HERNDON, Va., July 7, 2011 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- ePlus inc. (Nasdaq:PLUS) today announced that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office ("PTO") has issued U.S. Patent No. 7,904,348 B2 entitled "System and Method for eCatalog Supplier Portal." The patent is generally related to a web-based supplier support facility/portal that allows suppliers to 'self-author' product/item data for the creation and maintenance of eCatalogs, a process which is fundamental to eProcurement and related software applications.
ePlus' software application, the Supplier Portal, implements aspects of the patented invention. The Supplier Portal application provides a web-based, streamlined process that allows suppliers to create and manage their product information real-time, facilitating collaboration between suppliers and buyers while meeting their individual business objectives. For example, once a supplier has submitted product data for quality assurance, catalog administrators in the buying organization can receive an email notification that catalog changes are awaiting their approval. The Supplier Portal gives a reselling organization the ability to consolidate disparate product information from multiple suppliers, normalize and classify it, and make it available on-line for their own customers. And because the Supplier Portal is designed to be collaborative between buyer and seller, it automatically supports the management of buy-side and sell-side product information, which compares favorably to most applications in the space, which support either the buy-side or a sell-side process.
"Complete, accurate and up-to-date rich catalog content is vital to any successful eProcurement or supply chain initiative," said Ken Farber, president, ePlus Content Services, inc. "We are very pleased to have been awarded this patent in recognition of our innovation for providing buyers and sellers with an intuitive, collaborative environment for creating and maintaining usable, searchable product catalogs. Online content which is robust and descriptive is the foundation for eCommerce generally, and helps enable applications such as eProcurement reach their full potential. Our Supplier Portal not only provides this capability, it does it in a very cost effective manner for both buyers and sellers."
The patent describes how eCatalogs can be populated with rich catalog content, by suppliers self-authoring their products using the ePlus Supplier Portal, within a web browser. Rich content may have the following characteristics:
- Structured – similar items can be grouped in the same classification schema
- Normalized – the same information, for example the spelling of a manufacturer's name, is consistent across all data items
- Intuitive descriptions written in commonly understood terms
- Attributes that help shoppers compare similar items, not only by price, but by features specific to the item, such as printer speed, color, and weight
- Searchable – a search process which combines and includes key word searching, parametric searching by classification, and attribute searching
- Enriched – item information can include images, pictures, drawings and other attachments such as warranty and product specification information
ePlus has numerous other patents which supports its active software business, and business processes which are utilized in its different business segments.
About ePlus Content Services, inc. and ePlus Systems, inc.
ePlus Content Services, inc. and ePlus Systems, inc., are wholly owned subsidiaries of ePlus inc. engaged in the publishing and delivery of software solutions including Enterprise Cost Management, eProcurement, supplier enablement, catalog content management, spend analytics, document management, and asset management. These solutions help drive cost savings, improve compliance, and enhance productivity and help public sector clients and commercial organizations across all industries get the most value from their spend. ePlus solutions are offered as hosted Software as a Service (SaaS) and traditional enterprise licenses.
About ePlus inc.
ePlus is a leading provider of technology solutions. ePlus enables organizations to optimize their IT infrastructure and supply chain processes by delivering world-class IT products from top manufacturers, professional services, flexible lease financing, proprietary software, and patented business methods. Founded in 1990, ePlus has more than 725 associates in 20+ locations serving federal, state, municipal, and commercial customers. The Company is headquartered in Herndon, VA. For more information, visit http://www.eplus.com/, call 888-482-1122, or email info@eplus.com.
ePlus®, Procure+®, Enterprise Cost Management®, and ePlus products referenced herein are either registered trademarks or trademarks of ePlus inc. in the United States and/or other countries.
Statements in this press release that are not historical facts may be deemed to be "forward-looking statements." Actual and anticipated future results may vary due to certain risks and uncertainties, including, without limitation, the possibility of defects in our products or catalog content data; our ability to hire and retain sufficient personnel; our ability to protect our intellectual property, possible adverse effects resulting from the recent financial crisis in the credit markets and general slowdown of the U.S. economy such as our current and potential customers delaying or reducing technology purchases, increasing credit risk associated with our customers and vendors, reduction of vendor incentive programs, and restrictions on our access to capital necessary to fund our operations; the existence of demand for, and acceptance of, our services; our ability to adapt our services to meet changes in market developments; the impact of competition in our markets; our ability to adapt to to changes in the IT industry, and/or rapid change in product standards; our ability to consummate and integrate acquisitions; our ability to reserve adequately for credit losses; and other risks or uncertainties detailed in our reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. All information set forth in this release is as of the date of this release. ePlus undertakes no duty to update this information.