Eprise

About Eprise

Eprise Corporation, founded in 1992 and formerly known as Novalink, operated in the internet software industry with a focus on web content management. The company was headquartered in Framingham, Massachusetts. Eprise's core product was the Participant Server, a content management solution that enabled business users to create, manage, and distribute content on intranets, extranets, and public websites without needing specialized technical skills. The platform featured content templates, automated approval workflows, and integration with Microsoft Word to streamline the content contribution process for non-technical users.

The Participant Server was designed as a web server plug-in, supporting platforms like Windows NT and Sun Solaris, and databases such as SQL Server and Oracle. The business model centered on licensing its software, with pricing for the Participant Server starting at $50,000 per web server in 1999, and later increasing to $70,000 for version 3.5 in 2001. Eprise served a clientele of around 150 customers by 2001, who used the software for their web-based communications.

The company went through several funding rounds, raising a total of $94.8 million. In September 2001, amid the dot-com downturn, Chicago-based divine, Inc. announced its acquisition of Eprise for approximately $43.2 million in stock. This move was part of divine's strategy to broaden its software and service offerings. However, divine itself faced financial trouble and filed for bankruptcy in early 2003. Subsequently, the Participant Server product line was sold by FatWire Software to SilkRoad Technology, Inc. in September 2003, marking the end of Eprise's journey as an independent entity.