CHICAGO - Monday, June 26,
2000 - Mercantec, Inc., a leading provider of Internet
commerce solutions, today announced that KPN, the Netherlands'
largest telecommunications firm, has signed a licensing agreement
enabling KPN to distribute Mercantec's award-winning SoftCart®
e-commerce solution. KPN will offer SoftCart to Dutch and
Belgian Internet service providers, commerce service providers,
and Web hosting companies as well as to small- and medium-size
businesses. SoftCart enables these businesses to create online
storefronts so that they can prosper in the Internet economy.
Use of the Internet in the Netherlands
and Belgium, particularly for online shopping, is soaring.
According to the Computer Industry Almanac the Netherlands
is among 15 countries that will account for 82 percent of
worldwide Internet users by the end of 2000.* Additionally,
a May 2000 study published by InSites, Belgium's leading research
and advice bureau for Internet marketing issues, reveals that
35.5 percent (or 600,000) Belgian Internet users have made
a purchase online. This is an increase of 30 percent since
December 1999.**
As a result of its agreement
with Mercantec, KPN can now help merchants in the Netherlands
and Belgium capitalize on this growing use of the Internet
and meet the demand for e-commerce solutions.
"KPN wants to offer its small-
and medium-size customers a complete, easy, secure and affordable
way to sell their products and services online," said Kees
Smaal, vice president Internet Services of the KPN Telecommerce
Business Unit. "SoftCart's broad functionality, flawless security
features and ease of integration make it the right solution
for our customers."
"Our agreement with KPN reinforces
Mercantec's strategy to leverage partnerships with leading
service providers to distribute our e-commerce solutions,"
said Andy Parker, CEO and president for Mercantec. "As the
Netherlands' largest telecommunication company, KPN will enable
us to tap a tremendous market that is ripe for e-commerce
business. Our partnership with KPN will provide us with volume
pricing and large dollar sales, while allowing Mercantec to
focus on maintaining its technological advantage."
Now available in more than 90
countries, Mercantec's SoftCart is the world's leading e-
commerce solution delivered through Internet service providers,
commerce service providers, telecommunications firms and Web
hosting providers. SoftCart answers global online purchasing
challenges by enabling international businesses to easily
address language translation, currency conversion and value-added
tax issues.
Mercantec SoftCart is used by
more than 15,000 merchants worldwide and endorsed by many
of the world's leading Internet commerce service providers
including Telefónica, HKNet, the second largest Internet service
provider in Hong Kong; and Insite Portugal, a leading wholesale
distributor of technology products and services.
Mercantec is a member of the
divine interVentures Internet Zaibatsu™, a network of business-to-business
e-commerce companies aligned with divine interVentures, inc.,
an Internet operating company.
About SoftCart
The winner of NewMedia magazine's 1999 Hyper Award for Best
Out-Of-The-Box Store, SoftCart enables merchants to quickly
and easily build and maintain their online stores. Designed
to be compatible with a merchant's existing business systems,
SoftCart has an open, API-based architecture that accommodates
the widest range of databases, Web servers and browsers, order
delivery options, tax and shipping models, and payment systems.
This open architecture allows a Web site designer or systems
integrator to tie SoftCart's commerce capabilities into the
merchant's Web site at any stage in the site's evolution -
whether starting from scratch or adding commerce to an existing
Web site.
About Mercantec
Established in 1995, Mercantec, Inc. is a leading global provider
of software products and services that enable Internet commerce.
The Chicago-based Mercantec distributes complete e-commerce
solutions through leveraged channels to small- to medium-size
businesses. Among those channels are service providers, financial
organizations, and Internet content providers. Mercantec's
Internet commerce solutions are used by more than 15,000 merchants
worldwide through more than 200 industry leading Internet
service providers, such as Ameritech, Verio, EarthLink, Sprint,
Interliant and Telefónica. For additional company or product
information, visit the Mercantec Web site, www.mercantec.com,
or call 630-305-3200.
About KPN
KPN, the Netherlands' largest telecommunications company,
provides fixed telephony, mobile communications, IP/data,
Internet, call center and media services to small-, medium-size
and large businesses in the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg.
KPN is committed to fine-tuning its services to complement
how customers communicate in life and at work. For additional
company or product information, visit the KPN web site, www.kpn.com.
# # #
* Published by the Computer
Industry Almanac, Inc., a Chicago-based publisher of Internet
and computer industry statistics, projections, salaries, trends
and more.
** Belgian Internet Mapping
study conducted and published by InSites, a Belgium-based
research company and advice bureau for Internet marketing
issues. Copyright 2000.
