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Novell Invests in Five Internet Companies to Accelerate the Advancement of Innovative Directory Solutions Novell Ventures Invests in Edgix, Food.com, Indus River, Red Hat and W.R. Hambrecht PROVO, Utah — July 27, 1999 — Novell, Inc. today announced the exchange of more than $15 million of investment capital by the Novell® Ventures (formerly the Internet Equity Fund) for minority equity positions in five Internet and network software companies: Edgix, Food.com, Indus River, Red Hat, and W. R. Hambrecht. Novell Ventures seeks to accelerate the growth of the directory market and the adoption of Novell Directory Services® (NDS™) and the NetWare® server platform in e-commerce and Internet solutions for business users. Businesses use directory solutions to manage and secure user access to computer platforms, applications, data files, devices and Internet services. NDS, Novell's full-service directory, is an integral component of Novell's NetWare platform and the most widely used directory service with more than 50 million users. Running across major computer platforms, NDS supports an expanding array of network applications and e-commerce activities that enable businesses to capture the growing benefits of heterogeneous networks and the Internet. "As the Internet directory leader, Novell continues to build an ecosystem of developer and investment partners around the NetWare platform and NDS," said Christopher Stone, Novell senior vice president for strategy and corporate development. "Novell Ventures provides a vehicle through which we can accelerate directory developments that enhance the value our customers derive from their business networks and the Internet."
Fund Portfolio Companies Focus on Directory Solutions, Internet New Novell investment partners are creating products and Internet services that take advantage of NDS and other Novell networking technologies:
Additional Novell Ventures partners in 1999:
Novell works cooperatively with several Novell Ventures' partners to provide complete network solutions. Novell Internet Caching System™ (ICS) for accelerating Web performance will provide the foundation for Edgix solutions that preserve Internet bandwidth, providing faster access to information and data, and increasing scalability over wide-area networks. Novell is working with Indus River and other partners to extend its core competencies in network management and security to a new wave of Internet solutions. Indus River's VPN solution will take advantage of NDS to dramatically simplify VPN deployment and administration, the two largest barriers to wide VPN deployment today. The Indus River/NDS solution, which demonstrates the value of the directory for establishing rules or "policies" for management of network security, allows remote users to connect to the network in a far more cost-effective manner than traditional dial-up offerings. In August and December of 1998, Novell previously announced two rounds of Novell Ventures investments in nine software companies: enCommerce, Inc., Santa Clara, Calif.; Evergreen Internet, Inc., Chandler, Ariz.; GlobalCast Communications, Inc., Fremont, Calif.; NetPro Computing, Inc., Scottsdale, Ariz.; NetObjects, Redwood City, Calif.; NetVision, Inc., Orem, Utah; ObjectSpace, Dallas; Oblix, Inc., Mountain View, Calif.; and Orbital Technologies, Inc., Palo Alto, Calif. In addition to Novell Ventures, Novell makes strategic investments in select venture capital firms. Currently, Novell holds investments in Advent International, Battery Ventures, The Java Fund (Kleiner Perkins Caufield and Byers), Hummer Winblad Venture Partners, and Technology Crossover Ventures and is in discussions with numerous other venture capital firms. Novell anticipates that investments in venture capital funds will accelerate the growth of the directory market and adoption of Novell Directory Services. Novell Ventures Novell Ventures promotes Novell's interests in advancing innovative, Internet-related, networking technologies. The fund typically makes investments in development-stage companies that are in their first or second rounds of financing. The fund is focused on companies that support NDS and Java applications that run on servers, such as Novell's NetWare 5, for distribution across networks. Companies interested in the Fund can find more information about it at http://developer.novell.com/ventures. About Novell Novell, Inc. (NASDAQ:NOVL) is the world's leading provider of directory-enabled networking software. Novell solutions give businesses total control of their private networks and the Internet, simplifying the management of user access and identity. Novell's worldwide channel, consulting, developer, education and technical support programs are the most extensive in the network computing industry. For information on Novell's complete range of products and services, contact Novell's Customer Response Center at (888) 321-4CRC (4272), or visit Novell's Web site at http://www.novell.com. Press may access Novell announcements and company information on the World Wide Web at http://www.novell.com/pressroom. In addition, detailed comparisons between Novell products and competitive offerings from other vendors are available on the Web at http://www.novell.com/advantage. Novell, NetWare, and Novell Directory Services are registered trademarks, and NDS and Novell Internet Caching System are trademarks of Novell, Inc. in the United States and other countries. All third-party trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
Press Contacts:
Alison Wesley (trade press)
Norman Birnbach (business press)
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