CheckFree and Edify Press release:
Edify to Join CheckFree E-Bill Partner Program
Targeting Web-Based Bill Presentment and Payment
SANTA CLARA, Calif., December 3, 1997 -- Edify Corporation
(NASDAQ: EDFY), a leading provider of self service software, has signed
a letter of intent to partner with CheckFree Corporation for bill presentment
and payment processing. Upon executing the final agreement, Edify will
become a CheckFree E-Bill Program Partner. The program allows banks
and other financial institutions to offer their customers the convenience and
flexibility of receiving and paying their bills online with the click of a button.
Customers will be presented with full-color, electronic bills - complete with
graphics, logos and billing information - right on their PC screen. Once
paid, the bill can be stored electronically for future reference by the
customer.
"As trusted intermediaries, financial institutions are the place people want to
go to electronically bank, receive and pay bills," said Peter J. Kight,
president and CEO of CheckFree. "We're pleased to welcome Edify into
our E-Bill Program, which enables financial institutions everywhere to offer
complete, non-paper, financial electronic commerce."
In a related release today, Edify introduced its new Open Financial
Exchange (OFX) module for its Electronic Banking System, EBS, (See
release: "Edify Announces Support for Open Financial Exchange, Expanding
Self Service Delivery Options For Financial Institutions"). EBS will use the
OFX protocol to connect with CheckFree for billing information as well as
to exchange banking, billing and payment information with leading Personal
Financial Management software products such as Intuit Quickenr and
Microsoft Moneyr.
"We believe that electronic bill presentment is the 'killer application' that will
catalyze acceptance of on-line banking," said William A. Soward, director of
financial applications marketing for Edify Corporation. "We are pleased to
be working closely with CheckFree, a pioneer in electronic bill presentment
and bill payment, to bring this important new capability to our joint financial
institution customers."
Atlanta Internet Bank, (NASDAQ: NTBK) based in Atlanta, Georgia, is an
early innovator in electronic bill presentment and a customer of both Edify
and CheckFree. In October 1996, the bank deployed EBS for Web banking
and bill payment, becoming the only bank to operate exclusively through the
Internet, delivering a complete set of Web banking services to customers
across the country and around the world. The bank currently has more than
4,000 customers and in excess of $48 million in deposits. "Electronic bill
presentment allows us to take customer service to the next level," said D.R.
Grimes, CEO of Atlanta Internet Bank. "As an industry leader it is
important that we participate with respected vendors such as Edify and
CheckFree to develop and deliver new products to our customers. This is
the most significant advance in bill payment in the last 20 years."
Electronic Banking System -- A Complete Direct Banking Solution Edify's
Electronic Banking System is a software application product that offers
financiaal institutions the means to deploy a suite of automated banking
services via the World Wide Web. It addresses several emerging electronic
banking trends: customer demand for anytime, anywhere, any way service;
product time-to-market imperatives; and increasingly complex back office
integration challenges. EBS represents a new breed of self service
software, enabling financial institutions to enhance the level of service they
provide to customers and prospects.
Electronic Banking System Release 2, which supports the Windows NT
operating environment, is Edify's newest release of the product, and is
scheduled for general availability by year end. This release will be used as
the foundation for delivering support for Open Financial Exchange. In
addition to support of Windows NT, EBS Release 2 features an extended
open architecture, enhanced visual development tools and larger scale
deployment for high-end applications.
Since its introduction in 1996, Edify's Electronic Banking System has quickly
become a preferred Web banking solution, with nine customers among the
top 100 banks, including Chase Manhattan Bank, Fifth Third Bank and
Harris Bank, and more than 40 banks worldwide. Additionally, several
global technology and solutions providers including Hewlett
Hewlett-Packard, NCR and Price Waterhouse have partnered with Edify to
provide their customers with complete EBS-based Web banking solutions.
About CheckFree
Founded in 1981, CheckFree Corporation (http://www.checkfree.com) is
the leading provider of electronic commerce services, software and related
products for more than 2 million consumers, 1,000 businesses and 850
financial institutions. CheckFree designs, develops and markets services that
enable its customers to make electronic payments and collections, automate
paper-based recurring financial transactions and conduct secure
transactions on the Internet.
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Statements in this press release relating to anticipated future products and services
are forward looking and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that could
cause actual results to differ materially. Although on-line banking has been
available in various forms for many years, there can be no assurance that
consumers will accept on-line banking over the Internet or the company's products
in sufficient numbers to make on-line banking or the company's products
successful. In addition, given the uncertainties of software development, there can
be no assurance that the company's products will be available in the anticipated
time frames. |
