BW2475 JUL 31,2000 7:31 PACIFIC 10:31 EASTERN ( BW)(IL-SPSS)(SPSS) SPSS Unveils a New Paradigm for Interactive Visual Analysis and Information Delivery Business Editors/High-Tech Writers CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 31, 2000-- Java-Based Software Development Kit (SDK) Enables Software Developers To Quickly Create Information-Rich, Web-Based Applications nViZn, a new Java-based SDK from SPSS Inc.(Nasdaq: SPSS), enables software developers to transform data into critical information people need to make smarter decisions. nViZn (pronounced "envision") enables developers to build interactive analytical applications precisely tailored to specific business needs. By delivering information in an intuitive, visual format, nViZn enables users to easily identify patterns in their data and, as a result, make better decisions faster. nViZn is currently shipping. nViZn enables the assembly of practically any highly visual, highly interactive analytical application imaginable with powerful features including: more than one dozen advanced analytics, dynamic data filtering, drill-down into visualizations, linking and tools for visual selection such as zooming, brushing and more. nViZn-enabled business applications include: -- Deploying critical information to employees, world-wide, in real-time. -- Improving customer relationship management (CRM) with smarter segmentation and profiling. -- Measuring program performance and monitoring key business indicators at-a-glance. -- Developing e-commerce applications helping shoppers find what they want faster. Bob Moran, research vice president and managing director of Aberdeen Group, Inc. said, "With its grammar-based approach to visual analysis and with its use of Java, nViZn will take analytic efficiency to new heights and into new interactive applications and domains." nViZn gives developers a complete framework for visualization including components, templates and examples with which to build customized analytical applications. These components can easily be redesigned and modified as an organization grows and as its needs change. And since nViZn's applications are viewed with a Web browser, no new software installation is necessary on the user end. This easy implementation and adaptability make nViZn less expensive and less time-consuming than other visualization development packages. "nViZn offers visualization development capabilities never before available," said Stuart Torzewski, SPSS senior product marketing manager. "Unlike other programs which offer a fixed number of standard 2- and 3-D chart types, nViZn's graphics are limited only by the developer's imagination. For decision makers, this design flexibility translates into unprecedented access to volumes of data. Moreover, every detail of an nViZn graphic is `alive'. Developers have a wide variety of tools to help users visually interact with data, gain key insights about their organizations and ultimately make smarter decisions--all within the familiar setting of their Web browser." The technology behind nViZn nViZn's capabilities depend on several advanced technologies. The backbone of nViZn and the key to its universality is a patent-pending approach to graphics programming known as graphics grammar developed by Leland Wilkinson, SPSS senior vice president. Wilkinson, a professor of statistics at Northwestern University and a Fellow of the American Statistical Association, is an expert in statistical graphics. He designed and wrote SYSTAT, SPSS Science's statistical software and is the author of The Grammar of Graphics, published by Springer-Verlag in 1999. This revolutionary approach creates a complete and extensible "vocabulary" which defines every aspect of data graphics. By rearranging this vocabulary, developers can quickly build information-rich, highly interactive analytical applications. Compared to most data visualization programs which constrain what organizations can learn from their data by offering a fixed set of chart types and lacking integrated analytics, nViZn's flexibility allows an organization's needs to direct technology instead of the other way around. Complementing the foundation of the graphics grammar, nViZn is built upon a highly interactive and customizable architecture. This design includes event handling for virtually any part of a graphic as well as several pre-built customizable "controllers" providing features such as drill-down, pan-and-zoom, data filtering and pop-up displays. nViZn's robust data connectivity enables easy integration into existing systems. JDBC-compliant data sources are supported as well as flat (text) files and in-memory data arrays. A simple Java interface is also provided enabling nViZn to access virtually any data feed encountered. nViZn also includes assorted map files, and developers can easily import ESRI shape files. In addition to its flexibility, nViZn also delivers on SPSS' 32 years of experience in statistics. Powerful statistical tools and predictive modeling functions drive the graphics and enable rapid interpretation of data. These behind-the-scenes features perform critical calculations that identify key trends and patterns and bring the big picture into focus. By integrating advanced analytics with sophisticated graphics, nViZn offers more than just snapshots of data; it delivers a complete analytical visual solution that empowers users to make smarter decisions. nViZn, which comes with more than one dozen analytics including regression and cluster analysis, allows users to segment their customer bases, score their customers to efficiently target direct mail efforts and much more. System requirements, availability and pricing nViZn's minimum system requirement is JDK 1.1 or greater. Use of a Java plug-in is strongly recommended for browsers. nViZn is currently shipping. Development licenses are $10,000 per seat. Deployment pricing is determined by the number of server CPUs used. A typical implementation will be priced in the six-figure range. About SPSS Inc. SPSS Inc. enables organizations to develop more profitable customer relationships by providing analytical solutions that discover what customers want and predict what they will do. The company delivers analytical solutions at the intersection of customer relationship management and business intelligence. SPSS analytical solutions integrate and analyze market, customer and operational data in key vertical markets worldwide including: telecommunications, health care, banking, finance, insurance, manufacturing, retail, consumer packaged goods, market research and the public sector. Headquartered in Chicago, SPSS has more than 40 offices, over 900 employees and 1999 revenues of $142 million. The company also has won the following awards: No. 70 on Forbes 1999 list of the "200 best small companies" and as the 22nd most profitable company on the Nasdaq exchange by Equities magazine; 1999 World Class Solution award in business intelligence and named "best decision support system for business intelligence" in the 1999 RealWare award competition; No. 14 in DM Review's 1999 Data Warehouse Top 100; placed No. 16 on the 2000 Soft-letter 100, a ranking of the top 100 personal computer software companies in the United States; and No. 115 in the 2000 Software 500, a ranking of the world's largest software vendors by Software Magazine. For more information, visit www.spss.com. SPSS information is available on the World Wide Web through the SPSS Press Center at: http://www.spss.com/press --30--clc/cgo* CONTACT: SPSS Inc. Susan Kalell or Todd Vura, 800/525-4980 pr@spss.com URL: www.spss.com