Computer underground Digest Wed Aug 27, 1997 Volume 9 : Issue 64 ISSN 1004-042X Editor: Jim Thomas (cudigest@sun.soci.niu.edu) News Editor: Gordon Meyer (gmeyer@sun.soci.niu.edu) Archivist: Brendan Kehoe Shadow Master: Stanton McCandlish Shadow-Archivists: Dan Carosone / Paul Southworth Ralph Sims / Jyrki Kuoppala Ian Dickinson Field Agent Extraordinaire: David Smith Cu Digest Homepage: http://www.soci.niu.edu/~cudigest CONTENTS, #9.64 (Wed, Aug 27, 1997) File 1--Wired News on the Politics of Netscape File 2--Sex is driving Internet progress, experts say (fwd) File 3--Commerce Dept encryption rules declared unconstitutional File 4--AOL Target of Credit Card Scam File 5--E-Mail Advertising (fwd) File 6--Novadigm Sues Marimba File 7--ADVISORY/Novadigm CEO Rebuffs Marimba File 8--Cu Digest Header Info (unchanged since 7 May, 1997) CuD ADMINISTRATIVE, EDITORIAL, AND SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION APPEARS IN THE CONCLUDING FILE AT THE END OF EACH ISSUE. --------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Thu, 21 Aug 1997 10:25:52 -0800 To: fight-censorship@vorlon.mit.edu Subject: File 1--Wired News on the Politics of Netscape Source - fight-censorship@vorlon.mit.edu From Wired Nnews: http://www.wired.com/news/news/business/story/6190.html Political Player Isn't Yet a Political Power by Ashley Craddock 5:10am 21.Aug.97.PDT In the heart of the digital universe, one thing seems clear: Although Netscape's once skyrocketing fortunes may be in turnaround, and its sometime stellar public profile is in the early stages of eclipse, CEO Jim Barksdale, the corporate guru who raised Netscape from squirrelly start-up to industry leader, is still striving to position the company as a heavy hitter. And he's doing it by working the smoky corridors of DC politics. Consider the evidence: Since Netscape's founding in 1994, Barksdale has dabbled in antitrust law, poked and prodded the Clinton administration about immigration policies, and toyed with tort reform. He's testified before Congress about the long-term folly of using export policy to choke the development of robust encryption technologies - and, by extension, the most booming sector of the nation's economy. And this summer, pairing with venture capitalist and Silicon Valley good ol' boy extraordinaire John Doerr, Barksdale did something heretofore unthinkable: From the center of the politics-wary world of high tech, he launched the Technology Network, the industry's first formal stab at creating a political organization to advance info-tech goals on Capitol Hill. But no matter how maverick Barksdale's political acumen looks from the Valley, the view from the Hill is more mundane: He's simply the CEO of a vulnerable start-up scrambling to protect his corner of the volatile info-tech boom. "What gave anyone the idea that Netscape is a big political player?" asks one well-known Washington Internet activist who doesn't wish to be identified. "Don't get me wrong, Netscape has played an invaluable role in the fight for stronger encryption, but on all the other big Internet issues, they've been pretty much invisible." Even in Technology Network's Palo Alto, California, offices, where several dyed-in-the-wool politicos have parked their stars, Barksdale's political aura seems to pale beside co-chair Doerr's notoriously intense wattage. "We still think the Gore and Doerr thing is a joke," says TechNet Republican consultant Dan Schnur, citing a recent New Yorker profile of the nominally Republican Kleiner, Perkins, Caufield & Byers partner. "But let's just say I wish we had someone like Doerr pushing our side of the agenda." Isolated victories Barksdale, who arrived at Netscape after stints at Federal Express and McCaw Communications, carried to the Valley a more intimate knowledge of the necessary intersection between politics and business than many of the Valley's homegrown execs. "Jim is far more seasoned than people like [Intuit's] Scott Cook, [Sun Microsystem's] Scott McNealy, and [Marimba's] Kim Polese," says Peter Harter, Netscape's public policy counsel. "At Fed Ex, he worked with labor unions and the trucking industry. He worked the FBI and the National Security Agency on issues about shipping packages. And at McCaw, he had to deal with the Federal Communications Commission. He knows the way Washington works, and people in Washington know he knows it." Since arriving at Netscape, Barksdale has used that experience to his company's benefit. He has won at least three significant individual battles in the looming Internet policy war. After several key pilgrimmages to DC, he obtained major concessions on the export of encryption embedded in Netscape Navigator, the browser that made his company's name and fortune. He influenced the free-market tilt of the Clinton administration's white paper on electronic commerce. And, in negotiations on the budget bill earlier this summer, Barksdale pushed for tax credits on research and development and software exports. But those were isolated victories, and Netscape and the rest of the software industry have still barely cracked mainstream Washington's consciousness. The Congressional Internet Caucus has little real clout. And while administration officials note that the president's yen to improve his historical rank offers favor-seekers a perfect opportunity for political leverage, Silicon Valley seems strangely unprepared to act. The reason, says Oliver Smoot, executive vice president of the Information Technology Industry Council, is simple: Nobody in the Valley, including Netscape, wants to pay to play. Indeed, while technology executives account for 26 of Forbes' list of the 400 richest in America, only five show up on Mother Jones' list of the nation's 400 top political contributors. "In terms of its contribution to the national economy, the software industry is beginning to have very high visibility here," says Smoot. "But compared to a lot of less profitable industries, it doesn't really carry much of a punch." And for all Barksdale's nipping and tucking, Netscape, like its counterparts, seems content to hurl only a few strategic pitches a year. Indeed, as far as Washington presence, the company falls far short of the low-water mark set by an industry known for stashing its lobbyists in sunless backroom offices. Netscape employs only one full-time lobbyist, who doesn't even have a DC base. Since his arrival at Netscape fresh from a stint at an Ohio nonprofit, Peter Harter has peddled the company's somewhat meager influence from his Palo Alto office. Political Lobbyist Head Count - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Netscape 1 Microsoft 6 Intel 12 IBM 24 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Of necessity, Harter is pragmatic about his position in the lobbyists' galaxy. "Say we identify five issues that are very important," he says. "As a small company, we may only have resources for three, so we'll look at what's ripe for resolution and focus on that." In the two years Harter has been working for Netscape, his main focus has been relaxing export controls on encrypted software so the company can expand overseas sales. Now, he says, priorities are shifting. Believing that the administration is about to hand down regulations Netscape can live with, Harter has shrunk his cryptography budget and is now turning his attention toward copyright and privacy concerns. Underdog seeks an upper hand As much as anything, Netscape's public-policy initiatives all stem from the need to protect and bolster an increasingly fragile bottom line. "Netscape is the underdog, so Barksdale is focused on ensuring that it's able to remain competitive," says the Internet activist, who worked with Netscape in the fight against online content regulations imposed by the since-eviscerated Communications Decency Act. "If that lines up with sound public policy, great. But that's not really what's driving any of the company's politics. In fact, as far as the CDA, Netscape's only significant action was to make sure that Internet access providers, i.e. browser-makers like Netscape, were exempted by the original bill." By signing on as co-chair of TechNet, however, Barksdale is explicitly leveraging Netscape's reputation as a catalyst for the Internet-driven new economy. Born out of a successful 1996 fight against California's Proposition 211, an initiative that would have lowered the barrier to shareholder lawsuits, TechNet was founded in July to endorse candidates, raise money, and lobby state and DC politicians. Since its founding, the nonpartisan Valley-based group - whose members include Polese, Cook, and McNealy - has wined and dined Jack Kemp, Al Gore, Senator Tom Daschle, and William Bennett, among others. In spite of Netscape's leadership role, there remain uncertainties about what the organization will do to advance the goals nearest and dearest to the company's heart. No key Internet issues - not access fees for service, not bandwidth, not free speech, not domain names, not even encryption - have so far lit the nascent group's radar screen. And, says Harter, they probably won't. For one thing, TechNet hopes to represent the biotech industry as well as software and hardware companies. For another, "All TechNet's member companies have different agendas when it comes to encryption," says Harter. "It's a divisive issue that TechNet probably doesn't need to touch." So far, TechNet's overall strategy - fighting for passage of a bill that would standardize regulations on state-level securities litigation, and lobbying for education reform - has worked like a charm. "People in Washington are fascinated by Silicon Valley's magic," says Mark Gitenstein, a lobbyist who worked on the 1995 Federal Securities Litigation Reform Act and is now TechNet's DC consultant on the issue. "TechNet's creation represents the industry's first real acknowledgement that no important sector in our economy can avoid government regulation. And god knows, this is an important sector." Why does the economic powerhouse info-tech industry insist on playing wiffle-ball politics? Essentially, while the nascent industry is bursting with cash, it's also bursting with competition. "The rebirth of Silicon Valley three years ago is different than anything that came before," says Jim Bidzos, CEO of RSA Data Security, the Valley's leading cryptography software firm. "You see tons of companies making tons of money, and you see tons of companies disappearing. It's all any CEO can do to keep up. And Washington is so far behind, it's hard to care what's going on except when some wrongheaded government initiative becomes a direct political threat." Other observers believe that Silicon Valley magic-makers like Barksdale may wield more influence in DC than several pots of gold. "If these groups stick to the high ground on developing the Internet as a public resource, they may be able to exert a lot of power without a ton of money," says Marc Rotenberg of the Electronic Information Privacy Center. "Right now, the industry that TechNet represents is a policymaker's darling. They can ride that a long way." Copyright 1993-97 Wired Ventures Inc. and affiliated companies. All rights reserved. ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 20 Aug 1997 00:53:13 -0400 (EDT) From: "noah@enabled.com" Subject: File 2--Sex is driving Internet progress, experts say (fwd) 07:01 PM ET 08/18/97 Sex is driving Internet progress, experts say CHICAGO (Reuter) - Sex is the most searched-for topic on the Internet and the quest for it is driving the net's technological advances, researchers said Monday. ``This is going to be the next sexual revolution. It's going to affect sex in a profound way,'' said Al Cooper, clinical director of the San Jose Calif. Marital and Sexual Center. Questions being asked range from whether voyeurism in cyberspace constitutes infidelity to whether meeting someone electronically before visually might lead to better long-term relationships, he said. Ray Noonan, a sexual researcher from New York University, said, ``The Internet is probably one of the most profound changes in world society history, with greater impact than the Gutenberg press and broadcast media... ``Sex drives the technology of the Internet and the World Wide Web,'' he added. The two researchers and others spoke during a panel discussion on the topic during the annual meeting of the American Psychological Association. Cooper said sex was the most searched-for topic on the Internet, even though the number of sites or user groups devoted to it represent a relatively small percentage of the masses of information available in cyberspace. Adult entertainment and sexually explicit material are the ''No. 1 income generator on the Internet,'' he said, adding that he believed they would drive telephone sex services out of business in a few years. The phenomenon will impact human sexuality by offering information, education, the chance of a ``first step'' for the otherwise timid and the possibility of linking those with similar sexual orientations and tastes. ``There is also a potential for better long-term relationships,'' Cooper said, if people get to know each other before physical attraction occurs. ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 25 Aug 1997 19:41:19 -0700 (PDT) From: Declan McCullagh Subject: File 3--Commerce Dept encryption rules declared unconstitutional Source - fight-censorship@vorlon.mit.edu A Federal judge in San Francisco ruled today that the Commerce Department's export controls on encryption products violate the First Amendment's guarantees of freedom of speech. In a 35-page decision, U.S. District Judge Marilyn Patel said the Clinton administration's rules violate "the First Amendment on the grounds of prior restraint and are, therefore, unconstitutional." Patel reaffirmed her December 1996 decision against the State Department regulations, saying that the newer Commerce Department rules suffer from similar constitutional infirmities. Patel barred the government from "threatening, detaining, prosecuting, discouraging, or otherwise interfering with" anyone "who uses, discusses, or publishes or seeks to use, discuss or publish plaintiff's encryption programs and related materials." Daniel Bernstein, now a math professor at the University of Illinois, filed the lawsuit with the help of the Electronic Frontier Foundation. Patel dismissed the State, Energy, and Justice departments and CIA as defendants. President Clinton transferred jurisdiction over encryption exports from the State to the Commerce department on December 30, 1996. The Justice Department seems likely to appeal the ruling to the Ninth Circuit, which could rule on the case in the near future. ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 28 Aug 1997 13:42:38 -0500 From: Jim Thomas Subject: File 4--AOL Target of Credit Card Scam The Chicago Tribune (27 Aug '97, p. 3) reported a scam that attempted to target AOL subscribers two weeks ago. The story describes how e-mail, disguised as official correspondence from AOL attempted to entice subscribers to divulge credit card numbers and other sensitive information. The scam worked by inviting subscribers to click on a link that took them to an official looking homepage, where a letter, ostensibly by AOL's CEO Steve Case described AOL's successes in fixing bugs. Subscribers where then asked to update their AOL accounts by supplying confidential information. When AOL users log on to AOL, a prominent note reminds them that AOL personnel will *never* ask for such information. It's not known how many users were victimized by the scam, and the fraudulent homepage was apperently up only for a few hours. Unlike sex-related crimes, there have been no screaming "INTERNET BLAMED IN SCAM ATTEMPT" headlines. That's encouraging. It's hardly a surprise that the Net contains predators, just as do churches, highschools, and police departments. The trick, which the media seem to be slowly catching on to, is not to create hysteria with clueless horror stories, but to stress a few basics. In this case, one of the cardinal rules pertains: Do not give out personal information to strangers on the Net. In this case, however, the scam was sufficiently clever that it could easily catch inexperienced (or even some experienced) netfolk. A second rule then pertains: Double check the sources - if something seems odd, avoid it. The text of "spam" letter setting up the scam was posted on The Well (a public access community in California's Bay Area--http://www.well.com for info) on August 12 by . ============ Tue 12 Aug 97 04:51 I just got what is apparent Spam that would seem to go far beyond illegal... it purports to be from AOL (address is something like "ServerUpdate@aol.com") and contains a letter from Steve Case, along with a URL on an IP-address-only site. When you go to the site, you're in a secure form, purporting to be a reregistration form for you with AOL, asking for various confidential information. The page bears logos for both RSA and VeriSign... it seems to be crafted to *look* legit, for those folks who merely understand that the Internet *can* be secured, somehow. Checking headers, the thing seems to have come from UUNet (surprise!). For those who want to check it out, the URL is http://209.41.43.223/index.htm ------------- here's what I got... NB the bogus domain (aoI.com) and the "Authenticated server is..." comment. Clever enough to catch newbies, certainly. From AOL-ServerUpdate@aol.com Tue Aug 12 08:22:50 1997 Received: from relay6.UU.NET (relay6.UU.NET [192.48.96.16]) by embassy.org (8.8.4/8.8.4) with ESMTP id FAA18670 for ; Tue, 12 Aug 1997 05:24:13 -0400 (EDT) From: AOL-ServerUpdate@aol.com Received: from mail.uu.net by relay6.UU.NET with SMTP (peer crosschecked as: slip129-37-52-122.ca.us.ibm.net [129.37.52.122]) id QQdcgj02863; Tue, 12 Aug 1997 05:24:11 -0400 (EDT) Received: from mail.aoI.com (alt.aoI.com (207.34.342.246)) by aoI.com (8.8.5/8.6.5) with SMTP id GAA01943 for ; Tue, 12 Aug 1997 05:18:19 -0600 (EST) To: ServerUpg@aol.com Message-ID: <173840394782.GAA73847@aoI.com> Date: Tue, 12 Aug 97 05:18:19 EST Subject - Important AOL Information! Please Read. --) Reply-To: AOL-ServerUpdate@aol.com X-PMFLAGS: 34078848 0 X-UIDL: 268493654736a37aeb4b67463529878e Comments: Authenticated sender is Special News Bulletin: August 12, 1997 Dear Members: As you know, the number one priority for all of us at America Online continues to be meeting our obligation to provide you with the best possible service. We have been working day and night to fix the busy signal problem and to catch up with the incredible surge in demand for AOL. In this month's letter, I'd like to give you an update on how we are doing. When it became clear to us that unlimited use pricing stimulated more demand for AOL than we had anticipated, we announced a $350 million expansion program and made four commitments to you: - To expand system capacity as quickly as possible - To serve our existing members before adding new members - To work extremely hard to maintain the loyalty of members who've had problems with busy signals - To communicate frequently about the steps we are taking to improve AOL So let me update you on what we're doing to meet each of those commitments, including the development of a new server which offers a higher system capacity. You may either take a moment to read in depth about the steps we have taken, or just complete the required update of your information on our new servers. Please Click HERE to Continue. All you have to do is click on the text above with your left mouse button and it will take you directly to our new information screen. Thank you for your Cooperation, AOL Member Services Below are the Headers used by AOL's newly developed servers. Please Disregard these they are of no importance. ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 27 Aug 1997 11:56:33 -0400 (EDT) From: Larry Will Subject: File 5--E-Mail Advertising (fwd) ((MODERATORS' NOTE: Normally, we don't reprint letters from spam targets to spammers, but the possibility of politicians spamming us every fall is a bit frightening. Larry Will's thoughtful response to the spam might dissuade potential pol-spammers from repeating this one's faux pas)). I sent the attached message to an unlikely spammer---a politician (or, more precisely, the politician's internet marketing firm). I've yet to get a reply from either the spammer or the candidate. Lw -- Larry Will will@tracoris.com 301-231-2013 5305 Griffith Road, Gaithersburg, Maryland 20882-2020 Software Engineer, Tracor Information Systems, Rockville, MD President, Capital Area NetWare Users, Washington DC ---------- Forwarded message ---------- Date--Wed, 20 Aug 1997 10:36:42 -0400 From--Larry Will To--CManzano@ix.netcom.com, TGParker@worldnet.att.net, manzano@NYCT.NET, vinny@NYCT.NET Subject--E-Mail Advertising Dear Ms. Fields, I received the electronic message included below earlier this morning. Since my e-mail account name has been included, without my consent, in a database for use by organizations wishing to do mass mailing across the internet, I receive several such unsolicited messages a day. You may not be aware of this, but much of the internet community, including myself, consider unsolicited electronic messages to be annoying, a waste of time and energy, and contrary to established rules of etiquette governing conduct in the online world. Unsolicited commercial e-mail is also known by the pejorative term "spam", and those who spam are called "spammers". I believe that those in your campaign responsible for spamming have done your campaign a great disservice. Consider only that I live in Montgomery County, Maryland, and that this message arrived in my workplace's electronic mailbox, and that regardless of my political background I have no interest in the current Manhattan Borough President campaign. There are some in the internet community who retaliate in a very negative way to spammers and their sponsors. It is possible that your web site, e-mail box, and internet access provider may be subject to attack and abuse from some who have received this message, causing a loss or denial of service. I am not part of this crowd; but I feel it would be a disservice to you and your campaign if I did not bring these issues to your attention. I believe there are far better ways to advertise your campaign than resorting to spam. I am also sending this message to those responsible for Midtown Media Consulting and their internet domain midtownmedia.com. Thank you for your attention. Larry Will Software Engineer Tracor Information Systems Rockville, Maryland will@tracoris.com ----original message included below---- http://www.midtownmedia.com/Fields97 C. VIRGINIA FIELDS FOR MANHATTAN BOROUGH PRESIDENT '97 IMPORTANT NOTICE - DEMOCRATIC PRIMARY - TUES. SEPT. 9TH, 1997 PLEASE DON'T FORGET TO VOTE! ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 27 Aug 1997 08:56:10 -0400 From: Dale Gardner Subject: File 6--Novadigm Sues Marimba The topic of push technology and differencing is heating up -- I'm sure you've been following the issues, including Marimba's announcement yesterday about the DRP. I wanted to make sure you saw the following release which outlines our position on the matter. Please give me a call or send an e-mail if you have questions. Regards, Dale Gardner Director of Marketing +1.703.771.6075 daleg@novadigm.com For Release 8 am ET August 27, 1997 Novadigm Sues Marimba Patent Infringement Lawsuit May Impact W3C Protocol Submission Mahwah, NJ, August 27, 1997: Novadigm, Inc. (NASDAQ: NVDM) today said it has warned the World-Wide Web Consortium (W3C) that elements of the proposed Distribution and Replication Protocol (DRP) may infringe its intellectual property rights. The company asked that the consortium defer consideration of the proposal, pending resolution of a patent infringement lawsuit Novadigm filed against Marimba Inc. in March 1997. The lawsuit alleges that Marimba has infringed upon Novadigm's existing "fractional differencing" patent, issued in December 1996. Based upon a review of documentation made public by Marimba and the W3C, Novadigm believes DRP may use techniques similar to its patented methods, including DRP's use of differential indexing. Neither company has previously commented publicly on the lawsuit. Novadigm said it will also notify the other companies involved in the DRP proposal of its claims against Marimba. Those companies are: Netscape Communications Corp. (NASDAQ: NSCP), Novell Inc. (NASDAQ: NOVL), Sun Microsystems (NASDAQ: SUNW), and @Home Network (NASDAQ: ATHM). "Standards are clearly a positive force in the industry, but the fact remains that this technology is not Marimba's to give away," stated Albion Fitzgerald, chairman and chief executive officer of Novadigm. "We have invested over six years and thousands of hours in perfecting the technologies needed to solve software and information distribution problems. This work has resulted in production implementations on a scale unmatched by any other vendor." "Marimba is a start-up which has garnered much attention, but apparently does not respect our property rights. We think that Marimba's sudden magnanimous decision to abandon their own patent process and donate the technology to open standards should be seen in the light of our already granted patent and the ongoing litigation as an exploitative action without regard to the obvious intellectual property issues involved. We own this technology and we're going to vigorously defend it, even as Marimba works aggressively to use and claim credit for it." Fitzgerald said Novadigm was surprised by Marimba's DRP proposal, announced yesterday, and is unable to say whether the partner companies knew of the infringement claim. "We've remained silent about the litigation in order to facilitate a resolution by the legal and patent processes we are all supposed to adhere to, but dragging the W3C and the Internet community unknowingly into the middle of the dispute is a particularly inappropriate tactic. We think Marimba either didn't inform the other companies and the W3C of the lawsuit or told them only one side of it," Fitzgerald said. "We are hoping the Wc3 and Marimba's partners will take an equitable and arms-length approach as the matter proceeds through the courts." Novadigm's counsel advised that the case is in discovery stages and that Novadigm is investigating the nature and scope of Marimba's alleged infringement. About The Patent Novadigm's Patent (Number 5,581,764) "Distributed Computer Network Including Hierarchical Resource Information Structure and Related Method of Distributing Resources" describes the processes needed to generate from a common reference model a unique content configuration for each target end user, and to "difference" the "desired state" configuration with the actual-state of the target, yielding highly granular and very specific updates to distributed content automatically. The patent covers two central areas: Desired state configuration - processes which incorporate essential elements of both "push" and "pull" distribution models. By generating from a common reference model a unique user configuration which describes the specific software or content a target user should have, producers can automatically 'push' content to specific servers, desktops, or users; or groups of users. In addition, the 'pull' process provides a means for users to control when the flow of information takes place, what information is delivered, and where it is stored. Fractional Differencing - processes for comparing and contrasting the desired state configuration identifying what components a target should have with the resources it actually has, resulting in a concise and highly detailed difference configuration describing what components are needed - or should be removed - to ensure the targeted user is properly configured with a minimum of network traffic. The technologies protected by the patent are incorporated into Novadigm's Enterprise Desktop Manager(tm) software management solution. That product is used by some of the most demanding and complex information technology organizations world-wide. They are also the basis for new Novadigm products which will address requirements for efficient desktop management in the Internet environment. About Novadigm Novadigm is a leading provider of distributed software management solutions that reduce the cost and complexity of managing client/server, packaged and Internet software. The company's products use a patented 'desired-state' automation platform to distribute software across thousands of desktops and servers without manual intervention. The company licenses its products to Fortune 5000 IT organizations, software vendors, and service providers around the World. Novadigm's common stock trades on the NASDAQ Stock Exchange under the symbol "NVDM". More information on Novadigm, Inc. can be found on the World Wide Web at http://www.novadigm.com/ or by calling 800-626-6682. # # # Note To Editors -- Novadigm, EDM, and Enterprise Desktop Manager are either trademarks or registered trademarks of Novadigm, Inc. All other product, trademark, company, or service names mentioned herein are the property of their respective owners. Novadigm, Inc. is not affiliated with Novadyne Computer Systems, Inc. of Reston, VA. ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 29 Aug 1997 12:03:44 -0400 From: Dale Gardner Subject: File 7--ADVISORY/Novadigm CEO Rebuffs Marimba MAHWAH, N.J.-- Aug. 29, 1997-- MEDIA ALERT Albion Fitzgerald, chairman and CEO of Novadigm, Inc. (NASDAQ: NVDM), today responded to comments by Marimba, Inc. CEO Kim Polese published Wednesday, August 27 regarding Novadigm's pending patent infringement lawsuit. "Ms. Polese not only termed our suit 'baseless', but called into question the acceptance of our technology in the market. Regarding the suit, we and our attorneys are confident of our position," said Fitzgerald. "Her response is nothing more than you would expect from a defendant in a case of this type, whatever its merits. Regarding our current market position -- hype aside -- Novadigm's success relative to Marimba's is indisputable. In the last 12 months, we and our partners have generated nearly $50 million in revenues based on our proven technology. That's $15 million more than 1997 estimates for the entire push market -- which includes Marimba -- according to Forrester Research. And our customers are not simply experimenting with pushing content or Java applets to desktops. They are managing production, mission-critical applications across thousands of desktops worldwide." The controversy between Marimba and Novadigm heated up Tuesday, with Marimba's announcement of its submission (along with co-sponsors Netscape, Novell, Sun Microsystems and @Home Network) to the Worldwide Web Consortium of a new industry protocol (Distribution and Replication Protocol) designed to speed the distribution of information over the Internet. Novadigm contends that the technology on which the standard is based infringes on a Novadigm patent awarded in December 1996, and is the subject of a lawsuit filed against Marimba in March -- a fact that Marimba knew and did not disclose with its submission. Novadigm believes that Marimba is attempting to give away technology that it does not rightfully own and asked the consortium to defer consideration of the proposal pending resolution of the lawsuit. ------------------ EDITORS PLEASE NOTE: Novadigm's patent infringement lawsuit is available for downloading at http://www.novadigm.com/. For additional comments on Novadigm's leading technology or its patent infringement lawsuit against Marimba: Michael Barclay, Wilson, Sonsini, Goodrich & Rosati Law Firm, (650) 493-9300 David Coursey, Analyst, Coursey Communications, (415) 577-2545 ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 7 May 1997 22:51:01 CST From: CuD Moderators Subject: File 8--Cu Digest Header Info (unchanged since 7 May, 1997) Cu-Digest is a weekly electronic journal/newsletter. Subscriptions are available at no cost electronically. CuD is available as a Usenet newsgroup: comp.society.cu-digest Or, to subscribe, send post with this in the "Subject:: line: SUBSCRIBE CU-DIGEST Send the message to: cu-digest-request@weber.ucsd.edu DO NOT SEND SUBSCRIPTIONS TO THE MODERATORS. The editors may be contacted by voice (815-753-6436), fax (815-753-6302) or U.S. mail at: Jim Thomas, Department of Sociology, NIU, DeKalb, IL 60115, USA. 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