PLANO, Texas and SAN RAMON, Calif., Jul 17, 2003 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX/ -- Maxamine and EDS (EDS) today announced they expanded their existing reseller agreement for Maxamine Knowledge Platform web analytics software. EDS will now resell access to the software as a part of its web hosting capabilities, and Humana Inc. has licensed the software to provide a solution to monitor and maintain its Web sites.

"The visual reports of usage patterns from the software will help Humana business and technical professionals better understand how our customers use our websites," said Brian LeClaire, vice president and chief technology officer for Humana. "We will use this solution to help guide improvements for our self-service capabilities and expect to see a benefit in both business analytics and operational maintenance."

Expanded Hosting Offering to Raise Web Site Quality

As a part of the expanded agreement, EDS now offers add-on Web Hosting services that include Maxamine's Knowledge Platform analytical reports. These reports complement content management and traffic analysis to help EDS clients manage their Web sites more comprehensively, lower the risk from inappropriate material and links published under the corporate banner, and more effectively measure the return on Web site investments -- which is usually difficult to measure.

"This level of service supports our 100 percent Web site availability commitment and is aimed at enterprises that highly value their Web presence," said Larry Lozon, global service line executive, EDS Web and Application Hosting for EDS. "EDS offers a breadth of hosting services to help our clients ensure the code behind their Web site is thorough, that the site's performance is optimal, and the end-user's experience is successful."

Once a client implements the initial hosting services, which includes equipment, monitoring, load balancing, traffic and other basic hosting services, these more advanced, automated services are often valuable for raising the quality of Web sites at a lower cost.

Higher Quality for Lower Cost

Maxamine's Knowledge Platform analytical reports have improved Web site effectiveness for many companies by as much as 150 percent, contributing to corresponding double-digit increases in traffic. Site maintenance activities can also decrease by at least 75 percent.

"As business becomes more dependent on the Web, the importance of using sophisticated but cost effective technology to find and fix problems buried in today's complex Web infrastructure continues to mount," said Maxamine CEO Dr. Stephen Kirkby. "EDS and Maxamine have again joined forces to bring a unique and valuable capability that gives clients additional control and peace of mind, and continues to improve the overall value of their Web site investments."

Maxamine serves as an application service provider (ASP) so that clients can use the software as needed from Maxamine locations. Maxamine's software now includes leading edge reports that identify the presence of links to privacy statements and looks for content issues that may affect access by visually impaired persons.

EDS-Maxamine Relationship

In December 2002, Maxamine and EDS launched a unique B2B e-subscription service for Maxamine's Web site Scorecard, which is available on http://www.eds.com/scorecard . EDS also uses Maxamine's Scorecards and Web analytics software with its customized industry IT solutions to help clients align performance with strategic objectives. The two companies' relationship reaches back to 1997 when Maxamine received support from The Playford Centre, a joint venture of EDS and the South Australian Government established to help local technology companies commercialize innovative ideas and attract venture capital.

About Maxamine

Maxamine is the latest evolution of business intelligence in site best practice, addressing the fundamental issues of Web site management: quality assurance, productivity, and corporate control. As a privately held company founded in 1997 in Adelaide, South Australia, Maxamine established its U.S. headquarters in 1999. Partners include EDS, Intel, Sun Microsystems, and Keynote. Please visit www.maxamine.com for more information.

About EDS

EDS, the world's largest independent information technology services company, provides strategy, implementation, business transformation and operational solutions for clients managing the business and technology complexities of the digital economy. EDS brings together the world's best technologies to address critical client business imperatives. It helps clients eliminate boundaries, collaborate in new ways, establish their customers' trust and continuously seek improvement. EDS, with its management- consulting subsidiary, A.T. Kearney, serves the world's leading companies and governments in 60 countries. EDS reported revenues of $21.5 billion in 2002. The company's stock is traded on the New York Stock Exchange and the London Stock Exchange. Learn more at www.eds.com.

SOURCE Electronic Data Systems Corporation