HP, WebTone to deliver customer interaction solutions

Palo Alto, Calif., and Atlanta: The solutions collect and manage customer interaction data while offering sales, service and fulfillment functionality for both institution-based and self-service transactions. By integrating these solutions into existing IT infrastructure, financial services institutions can expect to securely, reliably and profitably interact with customers across an entire enterprise -- spanning branches, contact centers, kiosks and Web sites.
"This agreement allows HP and WebTone to harness their strengths into a combined offering that addresses all facets of an enterprise-wide customer interaction solution," said Jim Szyperski, chief executive officer, WebTone Technologies. "This combination represents a distinctive opportunity for our customers to purchase a pre-packaged total solution encompassing proven software, reliable hardware, financing and cost-efficient deployment options."
According to TowerGroup, a research and advisory firm specializing in the financial services industry, U.S. banks will spend $1.6 billon, or 18 percent of their 2002 corporate banking IT expense, on customer technology.
"HP and WebTone are helping financial services institutions to stretch their IT expenditures without sacrificing their ability to deliver consistent, predictable customer interactions across their entire enterprise," said Mark Bubar, worldwide director of Global Financial Solutions, HP Enterprise Systems Group. "In today's challenging market, financial institutions must continue to focus on improving customer service, customer retention and multi-channel integration."