Web Reporting and Data Analysis Software for
Mid-market Enterprise and Departmental Applications

Release Date:  10/14/2004

Databeacon Launches .NET-powered Mid-market Reporting and Analysis Products for No-touch Smart Client Deployments

OTTAWA, ON – October 14, 2004 – Databeacon Inc., a developer of Web reporting and data analysis software and Microsoft Empower ISV partner, today announced the availability of the Databeacon Smart Client family of products: Databeacon Smart Client Professional, Databeacon Smart Client Standard, and entry-level Databeacon Analyst. Leveraging Microsoft’s .NET Framework, Databeacon Smart Client Professional and Smart Client Standard offer multiple report viewers to ensure 100% adoption of self-serve explorable reports, unparalleled support for Windows desktop tools, and no-touch deployment.

Databeacon’s new Smart Client family of products adds to its existing Open Client family of products and extends the company’s expertise to the rapidly growing opportunity for no-touch deployment software in the enterprise. All Databeacon Web Reporting and Data Analysis software supports multiple server platforms.

“Mid-market enterprises want fast, effective, affordable ways to serve the needs of Web-based users,” said Lasha Dekker, Vice President, Developer & Platform Group Microsoft Canada Co. “Databeacon’s no-touch smart client deployment of explorable reports is a great example of the kind of innovative products our partners are creating on the Microsoft platform to deliver more value to business customers.”

"We're most proud of our new explorable report viewer, called Databeacon Player," said Databeacon’s CEO Andy Coutts. "Leveraging Microsoft .NET, Databeacon Player offers a reporting and analysis interface that millions of multimedia player users are instantly familiar with. It's a breakthrough in giving absolutely anyone the ability to get insight out of their data."

In a report entitled, Profiling the Analytic End User for Business Intelligence, Forrester Research states that the vast majority (86 percent) of analytic end users are consumers of information, rather than producers of analysis. According to Keith Gile, Senior Analyst at Forrester, the key to a successful implementation is targeting the solution to the appropriate end-user constituency. "Like it or not, many business and casual users will be forced to produce their own reports. As this occurs, the lines blur between business users and casual users," stated Gile.

Databeacon Smart Client Professional and Smart Client Standard use Databeacon’s Client OLAP Reporting Environment (CORE) to combine the best of rich client and thin client systems. Combined with the .NET Framework, Databeacon’s CORE technology vastly improves Web-based reporting and analysis experiences, while eliminating server loads and providing automatic end-user software upgrades. The new Databeacon Smart Client product family offers speedy deployment, compatibility with existing Microsoft .NET infrastructure, and a familiar interface design to increase user adoption rates.

The Databeacon Smart Client product family includes:

• Databeacon Analyst – a US$395 entry-level product for a power analyst/report designer. Databeacon Analyst gives an individual the ability to design and use self-serve explorable reports on their PC from .txt (flat file) data, and share static versions of those via email. All explorable reports created with Databeacon Analyst are compatible with and can be used by enterprise upgrade products: Databeacon Smart Client Standard and Databeacon Smart Client Professional.
  
• Databeacon Smart Client Standard – starting at US$4,495 for a five named user license, includes the ability to deploy “instant-on” Web reporting and data analysis from a Microsoft, Linux or Unix Web server* to any PC with the .NET framework installed. Included are three viewers designed to ensure 100% adoption: Databeacon Web Reporter for casual use information consumers, Databeacon Player for more frequent data explorers, and Databeacon Insight for power analysts and report designers. *Linux and Unix server support available in December, 2004.
  
• Databeacon Smart Client Professional – starting at US$5,895 for a five named user license, includes all the features of Databeacon Smart Client Standard along with an Application Program Interface (API) that provides a scripting language for creating custom data profiles. It also enables custom portal development and tight integration with existing system interfaces.

About Databeacon Inc.
Founded in 1995, Databeacon Inc. is the award-winning developer of Databeacon, the Web Reporting and Data Analysis software. With more than 1,100 customers around the world, Databeacon's corporate headquarters are in Ottawa, Canada, with more than 110 reseller and OEM/ISV partners located in 27 countries.

Mark Budgell
High Road Communications
416-368-8348 ext. 241
mbudgell@highroad.com

Nathan Rudyk, VP Marketing
Databeacon Inc.
613-729-4480 ext. 304
nrudyk@databeacon.com