LOTUS ANNOUNCES LOTUS NOTES NETWORK RELEASE 2.0

INTERNET CONNECTIVITY, 28.8 KBPS X.25 SUPPORT, DIRECT CLIENT ACCESS, WALNUT
USER FORUM, AND ENHANCED CONTENT HELP RAPIDLY GROWING WORLDWIDE NOTES
COMMUNITY EXPLOIT FULL POWER OF NOTES

CAMBRIDGE, MA, April 1, 1996 -- Lotus Development Corp. announced today
that Release 2.0 of the Lotus Notes Network (LNN) will be operational and
available to Lotus Business Partners and corporate Notes users at the end
of this month. LNN 2.0 offers more connectivity and access options and
expanded content to help the Notes community enhance its investment in
groupware through extended communication and collaboration.

The Lotus Notes Network is a Lotus sponsored Notes-based service that
connects Lotus Notes customers to each other in the world's largest and
fastest growing Lotus Notes community. LNN 2.0 offers three features that
dramatically increase access to the network -- Internet connectivity,
support for 28.8 kbps X.25 through CompuServe, and direct access to LNN
servers by individual client machines. In addition, LNN is now delivering
exciting new content to the Lotus Notes community, including the WALNUT
user discussion group, regarded as the premier Lotus Notes user discussion
platform.

According to David Champagne, senior vice president, Lotus Services Group,
LNN 1.0, launched in May 1995, proved to be an invaluable resource for
helping the rapidly growing Notes community exploit the full potential of
their Notes investment. "Now, LNN Release 2.0 makes it easier for users,
corporate IT managers, groupware consultants, application developers, and
industry analysts to take advantage of all that LNN has to offer. Internet
connectivity is an absolutely vital development that brings LNN to users
everywhere in the world. X.25 connectivity ensures reliable point-to-point
data transmission, and the enhanced content available through WALNUT and
other sources will help users find better business solutions through
Notes."

BROADER ACCESS THROUGH INTERNET CONNECTIVITY AND X.25 SUPPORT

Point-to-point X.25 service, provided through CompuServe, and Internet
connectivity extends the reach of the Lotus Notes Network globally.
Subscribers can send and receive Notes mail across the Internet and also
communicate with non-Notes users through the LNN SMTP gateway. Meanwhile,
the enhanced X.25 service offers maximum reliability at faster
transmission speeds (up to 28.8 kbps where available), which helps reduce
users' connection time and costs. LNN provides users of both access
methods, the benefits of Notes' renowned security features, including
sophisticated encryption and decryption capabilities, access level
restrictions and digital signature technology.

Commenting on the new connectivity options, Ernie Smither, General Manager
of the LNN Business Group said "Lotus Notes and the Internet are ideal
partners in the inter-enterprise marketplace. With the explosive growth of
the Internet, many LNN subscribers who are already on the Internet can now
access LNN at ISDN speeds, saving time and money while attaining more
content on LNN. For other subscribers who prefer the outstanding
reliability, security and improved speed of the CompuServe X.25 transport,
LNN will continue to support X.25 access at an even lower price."

DIRECT CLIENT ACCESS ELIMINATES NEED TO MANAGE SERVER

All LNN subscribers can now access the network right from their desktop
without having to set up and maintain a Notes server dedicated to an
intermediate LNN connection. This gives individuals anytime, anywhere
access to LNN, even from remote locations. This is particularly valuable
for the mobile user and for organizations with limited server resources.

ENHANCED CONTENT REDUCES TRAINING COSTS AND FUELS CUSTOMER GROWTH

LNN subscribers enjoy reliable mail delivery and a rich collection of
shared applications. Lotus Education, Consulting, Customer Support,
Business Partners, and Sales programs all host databases on LNN, offering
valuable information on Lotus products and services. These databases
include the Notes, cc:Mail and SmartSuite Knowledge Bases, Lotus'
industry-leading support database; numerous technical forums; LNN White
Pages, a voluntary directory of LNN subscribers; Lotus education and
technical certification requirements databases; and Lotus Notes:Newsstand,
a virtual electronic newsstand offering more than 100 business and trade
publications, including PC Week, Communications Week, American Banker and
more, in native Notes format.

Lotus Business Partners can also take advantage of a complete library of
Lotus-created slide shows and white papers in a new database on LNN called
Communications Presentations II. With the ability to selectively request
and receive these tools via Notes mail and the more powerful selective
replication feature of Notes R 4, many Lotus Business Partners find this
information invaluable in supporting their sales and marketing efforts.

"To succeed in the service business requires offering a broad variety of
information that is accessible and useful to both customers and partners,"
says Bob Johnson, Director of Software Services at Dataquest. "Efforts
like LNN 2.0 offer a wider range and depth of technical and marketing
insight to more people, who can access what they need, when they need it
to make key business decisions."

A growing number of Business Partners are hosting valuable technical and
marketing information of their own on LNN. Mark Ramos, Product Manager at
Granite Software, says "I rely on the Business Partner Forum to help me
develop, support, and distribute my product. Because the participants are
sophisticated and technically savvy, we have been able to identify and
team up with like-minded organizations for marketing and consulting -- LNN
is practically a direct line to the customers and prospects we want."

To help subscribers reduce the amount of time they spend replicating
databases, LNN takes advantage of Notes Release 4's new selective
replication features. LNN also distributes free CDs on a quarterly basis.
The first CD a user receives contains LNN's total database content, which
helps first time subscribers avoid the lengthy replication required to
download LNN content. Subsequent editions of the CD offer new or
significantly enhanced versions of popular databases like Knowledge Base.

WALNUT FORUM PROVIDES INVALUABLE INFORMATION FROM NOTES USER BASE

The appointment of LNN as the primary host of WALNUT, the Worldwide
Association of Lotus Notes Users and Technologists, coincides with Release
2.0 of LNN. In addition to the WALNUT discussion database, which is open
to all LNN subscribers, Premium WALNUT databases are available exclusively
on LNN to WALNUT Premium members. Premium members receive voting
privileges, available discounts on Notes conferences, a Notes and WALNUT
newsletter subscription, training materials, participation in the WALNUT
SHEL process (Suggestions, Help and Enhancements for Lotus) and membership
in one Regional Interest Group (RIG).

Gary Clare, President of WALNUT, explained that while WALNUT Premium
membership services will be available solely on LNN, the WALNUT forum will
continue to be accessible through CompuServe and WorldCom. Describing the
advantages of the new partnership, he said, "By teaming up, WALNUT and
Lotus will bring together Notes users from two of the best and most
prestigious Notes user communities in the world today.

"It will be even easier for users and Lotus Business Partners around the
world to share information and tips and forge meaningful collaborative
relationships. For example, Lotus uses the WALNUT SHEL process to gather
Notes user input on the most popular and desirable product features."

EASY REGISTRATION PROCESS, ENHANCED SYSTEM SERVICE AND SUPPORT

Lotus Notes Release 4 customers can take advantage of the new Internet
features to directly access the LNN Internet server and commence the
registration process electronically. Notes users who prefer the X.25
transport option can download the registration software through the Lotus
Home Page on the World Wide Web, or request an enrollment kit from the LNN
Customer Operations Support hotline, 1-800 357-0051 or 617 693-3969.

LNN also provides 24x7 network support, using the advanced messaging
capabilities of Notes to keep subscribers abreast of new network features
and service alerts. The new LNN Subscriber Digest includes a
state-of-the-art tracking program that allows callers to submit their own
incident reports and to monitor the status electronically. LNN subscribers
also can use the new LNN Subscriber Digest database to send messages to
LNN technical and marketing personnel, to post questions, to view
responses to others' questions, and to request private database hosting
list and access control list management changes.

PRICING INFORMATION

LNN pricing has been restructured in 1996 to reflect the flexible
connection options and transport choices available to LNN subscribers.
Individual connections to LNN cost $300 U.S. annually ($25 U.S. per
month). Enterprise subscriptions, which include an unlimited internal
redistribution license, are just $900 U.S. annually ($75 U.S. per month).
With an enterprise subscription, most LNN information may be replicated
across a subscribing organization so that more users can take advantage of
the content*.

Internet fees and X.25 hourly charges are payable to the transport
provider. In the case of X.25 services, CompuServe is the authorized
provider. In 1996 CompuServe will be offering X.25 hourly service with
double the rated speed of LNN's current X.25 provider. Internet fees are
controlled by a user's Internet access provider.

* Information providers on LNN can make separate redistribution licensing
agreements with users.

Lotus Development Corp., a wholly-owned subsidiary of IBM Corp., offers
high quality software products and support services that reflect the
company's unique understanding of the new ways in which individuals and
businesses must work together to achieve success. Lotus' innovative
approach is evident in a new class of applications that allows information
to be accessed and communicated in ways never before possible, both within
and beyond organizational boundaries. The company also provides numerous
support services, both from its consulting division and its award-winning
24-hour support center. Lotus Notes Network (LNN) is a Lotus-sponsored,
Notes-based electronic community for Lotus Business Partners and Lotus
customers that enables them to collaborate, share information, broaden
workgroups and access extended-enterprise applications and services from
Lotus and each other.

EDITOR'S NOTE: All Lotus news releases are available on the Internet, via
the Lotus Development Corp. Home Page at http://www.Lotus.com. The Lotus
Home Page is an easy way to find information about Lotus and its business
partners' products and services.

A copy of this release and other company information is also available via
fax by dialing 1-800-57-LOTUS within the U.S. and Canada or 201- 946-2336
outside the U.S. and Canada. Questions concerning the service should be
directed to Lotus' Corporate Communications Department at 617-693-5625.

All prices and terms are for the USA only.
 
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