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Press Release
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iRise announces $11 million private placement in vote of confidence for enterprise software focus, iRise Application Simulator product offering
EL SEGUNDO, Calif. -- May 6, 2003 - Amid an investment climate that has been cool to new software ventures, iRise announced today that the company has concluded an $11 million round of funding to support its enterprise software focus. iRise Application Simulator™, the company's flagship product, was publicly introduced in January as its initial product offering.
Founded in 1996 as a services company with a vision to deliver innovative enterprise software products, iRise is dedicated to bridging the communication gap that exists between business and IT. Aimed at the Fortune 1000, iRise Application Simulator has already been deployed at customer sites in the health care, financial services and construction sectors, and repeat orders have been booked. The investment round has been underway since late 2000, with the final tranche now completed.
The investment in iRise comes in sharp contrast to the prevailing mood in the enterprise software space. According to VentureWire, enterprise software companies raised $2.4 billion in venture capital in 2002, down dramatically from 2001 totals of $4.1 billion. iRise funding came largely from executives and former executives who have experienced the painful problem the product solves and who recognize the size of the market opportunity. Requirements definition for Web-based application development is estimated to grow from $2 billion in 2000 to more than $6 billion by 2006, according to industry forecasts.
"Securing this kind of support is an extraordinary accomplishment in this economy," said Emmet B. Keeffe III, CEO, iRise. "We will use this investment to scale our product business, accelerate our efforts in sales and marketing, and make selective investments in product development, quality assurance and customer support." iRise has already expanded its global sales organization with the recent appointment of EVP Dean Terry.
Although iRise Application Simulator was publicly unveiled earlier this year, R&D on the product commenced in 2000, Version 1 was released in 2001 along with the company's first successful implementation. iRise closed multiple customers in 2002 on the Version 2 platform. Version 3 is scheduled for release by mid-year.
iRise Application Simulator enables business analysts to create an interactive simulation of Web applications without a single line of code, allows business users to use and test software prior to development, supports remote collaboration in the requirements definition process, and eliminates up to 40 percent of development costs overall. The fundamental value proposition for the product: moving usability testing from the end of the life cycle to the beginning, when it can actually make a difference.
"iRise Application Simulator represents a genuinely new way of working for business and IT alike," Keeffe said. "IT professionals certainly know how to write applications but all too often they don't know exactly what to write -- now, at best, their work is based on inspired guesses. The goal of iRise Application Simulator isn't to write software, but to gain agreement on requirements through real-time simulation and collaboration, and empower business users in the process.
"We're moving the change process up front, before IT sees it, so everyone involved can plan and prioritize appropriately, when change is much less expensive and much more likely to result in an application that hits the mark," he said. "The current pain is acute, and the market demand is real and growing. This investment underscores that."
About iRise
Founded in 1996, iRise® is a leading enterprise software and services company dedicated to B2IT™ communication -- bridging the communication gap that exists between business and IT. Using iRise Application Simulator, the first Application Definition platform, business users can now simulate and validate Web-based applications prior to development, dramatically improving their value while reducing development time and cost. With the same focus, its services group has successfully translated the needs of business users into Web-based applications for more than 100 customers on 250 engagements. The company is based in El Segundo, Calif., with an office in San Francisco and New York.
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