be created quickly and easily, so that casual PC user can frequently and conveniently update and change the site.
IBM HomePage Creator for e-business also provides on-screen hit counters, catalogs, choice of site name, support for DNS names and transaction functionality that enables anyone to conduct business on the Internet. Additionally, the solution includes, at no additional charge, automated site registration on more than 20 search engines to date to help customers increase their visibility on the Web.
IBM HomePage Creator for e-business is the newest version of the HomePage Creator solution announced in October of 1997. IBM HomePage Creator for e-business is part of a family of e-business service offerings from IBM Global Services that provides information technology solutions to enable enterprises to lead in their marketplaces.
Source: IBM