VerticalNet and Insurity Solutions to Bring Insurance Online
================================================================
HORSHAM, Pa. & ATLANTA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 7, 2000--
Insurity Solutions To Offer Commercial Insurance Underwriting,
Quoting, and Policy Management Services To VerticalNet Communities
VerticalNet, Inc. (NASDAQ:VERT), the Internet's leading portfolio
of business-to-business trading communities, today announced its
agreement with Insurity Solutions, Inc., providers of e-commerce
commercial insurance software applications, to offer online
underwriting, quoting, and insurance management services across
VerticalNet's community structure, beginning third quarter 2000.
Under the terms of the agreement, Insurity Solutions has entered
into an extended contract to serve as a provider of VerticalNet's
insurance rating software, engineered to provide pricing and thus
facilitate the sale of insurance products to the VerticalNet audience,
while broadening Insurity Solution's own expanding customer base.
Insurity Solutions' applications will be an integral component of
VerticalNet's plan to offer its audience selection from the following
lines of business insurance: Workers' Compensation, Business Owners
Policies (BOP), Umbrella, Director and Officers and Fiduciary
Liability, Fidelity and Commercial Auto.
"Our relationship with Insurity enables us to facilitate the
selecting of insurance coverages to a vast marketplace," said Dwayne
Spradlin, vice president of Corporate Development of VerticalNet. "By
combining Insurity's software with our industry-specific knowledge we
will be able to develop unique products to meet the diverse insurance
needs of our audience and introduce our community members to insurers
and brokers who specialize in industry-centric programs."
"This deal confirms our strong belief that the design methodology
we put into our commercial insurance Internet systems is flexible
across a wide range of electronic business models," said Clyde Owen,
president of Insurity Solutions. "Our services will allow
VerticalNet's audience to transact policy sales across their growing
network. The opportunity to ally with VerticalNet enables us to extend
our reach across the insurance distribution industry and offer leading
edge technology to our customers and business partners."
Insurity Solutions also offers the capabilities of this innovative
software platform to Property and Casualty insurance carriers and
their intermediaries, such as Managing General Agents (MGA), Managing
General Underwriters (MGU), brokers and agents. Other customers
include private Internet portals such as those insurance companies
that can implement to extend services to their producer communities.
About VerticalNet, Inc.
-----------------------
VerticalNet, Inc. (www.verticalnet.com) owns and operates 56
industry-specific Web sites designed as online business-to-business
communities, known as vertical trade communities. These vertical trade
communities provide users with comprehensive sources of information,
interaction and e-commerce. They are grouped into the following
industry sectors: COMMUNICATIONS, ENERGY, ENVIRONMENT/UTILITIES,
FINANCIAL SERVICE, FOOD/PACKAGING, FOODSERVICE/HOSPITALITY,
HEALTHCARE, HIGH TECH, INDUSTRIAL, MANUFACTURING/DISCRETE,
MANUFACTURING/PROCESS, PUBLIC SECTOR, SCIENCE and SERVICES.
Additionally, VerticalNet provides auctions, catalogs, bookstores,
career services and other e-commerce capabilities horizontally across
its communities with sites like Industry Deals.com, IT CareerHub.com,
LabX.com and Professional Store.com. VerticalNet's NECX(R) Exchange
provides an exchange for the electronic components industry. Through
Tradeum technology and strategic alliances, VerticalNet is focused on
providing comprehensive end-to-end e-commerce solutions.
For further information on the VerticalNet insurance company
E-Commerce Centers, contact Brian Lawlor, National Sales Manager at
203-762-8079 or blawlor@vertical.net. To learn more about this
offering, please visit VerticalNet's www.propertyandcasualty.com or
www.verticalnet/pandc_ppt/.
About Insurity Solutions
------------------------
Insurity Solutions (www.insurity.com) has developed a portfolio of
Internet solutions that "eCommerce enable" the commercial insurance
marketplace - providing business-to-business insurance procurement and
24/7 customer support. Their products allow insurance industry
participants to shorten the quoting and binding cycle, reduce the cost
of information gathering and dissemination, and improve the overall
data flow prevalent in the industry. The result - favorable brand
differentiation and superior customer service for the agent, the
broker, the MGA, and the insurance company. Their suite of
applications includes:
IDNCenter 1/8sm 3/8
As the industry evolves towards rating and quoting functionalities
being extended to the user community, technology will continue to
support the entire insurance process. The IDNCenter represents a suite
of fully automated underwriting, quoting, and submission tools
designed exclusively for the property and casualty insurance industry.
Easy to use, flexible, and effective, these unique applications
significantly enhance distribution opportunities and
cost-efficiencies.
CICenter 1/8sm 3/8
The CICenter is an online information interface to a corporate
database, for use by internal and external users of the system.
This true Internet product provides customers access to policy and
claim data services - such as Loss Runs, First Reports of Injury,
Proof of Coverage, and summary account information. Users
traditionally consist of agents, Managing General Agents (MGA),
Managing General Underwriters (MGU), Third Party Administrators (TPA)
and the insureds themselves. Similar to the benefits of automated
rating products, these services are becoming an integral part of a
company's operation. While there are obvious marketing ramifications,
enhanced customer service opportunities, as well as tremendous
potential cost savings, are generally the driving forces in compelling
purchase of the product.
RDSCenter 1/8sm 3/8
The automated and scalable data processing system, the RDSCenter,
was developed to support statistical reporting and data service
beginning in 1996. A team of seasoned and informed data professionals
maintains and operates the system. Insurity Solutions has worked with
a variety of data providers, including Managing General Agents (MGA),
Third Party Administrators (TPA) and carriers across the country. The
goal is to ensure customers fulfill their scheduled regulatory
reporting obligations in the most painless, cost effective and
efficient way possible.
Fully integratable with the dynamic CICenter 1/8sm 3/8 Internet data
service, the RDSCenter can provide, via an Internet browser, a way to
monitor statistical reports.
At Insurity Solutions, their team of seasoned data professionals
has extensive experience in resolving carriers' regulatory statistical
reporting and data flow problems. Our Statistical Reporting and Data
Services solution is an indispensable outsourcing service, offering
peace of mind and the freedom to focus scarce IT resources on other
projects.
Insurity Solutions, Inc., was founded in 1996. Clientele consists
of carriers, brokers, MGAs, and select strategic partners. Privately
held, Insurity Solutions is a Delaware corporation with offices in
Cumming, Georgia, and Richardson, Texas. For information about
services and partnering opportunities, contact Michael Mueller at
(770) 205-6604 or check out the Web site at www.insurity.com.
This announcement contains forward-looking statements that involve
risks and uncertainties, as well as statements that are preceded by,
followed by or include the words "believes," "plans", "intends",
"expects", "anticipates", or similar expressions. For such statements,
VerticalNet claims the protection of the safe harbor for
forward-looking statements contained in the Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Actual results may differ materially
from the results predicted, and reported results should not be
considered as an indication of future performance. Factors that could
cause actual results to differ from those contained in the
forward-looking statements include matters relating to technology,
performance and operation; rapid technological and market changes;
potential intellectual property and licensing issues; as well as those
factors set forth in the Company's Annual Report and the company's
quarterly report on form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2000,
both of which have been filed on form 10-K for the year end December
31,1999 with the SEC.
VerticalNet and NECX are the registered trademarks of VerticalNet,
Inc. All other names are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of
their respective owners.
CONTACT: PepperCom for VerticalNet:
Lane Buschel/Dave Bray
(212) 931-6130/6164
lbuschel@peppercom.com
dbray@peppercom.com
-or-
Braithwaite Communications for Insurity Solutions:
John Miller
(215) 564-3200 (ext. 14)
jmiller@braithewaitepr.com
KEYWORD: PENNSYLVANIA GEORGIA
INDUSTRY KEYWORD: E-COMMERCE INSURANCE INTERNET
MARKETING AGREEMENTS
Today's News On The Net - Business Wire's full file on the Internet
with Hyperlinks to your home page.
URL: businesswire.com
Copyright 2000, Business Wire
================================================================ |
