Covast Highlights Its Support for Microsoft BizTalk Server 2004 at Tech*Ed 2003

Strengthened Relationship of Covast and Microsoft Enables OSRAM SYLVANIA to Embrace Internet EDI

DALLAS -- June 2, 2003 -- At Microsoft Tech*Ed 2003, Covast, a premier member of the BizTalk Server Partner Program, highlighted its support for Microsoft BizTalk Server 2004, the foundation for Microsoft's "Jupiter" vision, and introduced OSRAM SYLVANIA, the world's second largest lamp manufacturer, as a new, joint customer of its EDI Accelerator product and Microsoft BizTalk Server.

Covast's flagship EDI Accelerator enables complex electronic data interchange (EDI) support within BizTalk Server. As a testament to the success of the products working in tandem, Covast has chosen Tech*Ed 2003 as a platform to announce joint customer OSRAM SYLVANIA.

It was important for OSRAM SYLVANIA to base new integration projects on Extensible Markup Language (XML), while preserving its existing trading communities and business processes, which are based on EDI.

"I was given a challenge by our business team to propel our e-commerce XML initiative, while ensuring that we could continue to support our existing EDI trading partner relationships," said Michael Cipoletti, SAP EDI/XML Technology Manager for OSRAM SYLVANIA. "The combination of Covast's EDI Accelerator with Microsoft BizTalk Server enables OSRAM SYLVANIA to properly manage the co- existence of EDI and proprietary file formats with new, open standards such as XML. Our seven-year-old legacy EDI system could not do that; the challenge required both BizTalk Server and the EDI Accelerator."

For the past two years, BizTalk Server has handled the company's complex mapping, reconciliation, data interchange, and messaging requirements. The vast majority of OSRAM SYLVANIA's sales and distribution processes are enabled electronically, using XML and EDI technologies along with the website http://www.mySYLVANIA.com . In January of 2003, OSRAM SYLVANIA chose Covast's EDI Accelerator in combination with BizTalk Server to engage in Internet EDI. This initiative will greatly reduce costs -- chiefly by reducing the need for the company's value-added network (VAN) connections for select customers and vendors. VAN costs constitute about $25,000 per month for OSRAM SYLVANIA, which processes an average of 100,000 XML/EDI transactions per month, a daily average of $2.5m in invoiced sales revenue.

"OSRAM SYLVANIA is a great example of how Microsoft and Covast enable our joint customers to more easily connect to trading partners, creating additional productivity and enabling them to attain a truly connected business," said Sanjay Manchanda, group product manager for E-Business Servers at Microsoft Corp. "Covast's support of BizTalk Server 2004 means that customers can continue to rely on these two robust products for complex EDI transactions that are necessary to their business. This is a great benefit for customers."

Currently using Microsoft BizTalk Server 2002, OSRAM SYLVANIA is evaluating the BizTalk Server 2004 product, which is being highlighted at Tech*Ed 2003 as the foundation of Microsoft's "Jupiter" vision. "Jupiter" brings together the existing E-Business Servers (BizTalk Server, Content Management Server and Commerce Server) into a more unified environment.

About Covast
Covast provides the only integrated EDI solution for the BizTalk Server environment. The combination of Microsoft BizTalk Server and the Covast EDI Accelerator delivers the ultimate B2B solution -- enabling companies to easily integrate their EDI infrastructures with internal applications and providing a gateway for connecting trading communities. With its European headquarters in the Netherlands and its U.S. headquarters in Atlanta, Covast has strategic relationships with partners and customers including Microsoft, HP, Akzo Nobel, Grampian Foods, SMI Steel and Oldcastle. For more information, visit www.covast.com.

About OSRAM SYLVANIA
Headquartered in Danvers, Mass., OSRAM SYLVANIA is the North American operation of OSRAM GmbH. Together with our parent company, we are the second largest lighting and materials enterprise in the world, serving customers in more than 140 countries. We manufacture and market a wide range of lighting products, including automotive, electronic and magnetic ballasts, and precision materials and components for industrial and commercial users, original equipment manufacturers and consumers, sold primarily under the SYLVANIA brand name, but also under the OSRAM brand. For further information, please refer to our Web site at www.sylvania.com.