Dear asknet community,

eCommerce quo vadis? Failed banks, massive credit crunches, job losses, and lower consumer confidence characterize the current macro economy.

Many of us are affected by the current economic woes and wonder how we can cope and prevent further losses. Despite the gloomy forecast, this crisis in time will pass. And like most every crisis this one too offers opportunities that coupled with the right strategy can minimize the negative economic impacts.

asknet is carefully monitoring the global economy and is taking the downturn very seriously. Our goal is to look at potential opportunities to support our customers in achieving stable results while facing tough times.

We are your Global eCommerce partner – that is not simply a marketing message: We gather analyst information and, best practices and share with our customers our own observations, conclusions and suggestions on «how to prepare for the future».

More than ever it is important to invest in our eCommerce Platform to offer you the best solution available. We are excited to announce the next release of our asknet Shop Cockpit OCM - be your own pilot and manage all products, marketing campaigns and reports with one simple tool.

B2B, SMB and Enterprises sales in the Digital Marketplace are booming and we are happy to introduce our solution to help you thrive and reduce structural costs in what is for many vendors a new sales channel.

We hope you find this information helpful. As always we welcome any questions and feedback: marketing@asknet.com

Best regards,
Gerald Prior
CEO

Content

1. Weak Economy – How to cope with the current economic slow down
   asknet recommends a 5-step strategy to survive in this inhospitable market. eMarketers latest news shows that internet users spend even more time on the web. This is good news. Let's leverage it. more...
2. Release asknet Shop Cockpit | Next generation OCM III in 2009
   Shop Cockpit is the central unit and a powerful tool to manage all your eCommerce activities. In 2009 we will implement the new asknet Shop Cockpit OCM III. There are many new features including Web 2.0/Ajax technology, higher transparency, improved navigation, and effective control. more...
3. How can B2B software publishers benefit from online selling?
   Analysts believe that the online sales sector will not be as strongly affected by the current financial crisis as other branches of commerce. more...
4. More customer loyalty with Subscription and Renewal Center
   asknet's flexible Subscription Management System fits easily into your sales strategies and provides comprehensive functionality. more...
5. NEW Shop Languages available on the asknet Shopping Platform
   Expand in the growing Eastern European markets. more...
6. Focus on end-user convenience – asknet to introduce local service lines in Europe
   In order to improve end-user convenience, asknet Customer Service recently started with the roll-out of new service telephone numbers throughout Europe. more...
7. Lycos closed eMail account
   more...
8. Steganos is looking for affiliate and cross selling partners
   Our customer Steganos is currently looking for potential cross-selling partners. more...
9. asknet in the news | Pressroom
   According to the newspaper Handelsblatt, one of Germany's most important daily business newspapers, asknet is a new rising world star more...

1 How can B2B software sales benefit from the online channel? ⇑

We created an exclusive ad-hoc Newsletter about the weak economy for our customers. From our team of analysts and selected market reports we draw the following conclusions: The United States and Europe are expected to suffer from the prolonged economic slump. Throughout the different analyst reports we see one common theme: for the first time in history eCommerce is estimated to be almost flat. The projections for 2009 are contradictorily, but overall the eCommerce outlook is not as negative as the retail forecast. We suggest considering the following strategies that might prevent your Online Channel earnings from further dropping:

1. Adapt the product portfolio and pricing approach
2. Manage top line revenue and protect the existing business
3. Redefine business models: Act now on cost and organizational efficiency and Focus on eCommerce
4. Monitor your Conversion Rates carefully
5. Invest for the long term: Enter new markets

The market is highly volatile and no one can predict how 2009 will play out. Our influence on the overall economy is limited and no one can foresee the severity and duration of the current economic downturn. As a precaution we recommend to calculate the forecast for the upcoming fiscal year very conservatively. The Boston Consulting Group recommends to prepare for the worst-case scenarios, such as a decrease of 20% in revenue and a fall in prices of 5% or more.

The good news is that the online sales channel is not as adversely affected as the offline channels. eCommerce proofs to be more resilient and shows higher profits, as it is the channel with more robust margins and lower overhead costs for vendors. asknet remains optimistic and suggests focusing on eCommerce and to lowering offline marketing spending. Instead, investing into online marketing to drive targeted and high-converting leads to your website – your entrance door to your online sales channel – will help you weather the current economic storm.

The latest news from eMarketers shows Internet usage in the US continues to climb and the recession may cause an even greater increase in the number of hours spent online. US web population increases online leisure time. However, US adults are not world leaders in spending leisure time online. ⇒

That distinction goes to Internet users in China, who spent 44% of their leisure time on the Internet in 2008, according to TNS Global. The US may move up in the rankings in coming years.

If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact your account manager or send an eMail to marketing@asknet.com

Follow up with your trial users and don't lose the potential lead!
asknet invites you to test our event-triggered eMail Engine in the first quarter 2009 – test it now risk free! Please send an email to vendormarketing@asknet.com to learn more.

2 NEW Release asknet Shop Cockpit OCM III – the next generation of OCM ⇑

asknet continues developing proven technology and adding new functions and features to our self-management Shop Cockpit OCM. The asknet Shop cockpit is the central unit to manage all your eCommerce activities. It provides all functions at a finger tip with a single login application. The Shop Cockpit covers the following functional categories:

• General Settings and Access Rights Management
• Product Catalogue Management
• Marketing Campaign Management
• Partner Management
• Customer Service Support
• Reporting Details and Order History
• Comprehensive Import/Export Interfaces

These features give our customers a simple way to stay in control of their shopping cart environment. In early 2009 asknet will launch the next generation of its powerful Shop Administration tool: OCM III.

It will include a completely new and more intuitive redesign based on Web2.0/Ajax technology. ⇒

Plus a new navigation structure, dynamic drag&drop menus as well as new task list and toolboxes provide more comfortable Shopping Cart Management and an entire new usability feeling.

With the asknet Shop Cockpit you have greater control of your eCommerce performance through the use of new key performance indicators and reporting dashboards. At a glance you will see important key figures like conversion rate, sales per visitor, average values and overall sales. The asknet digital index (ADI) provides you with industry benchmarks which allow you to compare your individual KPIs with general market trends.

Additional self- service shop layout and design functions to manage your product catalogue offer more flexibility to create and adjust your eCommerce site.

New other enhanced features for simplified article and promotion management, A/B Testing and other functions will complete the new userexperience.

Want to learn more abuot the asknet Shop Cockpit OCM III? Please send an eMail to marketing@asknet.com or contact your account manager.

3 How can B2B software sales benefit from the online channel? ⇑

Many companies need to look carefully at their cost structures and need to lower process costs. Software publishers will be forced to focus even more on online channels for B2C as well as B2B sales in the future. As a result, the B2B market – and the B2C segment as well – are experiencing constantly increasing cost pressure. No matter how hard the times, there are always opportunities. ⇒

Analysts from Collins Stewart dryly point out that a structure with high fixed costs can only expect the worst when sales start to flag. This makes online sales all the more attractive. Thanks to significantly lower fixed costs than those associated with high selling capacity and high-maintenance in-house solutions. Furthermore, eCommerce generally results in improved customer service.

4 More customer loyalty with Subscription Services and Renewal Center ⇑

asknet's flexible Subscription Management System fits easily into your sales strategies and provides comprehensive functionality that allows you to set up your products according to your needs. In our last Newsletter we talked about the basics of Subscription Management and Recurring Payment. This time, we want to show you the process, features and benefits when you implementing the asknet Subscription Management module.

asknet automatic Subscription Management process
Automatic order filling
We automatically charge the Subscription fee to your customers credit cards or bank accounts. The process is automatic and flexible and customers can choose the payment frequency (monthly, quarterly, annually).

asknet Messaging – Two automatic eMail notification
asknet offers two messaging systems (XML): one for vendors and one for customers.

Subscription Management Features
asknet's flexible subscription management system fits easily into your sales strategies and provides comprehensive functionality that allows you to define the way you want to set up your products.

• Multiple subscription durations and payment frequency
• Customizable renewal and expiration eMail notifications to your customers
• Automatic and manual billing processes
• Trial period and Grace period handling
• Customer cancelation if requested
• Creation of initial products and renewal products
• Single Sign-On Integration
• «mySubscription» area for customers in your online shop
• Groups: Hierarchical Client Categorization
• Security: PCI Compliance ⇒

The latest features of the asknet Subscription Management:

• End-customers have the possibility to switch to another credit card to start auto subscription
• Subscription upgrade for specific products:
  Based on product specific rules, end customers with an ongoing subscription can either renew the current subscription (i.e. a silver version) or upgrade to a new one (i.e. gold version).

Benefit for Software publisher
asknet's subscription services management module will automatically handle all membership and subscription needs, allowing you to focus on your core business.
Automatic process

• Automatic order filling
• Automatic eMail notification and messaging

Flexible solution for maximize benefits for Vendors
Through the asknet ShopCockpit OCM the subscription module enables publishers to:

• Create product subscription for the initial and renewal purchase
• Set up payment frequencies and time periods
• Change payment methods
• Manage individual customer subscriptions such as cancelations, refunds, activation/deactivation and, upgrades

Tailored to your needs for higher customer retention.

5 New Shop Languages ⇑

Expanding our services to emerging markets is one of our priorities. We are pleased to introduce two new shop languages: Hungarian and Russian. A recent asknet research report on eCommerce in Eastern Europe shows that Russia is potentially one of the most attractive countries for eCommerce. If you want to learn more about the opportunities in Eastern Europe, please contact your account manager or send us an eMail to marketing@asknet.com

6 Focus on end-user convenience – asknet introduces local service lines in Europe ⇑

Up until now, only end- users in the USA and Germany were able to contact Customer Service via local telephone numbers at local rates or toll-free. Service numbers outside of Germany and the USA were set up on demand. With end- user convenience being a top priority, asknet Customer Service decided to include European local service numbers in the standard Customer Service package. The first local service numbers were set up in November 2008 in the UK and Spain followed by France in December 2008.

Several more country-specific service numbers and a general European service number are to be introduced this year. The ultimate goal is to offer Customer Service by telephone at local rates throughout Europe by mid 2009. ⇒

All numbers are based on a shared cost model – with the end- user only paying the local country service fee. asknet Customer Service teams are located in Karlsruhe, Germany and Seattle, USA, providing end- user service in 8 different languages. Users can choose between a dynamic Online-Self-Service Portal as well as three communication channels such as telephone, eMail and fax.

asknet Customer Service telephones operate Monday to Friday from 9.00 a.m. – 6.00 p.m. CET (Europe) and 9.00 a.m. EST – 6.00 p.m. PST (North America). Should you have any questions regarding the local service numbers, please do not hesitate to contact your Account Manager or send an eMail to customerservice@asknet.com.

7 Lycos closed eMail account ⇑

You may already have heard rumors regarding the end of Lycos. We are now able to confirm that Lycos closed its users eMail accounts on February 15 of this year. Please visit the Lycos homepage for further information. This closure only applies to Lycos Europe; the eMail service will continue to be available in the USA.

Source: http://mail.lycos.de

⇒

What steps should you take?

1. Filter your recipient lists and remove addresses that contain Lycos Europe domain names. You can find a list of Lycos European domains under www.deliverability.com.
2. Lycos Europe closed its customers e-mail service until February 15. For this reason we advise you to request that recipients who have eMail accounts with Lycos Europe switch to a different e-mail provider.
3. Delete any remaining Lycos European domain recipients from your lists.

8 Steganos is looking for Affiliate Partners ⇑

Our customer Steganos is currently looking for potential cross-selling partners. If you are interested please contact vendormarketing@asknet.com for more details.

About Steganos

Since 1996, Steganos has been providing highly secure and user friendly privacy software solutions to several million users worldwide. ⇒

Innovations such as the world's first commercial steganography software (which hides data in pictures and music), or the first encryption software to use the Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) have made Steganos one of the market leaders for consumer privacy software, using encryption and anonymisation technology to protect private data and communications. Steganos products are regularly recognized with national and international press awards.

For more information, visit www.steganos.

9 asknet in the news ⇑

In an exclusive interview for the Handelsblatt the Handelsblatt.com and Wiwo.de series on medium-sized enterprises entitled «Blickpunkt Mittelstand» Berlin professor of economics Bernd Venohr has selected the 100 German rising world market leaders from his comprehensive databanse using the following selection criteria: ⇒

Each company must be in the top three of its industry worldwide or number one in Europe; its turnover has to have been under 50 million euros in 2005 and have risen by at least ten percent annually in the last three years. We are elated to share with you that asknet is one of the top 20 companies considered to be a new rising world star.
Read the full article.

About

asknet AG
Vincenz-Priessnitz-Str. 3, D-76131 Karlsruhe, Germany
Managing Directors: Gerald Prior (CEO), Dr. Dietmar Waudig, Michael Konrad
Chairman Supervisory Board: Dr. Joachim Bernecker
Register Court: Amtsgericht Mannheim, HRB 10871

eMail: marketing@asknet.com
phone +49 (0)721.96458-0

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