Ad-hoc | 25 July 2000 20:33

Ad hoc-Service: DCI AG

Ad-hoc Mitteilung übermittelt durch die DGAP. Für den Inhalt der Mitteilung ist allein der Emittent verantwortlich. —————————————————————————— DCI AG partners with HERMES, Allianz, Deutsche Bank, Gerling, Trusted Trade, Trusted Shops, Telegate and DataDesign to launch innovative e-commerce initiative. New b2b security infrastructure signals major breakthrough in Internet commerce. Starnberg/Munich, Germany – 25 July 2000. DCI Database for Commerce and Industry AG has unveiled a ground-breaking initiative for enhanced security around e-commerce transactions. The TrustedTrader service is backed by DCI’s global service partners HERMES Kreditversicherungs AG, Deutsche Bank AG, Allianz AG, and Gerling Kreditversicherungs AG along with its subsidiaries Trusted Trade GmbH and Trusted Shops GmbH, as well as by Telegate AG and DataDesign AG. The primary objective of TrustedTrader is to make Internet trading safer than ever before. DCI will be vetting prospective TrustedTraders and approving credit-worthy, reliable market players. By eliminating the risk and uncertainty inherent in a virtual marketplace, DCI has taken a valuable step towards promoting the worldwide acceptance and popularity of e-commerce. This new certification service will initially be targeted at corporate customers and e-marketplaces in Europe. At present, some 15 million companies are based in Europe and the number of e-marketplaces is expected to exceed 1,000 by 2001. Within the TrustedTrader alliance, DCI will be providing the technical infrastructure. With the backing of its partners, it will be offering commission-based insurance services to protect against the risks associated with Web purchasing. As the operator of Europe’s leading IT/telecom e-commerce portal, DCI is ideally positioned to leverage the industry-strength offerings of its TrustedTrader partners to offer market players comprehensive protection against payment default and damage to goods in transit. DCI’s alliance with financial and software service providers also presents TrustedTraders with a range of factoring services and advanced encryption technologies for secure payment. All market players will have the opportunity to register as a TrustedTrader. An annual fee will be charged for TrustedTrader certification. Once vetted by DCI and awarded the TrustedTrader symbol, market players are entitled to all the benefits available under the programme. The TrustedTrader community is thus restricted to credit-worthy, trustworthy e-merchants. The services brokered by DCI will generate additional revenue in the form of commission. It is thus expected that this new strategic initiative will propel revenue figures beyond the budgetary targets. For more information on DCI, please contact: DCI Database for Commerce and Industry AG Eva Weber, Public and Investor Relations Enzianstrasse 6 82319 Starnberg Germany Telephone: +49 (0)81512 65 363 Email presse@dci.de Ende der Mitteilung