PRESS: INFORMIX AND ESRI ITALIA PARTNER TO IMPROVE CALL CENTER

INFORMIX AND ESRI ITALIA PARTNER TO IMPROVE CALL CENTER WORKFLOW AND CUSTOMER SATISFACTION GeoCare Solution Uses Informix Technology to Answer Customer Queries in Real-Time Menlo Park, Calif.,--June 8, 1999--Informix=AE Corporation (NASDAQ: IFMX), the technology leader in enterprise database-powered solutions, today announced a strategic partnership with ESRI Italia, the leading supplier of GCP=AE (Geographic Communication Platform) applications, to combine the= power of Informix's object relational database with ESRI Italia's GeoCare=AE call center support application. As the use of spatial data in call centers grows, operators can use the Informix/ESRI Italia, solution to provide real-time answers to customers' questions related to geographic areas. GeoCare also allows the information to be shared with other call centers and their customers via an intranet or the Web.=20 GeoCare now utilizes the flexibility and performance of Informix Dynamic Server=99 with Universal Data Option=99, and ESRI, Inc.'s Spatial Database Engine (SDE) DataBlade=AE Module, to streamline the information gathering= and distribution processes ultimately enhancing customer satisfaction. The flexibility of Informix and ESRI's technologies provides operators with the ability to answer any type of question from "how far away is the nearest service center" to "where can I get reception on my cellular phone" "Both GeoCare and Informix's database management system are specifically designed to manage large quantities of complex data being accessed by a high volume of users," said Gianluca Attura, chief of ESRI Italia's GisTel division, "The combined architecture and functionality of these technologies gives our customers the performance they need to manage this immense amount of information in a demanding, real-time call center environment." When someone phones the call center with a question, the operator enters that query into a customized system interface. All the components of the system work together to gather and display the requested information within seconds so the operator can give the customer an instantaneous response. Customer requests that can not be answered can be automatically distributed to other customer service centers using Internet-enabled technology. This drastically improves the overall efficiency of the call center and improves customer satisfaction by eliminating the need to place callers on hold or call them back.=20 "Informix is the only database technology currently optimized to handle advanced geospatial data types and complex queries within the server," said Daleen duPlessis, Marketing Manager, Informix Global Telecommunications. "This makes our performance significantly faster than our closest competitors and is therefore ideally suited for specialized applications such as ESRI Italia's Call Center solution. This level of performance gives both ESRI Italia and its customers a key competitive advantage." The solution also can integrate seamlessly with existing databases or data warehouses to enhance decision making processes within the company. In addition, GeoCare=AE can be augmented with geographic processing= capabilities to act as the core of a company-wide Geographic Information System which allows for expansion and growth.=20 About ESRI Italia ESRI Italia, based in Rome, Italy, delivers to agencies and corporate users geographic information systems which improve their competitive advantage and help them attain higher customer satisfaction. Through its GisTel division, ESRI Italia provides leading-edge products and solutions based on GCP=AE, a sophisticated yet user friendly geographic communications platform that is the core of real-time geographically-enabled information systems. For more information, contact ESRI Italia, ++39.06.40696.210, www.gistel.esriitalia.it, or ESRI Inc. ++1(909)793.28.53 About Informix Informix Corporation, based in Menlo Park, California, provides innovative database products that assist the world's major corporations to attain competitive advantage. Informix is widely recognized as the technology leader for corporate computing environments ranging from small workgroups to very large parallel processing applications. Informix's database server, application development tools, superior customer service, and strong partnerships enable the company to be at the forefront of major information technology solution areas including data warehousing, high performance OLTP, and Web/e-commerce. For more information, contact the sales office nearest you or visit our Web site at www.informix.com.