NEWS RELEASE TRANSMITTED BY CANADIAN CORPORATE NEWS
FOR : Pinetree Capital Corp.
CDNX SYMBOL: PNP
February 23, 2000
Pinetree Capital Corp. : Softquad Wins Prestigious International Editorial Product Awards
TORONTO, ONTARIO--Pinetree Capital Corp. ("Pinetree") wishes to announce that SoftQuad Software Inc. ("SoftQuad"), a corporation in which Pinetree holds an approximate 25% equity interest, recently issued the following press release.
"Toronto, Canada - February 17, 2000: SoftQuad Software Inc., a leading provider of HTML and XML content creation solutions, has gained international recognition as a recent winner of several prestigious editorial awards for both product innovation and excellence.
SoftQuad's XMetaL has recently been named a finalist for the "Most Innovative New Product in 1999" by InternetWeek. Based in Manhasset, New York, InternetWeek is distributed weekly to 215,000 IT and corporate managers who are applying Internet technologies to transform their businesses. SoftQuad's innovative success stems from XMetaL's ability to accommodate a wide range of users. Susan Scovell, editor of Internet Week points out that "Advanced XML content creators will be just as pleased with this product as beginners, who will find XMetaL not only easy to use, but affordably priced."
Internet Week has also named SoftQuad's XMetaL product as a finalist in its "Best of the Best" category. A key criterion for being included in this list is having the ability to "exemplify a trend in the technology industry that is increasingly becoming a standard". SoftQuad's ability to balance innovative technology with ease of use and competitive pricing has allowed XMetaL to become a dominant force in the world of web development tools.
PC Magazine, based in the UK, has named SoftQuad's XMetaL as "Runner-Up" for its technical innovation awards. PC Magazine is read by 117,500 people, and is published on a monthly basis. How "XMetaL makes this new authoring standard both accessible and affordable" is an important aspect of SoftQuad's success.
"We're honored and proud that XMetaL has been recognized with these awards," says Roberto Drassinower, president and CEO, SoftQuad Software Inc. "XML is becoming essential for anyone serious about doing e-business on the web, and XMetaL has become the industry standard to enable rapid and easy XML content creation."
SoftQuad's HoTMetaL is also proving its worth. It has won two awards from .net and Computer Buyer, both UK magazines. .net, with a circulation of 55,000, has awarded HoTMetaL a five-star rating as ".net Best Thing". .net praises the versatility and affordability of HoTMetaL, making it a valuable asset for any web developer.
HoTMetaL is touted as "most recommended" by Computer Buyer.
Earning itself another five-star rating by Computer Buyer, HoTMetaL Pro 6.0 was reviewed by Dave Mathieson who points out; "If you're looking for the most powerful web editing package at this price, this is it." Computer Buyer has a circulation of 48,000 and is published monthly.
"These awards reflect the importance of web development tools in business today, and we're pleased to be recognized for our efforts," says Nick Mongston, Managing Director, SoftQuad UK Ltd. "The web is evolving rapidly, and SoftQuad enjoys the challenge of creating new solutions for our customers who see the potential the web can offer."
About SoftQuad Software Inc.
SoftQuad Software Inc. is a leading provider of award-winning, standards-based Web publishing solutions targeting electronic publishing, e-commerce and knowledge management applications for corporations and web professionals. XMetaL 1.2 is an advanced, simple-to-deploy XML content authoring solution that delivers a familiar word processing-like interface, allowing mainstream users to create, publish and manage sophisticated Web sites.
Headquartered in Toronto, Canada, with European operations based in London, SoftQuad is a founding member and active participant in the WorldWide Web Consortium (W3C), the Organization for the Advancement of Structured Information Standards (OASIS) and XML.org."
Pinetree Capital Corp. is a publicly traded company that focuses on being first to fund emerging growth businesses with breakthrough proprietary products. Pinetree acts as a catalyst for success by taking a leadership position in its investee companies and committing both financial and human resources to their projects. Pinetree's goal is to maximize both short and long-term investment value for it shareholders. Pinetree's focus is in the e-business sector, and in particular, companies with internet enabling technology. Trading in Pinetree's shares are reported on Tier One of the Canadian Venture Exchange (the "CDNX") under the symbol "PNP". Visit the Pinetree Capital Corp. web site at www.pinetreecapital.com.
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