Business, High Tech & Healthcare Editors

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 22, 2000

Enhanced Interactivity and Data Sharing Designed To

Boost Efficiency of Clinical Trials

SoftWatch (www.softwatch.com), a leading provider of Internet relationship management software products and services for the healthcare industry, today announced a joint partnership with Phase Forward Incorporated, a leading pharmaceutical eProcess company that provides Internet clinical trial data management, with the goal of improving time to peak sales for new drugs and medical devices.

The agreement enables Phase Forward to offer its recently-launched InFusion(TM) extranet eProcess Solution in a seamlessly integrated package with the SoftWatch Relationship Server (SRS(TM)) Internet platform. The addition of SRS(TM) to the InFusion extranet product will enhance the administration and management of Internet-based clinical trials by enabling access to personalized news and information-sharing features as well as clinical research data and analysis all on one extranet. Clinical trial sponsors will thus be able to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of the trials by promoting the establishment of a dynamic online community amongst all trial administrators, including physicians, researchers and managers.

SoftWatch's SRS(TM) platform enables health and pharmaceutical companies to create highly targeted e-health marketing and e-business initiatives including professional and consumer portals and communities. SRS(TM) combines a complete suite of back-office site management services with such personalized front-office features as secure messaging and community tools in an end-to-end solution uniquely tailored to healthcare. Customers of SoftWatch include Abbott Laboratories, Johnson & Johnson, Aventis, Schering Plough, Merck-Medco and CBS-Medscape.

The InFusion extranet solution is built to complement Phase Forward's InForm(TM) technology, the industry's first completely integrated clinical data management solution. The InFusion extranet is fully customized and can be seamlessly integrated into the InForm data collection platform in a clinical trial, post-marketing study, registry, or outcomes study. The portal provides the educational and logistical information necessary for a site to participate in a study, along with study newsletters, targeted marketing information, CME content, and real-time data reporting.

"We are delighted to be partnering with Phase Forward in this strategic initiative," said SoftWatch President and COO Asaf Evenhaim. "Phase Forward has emerged as the clear leader in Web-based clinical trial management. Our partnership with them expands the ways in which we can meet the relationship management needs of pharmaceutical companies and other large healthcare industry organizations. Companies will be able to optimize their development and marketing processes using the best-in-class tools to help accelerate and sustain peak sales of new drugs and medical devices."

"The integration of SRS(TM) into the InFusion solution will strengthen interaction between the sponsor's research and development, brand management and trial administration staff, with physicians and clinical research organizations," Mr. Evenhaim added.

"SoftWatch's premier healthcare relationship management platform makes them a perfect partner for Phase Forward. Through our partnership, we have established a logical dynamic extension to support broader customer relationship needs," said Mike Ball, Vice President of Business Development for Phase Forward Incorporated. "By using SoftWatch's dynamic interactive tools, clinical trial sponsors will be able to create stronger relationships and enhance information-sharing among people concerned with research and the administration of clinical trials in much the same way that major pharmaceutical companies have successfully used SoftWatch technology to build loyalty among consumers."

SRS(TM) features to be incorporated into the InFusion solution include:

- Content management capabilities enabling sponsors to

rapidly customize extranet content to individuals'

specific needs. A sponsor of multiple trials could, for

instance, easily generate customized reports of the

latest news and information relevant to physicians

participating in each of its trials, complete with links

to other Web sites providing useful clinical

information.

- Web-based messaging services that enable those involved

in the trial to access and manage information relevant

to their areas of interest and expertise, and securely

communicate this information to each other.

- Tools for establishing and managing online communities

that further encourage the sharing of information among

those involved in the trial through chat rooms,

discussion groups, a directory of users, and more.

About SoftWatch

SoftWatch is a leading developer of e-healthcare relationship management (eHRM(TM)) solutions for the healthcare and pharmaceutical industries. These solutions leverage the potential of the Internet to help healthcare companies build and manage e-relationships that extend across key industry segments, including pharmaceutical companies, physicians, patients, medical portals and other healthcare stakeholders. The company's flagship Web-based platform, the SoftWatch Relationship Server (SRS(TM)), enables health and medical organizations to create highly targeted e-health marketing and e-business initiatives including professional and consumer portals and communities. Global customers include such industry leaders as Abbott Laboratories, Aventis, Johnson & Johnson, Procter & Gamble, Schering Plough, Merck Medco and CBS-Medscape.

Founded in 1994, SoftWatch has offices in Ramat Gan, Israel and in New York.

About Phase Forward

Phase Forward is a pharmaceutical eProcess company focused on improving time to peak sales for new drugs and medical devices. Phase Forward's InForm(TM) software product uses Internet technologies to conduct and manage clinical trials efficiently and effectively. The InForm software has been used in over 70 clinical trials worldwide. Our software and service solutions allow sponsors of clinical trials to eliminate the need to transcribe and process traditional paper data forms, to access global clinical trial data in real-time, and to begin data analysis almost immediately after the last patient has visited the clinic. Phase Forward believes that use of its InForm software product by clinical trial sponsors has the potential to cut one to two years off the current seven to nine years it takes to bring new drugs to market, enabling them to increase their revenue potential. Phase Forward Incorporated, a privately held company, is headquartered in Waltham, Mass. Additional information about Phase Forward is available at http://www.phaseforward.com.

InForm, InFusion, and Phase Forward are trademarks of Phase Forward Incorporated in the United States. All other trademarks may be the property of their respective owners.