[announce] OASIS Member News: Synergy Incubate and Ontopia AnnounceStrategic Partnership

[Motomu Naito <motom@synergy.co.jp>]

Synergy Incubate and Ontopia Announce Strategic Partnership
-----------------------------------------------------------

TOKYO, 20 MAY 2002 Synergy Incubate, one of the leading providers
of information management tools and services in Japan, today
announced a strategic partnership with Ontopia AS that will bring
Ontopia's advanced Topic Map technology to the Japanese market.

Ontopia AS is a leading provider of advanced Topic Map technology
and co-creators of the Topic Map standard.

As a result of this agreement, Synergy Incubate gains access to
Ontopia's flagship product, the Ontopia Knowledge Suite(TM), for
use in building Topic Map-driven knowledge applications for its
customers, and Ontopia gains a partner of the highest calibre to
serve the needs of its Japanese customers.

Topic Maps are a standard technology that bridges the gulf between
information and knowledge. Topic Maps provide a single, extensible
platform for indexing information, integrating systems, and
managing knowledge. Solutions built around Topic Maps extend
easily from one application to another: Indexes evolve into
portals; portals into knowledge bases; knowledge bases into the
foundation for integrated applications. The same Topic Map data
underlies and enables all of these, permitting repeated leveraging
of investment. And Topic Maps are based on open, international
standards, so knowledge is guaranteed longevity and vendor
independence.

The Ontopia Knowledge Suite is the world's most complete and
robust suite of Topic Map tools. Written in 100% Java, it can be
used to underpin a wide range of applications, from web portals to
web services, from corporate intranets to enterprise knowledge
bases, and from information integration to application
integration.

"The fact that Synergy Incubate, the most knowledgeable Topic Map
company in Japan, chose Ontopia is yet another validation of our
Topic Map technology," stated Steve Pepper, Chief Executive
Officer at Ontopia and co-editor of the XML Topic Map (XTM)
specification. "Synergy Incubate and Ontopia share a common
passion to deliver solutions based on open standards that truly
meet users' needs and that protect their investment over time and
across applications. We also share a common faith in the ability
of Topic Maps to enable exactly that."

"Just as human society cannot be formed by one individual alone,
it is true to say that an information society cannot be built upon
one computer alone. We believe strongly that Topic Maps are the
best way to connect users, information, and knowledge," stated
Motomu Naito, Director of Synergy Incubate and translator of the
Topic Map standard. "Ontopia has shown its commitment to the same
vision and also produced technology of unrivalled quality. We are
proud to work with them."


About Synergy Incubate Inc.
---------------------------

Synergy Incubate Inc. was founded in 1995 to provide information
management solutions based on XML, SGML, HTML, Fulltext DB, RDB,
Topic Maps and Web technology. Its customers include the Japanese
Governmental Agencies, Japan Science and Technology Corporation
(JST), NTT, CANON, Daiwa Securities, Asia Securities Printing, the
Universities of Tokyo and Keio, the National Institutes of
Informatics (NII) and Japanese Literature (NIJL).

Synergy Incubate partners with recognized experts in the realm of
information management, including Textuality, Antarcti.ca, and
Ontopia. The company is a member of IDEAlliance and the
Organization for the Advancement of Structured Information
Standards (OASIS), and participates in standardization activities
related to XML in Japan and internationally.

Its offerings include platforms for sharing information and
knowledge; network security features, such as document
authentication and notarization; and multilingual support for
software. It has provided products and services based on Topic
Maps since 2000.

Synergy Incubate is privately held and has headquarters at ORITA
BLDG.2F, 1-30-22, Tomigaya, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo 151-0063 Japan. Tel:
+81-3-5478-9901. Fax: +81-3-5478-9801. Web: http://web.synergy.co.jp

Company Contact:
----------------
Motomu Naito, Director
+81-3-5478-9901
motom@synergy.co.jp


About Ontopia AS
----------------

Ontopia, The Topic Map Company(TM), is the world's leading
provider of Topic Map technology. Its principals have been
actively involved in developing and promoting the Topic Map
paradigm for many years. Ontopia technology provides added value
to web portals, content management systems, knowledge-based
intranet applications, and enterprise application integration.

Ontopia's flagship product, the Ontopia Knowledge Suite, comprises
a full-featured Topic Map Engine SDK; a Navigator Framework that
lets Web developers build Topic Map-driven Web delivery
applications without the need for programming; and an Editor
Framework for developing intuitive and user-friendly environments
for editing Topic Maps. Ontopia also offers consulting and
training services and provides technology to support the automatic
generation of Topic Maps from other data.

Ontopia is privately held has headquarters at Waldemar Thranes gt.
98, N-0175 Oslo, Norway. Tel: +47-23 23 30 80. Fax: +47-23 23 30 81.
Web: http://www.ontopia.net.

Company Contact:
----------------
Steve Pepper, CEO
+47-23 23 30 80
info@ontopia.net



------------------------------------------------------------------
Motomu Naito               Synergy Incubate Inc.
motom@synergy.co.jp        http://web.synergy.co.jp/
TEL:+81-3-5478-9901        FAX:+81-3-5478-9801
ORITA BLDG.2F, 1-30-22, Tomigaya, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo 151-0063 Japan