Cactus Commerce welcomes the availability of Microsoft Commerce Server 2009

LAS VEGAS, NV, March 18 /PRNewswire/ - Cactus Commerce announced today its
partnership with Microsoft Corp. has resulted in the availability of Microsoft
Commerce Server 2009. In August of 2007, Cactus Commerce signed an agreement
with Microsoft to become the joint development partner for Microsoft Commerce
Server. This partnership includes collaboration on product engineering,
partner ecosystem development, marketing, pre-sales, services and support.
Commerce Server 2009 is the first major product release under this joint
development partnership.
Commerce Server 2009 is a complete and extensible e-commerce platform that
powers cross channel solutions for B2C, B2B and B2X scenarios. Commerce Server
2009 provides organizations with powerful out-of-the-box capabilities designed
to create rich online shopping experiences.
"In today's retail environment, where consumers have more choice and control
over how they interact with a brand, organizations must include social, mobile
and other cross-channel shopping options. Commerce Server 2009 offers
organizations the ability to increase loyalty, brand awareness, and extend
audience reach by delivering a more consistent and connected shopping
experience to consumers - whether that experience is in-store, via the Web or
on a mobile device," said Steven Goulet, Product Unit Manager for Microsoft
Commerce Server at Microsoft.
Commerce Server 2009 features a new Multi-channel Commerce Foundation,
SharePoint Commerce Services, and interoperability with the Microsoft
ecosystem including Microsoft Silverlight, Microsoft Visual Studio, Microsoft
Expression, Microsoft Virtual Earth and Windows Live ID. "Commerce Server 2009
enables organizations to focus on what's important - the customer shopping
experience. This focus is further supported by the ability to work with social
and Web 2.0 community features and capabilities to engage and interact with
consumers," explains Jean-Yves Martineau, CTO and Founder of Cactus Commerce.
Under Microsoft's direction and stringent product quality controls, Cactus
Commerce built the Multi-channel Commerce Foundation which offers a new
unified programming model to enable true cross channel development. Using a
single API, developers can rapidly create shopping experiences for multiple
channels - like mobile, kiosks and the Web. This offers increased agility and
compressed time to market, helping organizations save money on site
development while focusing on the customer experience.
As part of Commerce Server 2009, SharePoint Commerce Services ships with more
than 30 different Web parts and controls. These Web parts offer a
building-block approach within SharePoint Products and Technologies to deliver
contemporary e-commerce Web site functionality. The integration with
SharePoint Products and Technologies also offers an out-of-the-box site and
templating features for rapid site creation. For merchandisers and marketers,
seamless content management controls make it easy to update Web site content,
catalogs and marketing campaigns.
"Consumers today expect a seamless experience regardless of where they buy. At
the same time, retailers realize that superior experiences drive loyalty and
sales - of critical importance in the current economic climate," said David
Gruehn, U.S. retail industry solutions director, Microsoft Corp. "With
powerful out-of-the-box capabilities and built-in Web 2.0 features, Commerce
Server 2009 helps retailers address these issues head-on, creating true
multi-channel experiences for their customers."
"The value of the joint partnership between Cactus and Microsoft is realized
in this release of Commerce Server 2009," said Tony Marinelli, Cactus Commerce
Chief Executive Officer. "We are extremely pleased to have delivered a robust,
highly scalable e-commerce platform to Microsoft, its partners and its
customers."
Microsoft Commerce Server 2009 will appear on the Microsoft price list
effective April 1, 2009.

About Cactus Commerce

Cactus Commerce designs, develops, and manages rich and robust end-to-end
e-commerce solutions for major retailers, consumer goods companies, and
manufacturers throughout North America.
In August of 2007, Cactus Commerce signed an agreement with Microsoft
Corporation to become the joint development partner for Microsoft Commerce
Server, including collaboration on product engineering, partner ecosystem
development, marketing, pre-sales, services and support. The long-term
strategic partnership reinforces continued focus, investment and commitment to
lead innovation for the e-commerce marketplace on a global scale. Together, as
part of a long-term technology roadmap, Cactus Commerce will partner with
Microsoft to deliver platform enhancements and complementary solution
accelerators focused on technology and industry deployment scenarios. For more
information, visit www.cactuscommerce.com.
SOURCE Cactus Commerce Inc.

Media Contact: Wanda Cadigan, Cactus Commerce, (819) 778-0313, Ext. 563, (613)
808-1335, wanda.cadigan@cactuscommerce.com