Ariba NetworkTM is a highly distributed solution for large-scale content and eCommerce transaction integration over the Internet. Ariba Network incorporates advantages of existing eProcurement approaches while leveraging the Internet's naturally distributed architecture. With this architecture, Ariba Network provides a highly scaleable means of connecting the rapidly growing number of buying organizations using Ariba ORMSTM with their even more rapidly growing set of suppliers. Ariba Network also provides a range of Internet services for buying and selling organizations that accelerate the inherent advantages of business-to-business eCommerce and lower the barriers of entry to participants. In addition to providing immediate access to supplier content and transparent transaction routing, Ariba Network will deliver business and information services, including access to supplier ratings and evaluations, community news and forums, vertical industry consortiums, sourcing services, and surplus materials auctions.

To connect buyers and suppliers, Ariba Network incorporates a number of Internet services including, catalog and content management, order transaction routing, and multi-protocol support for numerous standard ways of exchanging content and transaction information. Ariba's revolutionary multi-protocol network allows buyers to send transactions from Ariba ORMS in one standard format. It then automatically converts the order into the suppliers' preferred transaction protocol. This infrastructure eliminates the need for a single standard for electronic commerce and gives suppliers the freedom to transact in their preferred protocol over the Internet. Additionally, it gives Ariba Network an enormous electronic reach to millions of existing suppliers.

To conduct commerce with all buying organizations using Ariba ORMS, suppliers need only register once through a simple on-line process, noting preferred transaction standards and configurations. In this way, Ariba Network allows suppliers to leverage their existing eCommerce infrastructure to provide supplier content information as well as send and receive transactions

Ariba Network draws on several proven Internet commerce models to deliver a scaleable and easily implemented solution for both buyers and suppliers

Indexing

Ariba Network uses a unique and highly scalable approach for content management. This approach, similar to that proven by the major consumer services such as Yahoo! and Excite, uses indexing, rather than content aggregation, to connect buying organizations using Ariba ORMS to suppliers' catalogs. This indexing approach eliminates the need to aggregate content in a central repository, yet provides robust and comprehensive searching tools to buyers.

Multiple Content Models

Ariba Network offers buying organizations using Ariba ORMS the option of linking to approved supplier Web sites, sourcing goods and services through indices maintained at Ariba Network, or caching indices of operating resources directly in Ariba ORMS. This flexibility ensures indices of supplier content are accessible and current.

Multi-Protocol Support for Transactions

Ariba Network automatically routes and translates transactions between buying organizations and suppliers using many major eCommerce standards, including Commerce XML (cXML), Internet Electronic Data Interchange (EDI), VAN-based EDI, Open Buying on the Internet (OBI), secure HTML, e-mail, auto-FAX, and Catalog Interchange Format (CIF). Additional support for future standards, such as that proposed by CommerceNet and RosettaNet, will be added as they emerge.

Further, Ariba has recently partnered with Microsoft to ensure the compatibility of cXML with the Microsoft BizTalk framework. This multi-protocol support enables buyers to conduct business with suppliers independent of the type of Web infrastructure used by the supplier.

Content Specialists

Through Ariba Network, members of Ariba Supplier LinkTM provide buying organizations using Ariba ORMS fully indexed access to more than 10.1 million items from 84,700 suppliers of both vertical industry content and commodity-specific content. For example, through Ariba Network, supplier content from vertical marketplaces such as SciQuest, commodity-specific marketplaces such as Beyond.com, and general office and related supplies from suppliers such as Staples is all directly accessible from Ariba ORMS.

Using these standard techniques, Ariba Network delivers a standards-based business-to-business eCommerce solution that globally connects buyers to suppliers.

Built on an open, scalable network application architecture, Ariba Operating Resource Management SystemTM (Ariba ORMSTM) leverages new technologies including thin clients, the Internet, and corporate intranets to provide a comprehensive, integrated solution for managing operating resources. Using this n-tier design, the system streamlines numerous business processes including purchase requisitions, expense reports, service requests, and others to help you manage your business.

This secure, reliable architecture leverages your existing corporate systems through Enterprise System Adapters to ERP and HRMS systems from J.D. Edwards, Oracle, PeopleSoft, and SAP. While Ariba's flexible, object-oriented design reduces implementation and maintenance costs, it is also designed to integrate with your current e-mail and directory services systems such as SMTP, NIS, and NT Domain.

Ariba ORMS is developed to a uniquely high standard of usability: no training required. Without any training, the Wizard-based Ariba Walk-Up User InterfaceTM guides less experienced employees through the entire acquisition process while the Ariba OrganizerTM makes the system productive for power users. Ariba's browser-based UI is designed to be both powerful and approachable. No other enterprise software system offers this level of ease-of-use throughout a complete solution

In addition, Ariba ORMS delivers frictionless eCommerce integration to your supply chain. By adhering to open standards, Ariba provides methods for any supplier to deliver information to buying organizations in standard formats.

With thorough analysis and reporting tools, Ariba ORMS allows you to evaluate the data you collect on requests for operating resources. By employing sophisticated analysis tools, companies can use this information to consolidate suppliers, lower costs of operating resources, and take advantage of supply chain economies of scale

With an integrated, dynamically alterable approval flow and extensible, flexible business modeling, Ariba ORMS allows you to accurately model complex business processes. From approval flows to ordering and business rules, Ariba is uniquely architected to adapt to your changing business requirements.

Ariba ORMS is built on an architecture that provides a comprehensive, integrated, intranet-based solution that is designed to connect your enterprise to the electronic economy.