*************************************************************** ****************** WELCOME TO SGML NEWSWIRE ******************* *************************************************************** * * * To subscribe, send mail to sgmlinfo@avalanche.com * * * * (Please pass along to interested colleagues) * * * *************************************************************** INTERLEAF ACQUIRES AVALANCHE ============================= Additional backgrounders are available online from SGML Newswire (just send e-mail request). Hardcopy press kits can be obtained from Kathy Quirk at Interleaf. FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE AVALANCHE CONTACT: Linda Turner (303) 449-5032 INTERLEAF CONTACT: Kathy Quirk (617) 290-6344 Interleaf Acquires Avalanche Development Company Joined Technologies to Use SGML for Next-Generation Document Management Systems Boulder, CO -- 1 July, 1993 -- Interleaf, Inc. today announced it has acquired Avalanche Development Company. Avalanche is the leading provider of document analysis and conversion technology and services, with particular emphasis on Standard Generalized Markup Language (SGML), the international open systems standard. According to the terms of the agreement, Interleaf has paid Avalanche stockholders $5.5 million in a cash transaction. Avalanche will operate as a wholly owned subsidiary from its Boulder, Colorado, facilities. Mark Ruport, the president and CEO of Interleaf, said: "This is a strategic move for Interleaf. First, from the financial standpoint, Avalanche is already established as the leading supplier of technology for moving data from proprietary information bases into open systems. Second, Avalanche technology lets organizations bring all of their information, whatever the source, into Interleaf's open document solutions. Third, we will together leverage Avalanche's document analysis capabilities and Interleaf's advanced document functionality to build the industry's next generation of document management systems." Haviland Wright, a founder and president of Avalanche Development Company, said: "We looked carefully at the market and concluded that only Interleaf has the technological and management foundation to dominate the document management market for open systems, and we want to join the best. Together our two companies will not only provide the strongest SGML solutions available, but we will continue to break new ground in the way organizations can manage and automate their strategic document processes." Avalanche is a pioneer in developing software that can process large volumes of electronic documents, analyzing their content and structure, so document management systems can access, control and reuse information. SGML is well suited to this task, as it provides a vendor-neutral format that captures the content and structural information about documents, enabling those documents to be treated as databases. Avalanche will continue to sell its products to end users and OEMs. Mr. Ruport said: "Interleaf over the past three years has aggressively moved into the open systems market with tools that manage information, regardless of its source. Avalanche's strength as a supplier to many OEMs brings us even further into the open systems market, a move we enthusiastically welcome." Mr. Wright will become a corporate vice president of Interleaf responsible for the Avalanche subsidiary. He will also become a member of the Interleaf executive management team, contributing his significant experience and technological vision. Avalanche products facilitate the construction of advanced document management applications, such as those involving CD-ROM, word processing, electronic publishing, database, and hypertext systems. Avalanche products are available in over forty countries. Interleaf software and services help organizations manage the entire document lifecycle, from accessing information to distributing it electronically or on paper. Interleaf sales offices, subsidiaries and distributors are located worldwide. ### ************************************************************** * SGML NEWSWIRE LIST MANAGER * * * * Linda Turner * * Corporate Communications * * Avalanche * * 947 Walnut Street * * Boulder, CO 80302 * * sgmlinfo@avalanche.com * * linda@avalanche.com * * Vox: (303) 449-5032 * * Fax: (303) 449-3246 * **************************************************************