Aqueduct, ChannelWave Merge

Match combines partner, customer relationship management offering with commerce services

Match combines partner, customer relationship management offering with commerce services

Aliso Viejo, CA — December 9, 2003 — Solution providers Aqueduct and ChannelWave Software today announced that the two companies have merged and formed a new company called ChannelWave.

The merger combines ChannelWave's partner relationship management solutions (for recruiting, training, planning, marketing and sales) and customer relationship management (CRM) with Aqueduct's strength in managed B2C and B2B commerce services, which enable manufacturers to sell and support products directly online or through dealer, value-added reseller (VAR) and retail channels.

The unified company will offer a multi-channel sales and marketing solution with integrated commerce, designed to help businesses increase sales and margins by building stronger connections with their channels and customers, the new company said in a statement.

"By combining the strengths of Aqueduct and ChannelWave, we are creating exceptional value for our customers and helping them solve their most important business problems throughout the demand chain," said Rob Hagen, chairman and CEO of ChannelWave. "This merger is a compelling fit strategically, joining two companies with a shared culture of execution and commitment to customer success, and providing a strong financial foundation that will generate positive cash flow immediately and support fast growth in new and existing markets."

"Today is an important milestone for ChannelWave and establishes our industry leadership in addressing the unmet market demand for integrated channel management and commerce," said Chris Heidelberger, president of the new company. "We now provide a powerful, unique combination of sales, marketing and commerce solutions that deliver faster time-to-value than competing solutions by enabling businesses to sell more products and services through all channels to market."

"The merger of ChannelWave and Aqueduct demonstrates how two companies are combining their strengths to capitalize on 'lead-to-quote-to-order-to-fulfillment' process so critical for many companies in a diverse set of vertical markets," said Louis Columbus, senior analyst at AMR Research. "ChannelWave's strength in capturing, managing and escalating leads, automating funds management and applying metrics to channel performance, coupled with Aqueduct's success in helping companies manage pricing, orders and fulfillment more efficiently across B2B and B2C commerce channels, provides a compelling value proposition for their existing customers and the broader market. Further, this also shows the pervasive need companies have for lead-to-quote, quote-to-order and order-to-fulfillment processes being automated efficiently to support growth."

The merger agreement between Aqueduct, founded in 1999 as a spin-off of Buy.com, and ChannelWave, founded in 1998, was completed on December 1. The two companies had previously explored partnering opportunities and decided that merging would best meet Aqueduct clients' needs for PRM functionality and ChannelWave customer requests for integrated commerce functionality as part of a channel management solution.

ChannelWave will maintain offices in Aliso Viejo, Calif., and Cambridge, Mass., as well sales offices across the United States.

Lead investors include Mobius Venture Capital, formerly SOFTBANK Venture Capital, U.S. Venture Partners, ABS Capital Partners and Lazard Technology Partners.

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