Cicala Associates and Eracent Create Joint Venture to Market CSBA Clarity

Cicala & Associates and Eracent, Inc. announced today the creation of a joint venture between the companies, which will do business as CE Software Associates. The new company will develop and market the Corporate Software Buyer’s Guide Clarity. Clarity, which was announced at the Gartner IT and Software Asset Management Summit on September 12 is a revolutionary new software product that will automate access to Cicala’s wealth of software licensing and purchasing research and information using a software engine engineered by Eracent.

Wilmington, DE (PRWEB) October 11, 2005 -- Cicala & Associates and Eracent, Inc. announced today the creation of a joint venture between the companies, which will do business as CE Software Associates. The new company will develop and market the Corporate Software Buyer’s Guide Clarity. Clarity, which was announced at the Gartner IT and Software Asset Management Summit on September 12 is a revolutionary new software product that will automate access to Cicala’s wealth of software licensing and purchasing research and information using a software engine engineered by Eracent.

CE Software Associates will have exclusive rights to license the Clarity software, establish channel relationships and perform ongoing development of the software. The company has established a client advisory board to provide market feedback on the new product. Operations will be overseen by executives from both founding companies.

Commenting on the new company, Ed Cartier, Eracent’s Vice President of Marketing an a member of the joint venture, said “We are very excited about the creation of CE Software Associates. The joint venture creates an entity than can concentrate on bringing CSBA Clarity to market and insuring that the software meets the needs of the corporate buyers, industry consultants and vendors.”

Pat Cicala, President of Cicala & Associates said that, “Clarity is truly a revolutionary new resource that will assist consumers, vendors and consultants to conquer the complexities of software management. This is truly a ground breaking example of the future trend toward software as a service. The creation of CE Software Associates will provide a focal point for the development and distribution of this key new management resource.”

About CSBA Clarity

The Corporate Software Buyer’s Almanac (CSBA) Clarity™: will equip software buyers, suppliers and consulting companies with critical tools to make accurate informed software licensing decisions. The software service will provide corporate software buyers with the information needed to be confident that they are receiving fair pricing and terms & conditions on software license purchases and on going maintenance. Software suppliers will have the tools necessary to establish competitive pricing models and consultants will have web-based access to the current marketplace information they need to provide sound advice to their clients regarding software purchases.

The initial version of Clarity™: will focus on the needs of corporate software buyers, providing with information including:

* Current List Price Values by product and current pricing models

* Current standard supplier terms & conditions

* Application of different discount scenarios to the List Price Value Model

* Current market discounted price ranges by product and current pricing models

* Changes to current terms & conditions which will effect the discount range

* A “bottom line” base range for discounted pricing and a “deal range”

* Analysis of terms & conditions offered by vendors

* Recommendations for best practices

* Vendor “stability” analysis

Clarity™: will be available as a web-subscription service on an enterprise basis. Subscribers will have the ability to control access within their organizations, but the license will place no artificial restrictions on a customer’s use of the service. Being fully web-enabled, customers will have access to the data in any environment where web access is available. Whether using their office PC or wireless PDA, Clarity™: users will have full access to the information they need.

About Eracent

Eracent Inc. develops and sells a comprehensive suite of IT asset management solutions. Serving all industries in both domestic and international markets, Eracent’s core business strategy is to develop technologies that provide a rapid return, ease of use and complete access to the precise data needed by IT professionals to manage complex IT infrastructures. To learn more about Eracent, visit www.eracent.com, or send e-mail to info@eracent.com.

About Cicala & Associates

Cicala & Associates is the premier source for IT asset and portfolio management information, resources, and services for organizations seeking to lower IT infrastructure costs. Using its proprietary methodology, Cicala has assisted companies and government entities in saving over $250 million dollars. Pat Cicala is in demand to speak at IT Asset Management conferences and regularly consults to financial analysts. She is often quoted in major IT publications such as Computerworld, InfoWorld, and Information Week. To learn more about Cicala, visit www.cicalaonline.com.

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