News release

Viacore and HP Form Alliance to Connect Companies through Private Trading Exchanges

Companies Combine Expertise to Increase Deployment Speed and Reduce Implementation Costs

IRVINE and PALO ALTO, CA - May 29, 2001

Viacore, a provider of business process networks, and Hewlett-Packard Company (NYSE: HWP) today announced an alliance to enable companies to share vital information between trading partners via the Internet. HP Consulting will now become a preferred partner for performing the systems integration work necessary to connect trading partners to Viacore's private, customized online trading exchanges.

Sharing their respective knowledge, experience and training, Viacore and HP expect to decrease the connection times and implementation costs for customers. Once implemented, the Viacore business process network solution, known as ProcessTone™, has the potential to deliver immediate benefits for clients through improved supply chain visibility, enhanced inventory management, and real-time planning and forecasting capabilities. ProcessTone is composed of specialized software, operational methodologies, and expert operations staff to efficiently manage private trading exchanges.

"Viacore and HP plan to help supply chain leaders open the pipeline to deep business process visibility and information sharing," said Fadi Chehadé, chairman and CEO of Viacore. "Private exchange owners and trading partners should benefit from improved supply chain efficiencies and integrated business relationships, which have the potential to affect the bottom line profitability of their business operations."

"Quickly and cost-effectively connecting trading partners through private online exchanges will allow enterprises to more quickly capitalize on the promise of the Internet," said Bernard Guidon, vice president of HP Consulting. "We intend to help Viacore implement solutions using world-class design expertise, proven methodologies, and leading technologies in support of Viacore's business process network offering."

About Viacore ProcessTone

Viacore's business process network solution, ProcessTone, comprises specialized software, operational methodologies, and expert operations staff, tightly integrated to rapidly scale and efficiently manage private trading exchanges. ProcessTone is composed of the following operations: 1) Switch, an intelligent hub which provides the routing of documents and processes to/from trading partners; 2) Connector, a partner enablement operation that integrates and connects large, medium and small partners; and 3) View, a command and control base that monitors documents and processes as they flow through the Switch and between trading partners.

ProcessTone handles all aspects of private trading exchange connectivity and management including security, guaranteed delivery, alert management, logging for non-repudiation and translation between protocols. ProcessTone supports standards and protocols such as cXML, xCBL, RosettaNet Partner Interface ProcessesTM (PIPs) and EDI. Viacore also provides the education, certification, on-site installation assistance, networked connections, administration, knowledge management, internal infrastructure, and customer service to support ongoing 24x7 private trading exchanges.

About HP

Hewlett-Packard Company -- a leading global provider of computing and imaging solutions and services -- is focused on making technology and its benefits accessible to individuals and businesses through simple appliances, useful e-services and solutions for an Internet infrastructure that's always on.

HP had total revenue from continuing operations of $48.8 billion in its 2000 fiscal year. Information about HP and its products can be found on the World Wide Web at http://www.hp.com.

About Viacore, Inc.

Viacore, Inc., is a provider of business process networks. Viacore's ProcessTone solution acts as the central nervous system for supply chain visibility, simplifying and sustaining real-time information flow. Together with system integrators and software providers, Viacore completes the supply chain visibility solution by providing ongoing connectivity and interoperability between disparate trading partners. Additional information is available at www.viacore.net.

Viacore and ProcessTone are the trademarks or registered trademarks of Viacore, Inc. Other products mentioned in this document are registered, trademarked or service marked by their respective owners.

This news release contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties, as well as assumptions that, if they never materialize or prove incorrect, could cause the results of HP and its consolidated subsidiaries to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. All statements other than statements of historical fact are statements that could be deemed forward-looking statements, including any projections of earnings, revenues, or other financial items; any statements of the plans, strategies, and objectives of management for future operations; any statements concerning proposed new products, services, or developments; any statements regarding future economic conditions or performance; statements of belief and any statement of assumptions underlying any of the foregoing. The risks, uncertainties and assumptions referred to above include the ability of HP to retain and motivate key employees; the timely development, production and acceptance of products and services and their feature sets; the challenge of managing asset levels, including inventory; the flow of products into third-party distribution channels; the difficulty of keeping expense growth at modest levels while increasing revenues; and other risks that are described from time to time in HP's Securities and Exchange Commission reports, including but not limited to the annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended Oct. 31, 2000, and subsequently filed reports. HP does not intend to update these forward-looking statements.