DataDirect Technologies, the unparalleled leader in data connectivity and mainframe integration and an operating company of Progress Software Corporation (NASDAQ: PRGS), will present “SOA, WOA and Cloud Computing: The New Frontier for Data Services,” at the industry’s only event dedicated to the discussion, education and advancement of data services. Co-located with the 14^th International SOA World Conference and Expo 2008, Data Services World will take place Nov. 20 at the Fairmont Hotel in San Jose, Calf.

Data Services World brings together experts in databases, data warehousing, business intelligence, enterprise computing and Internet computing to discuss new architecture considerations and technologies for accessing, integrating and processing data from heterogeneous data sources. As more organizations implement Service-Oriented Architectures (SOA), Web-Oriented Architectures (WOA) or cloud computing initiatives they find themselves with a multitude of business services which need to access enterprise data. With all modern computing architectures, the need for robust technologies for data access and data integration has become more critical than ever before. The concept of data services is emerging as an approach for addressing data access challenges in SOA and a critical component of successful strategic initiatives.

“DataDirect Technologies’ believes a data services design pattern will help organizations maximize the value of enterprise data and deliver on the promise of agility, reuse and business alignment,” said John Goodson, vice president and general manager of DataDirect Technologies. “We are delighted to return to Data Services World to share with attendees our unparalleled experience connecting any application, running on any platform to any data source using proven and emerging standards.”

Data services enhance flexibility and simplify application development by providing a consistent mechanism for accessing, integrating and updating enterprise data, regardless of where it is stored. For more than 20 years, DataDirect Technologies has provided software architects with premium data access middleware to connect business-critical applications to a wide range of data sources using standards-based interfaces such as ODBC, JDBC™, ADO.NET, XQuery and SOAP. With its deep roots in data access for application developers and the acquisition of Xcalia, a leader in the development and adoption of the Service Data Objects (SDO) and Data Access Service (DAS) standards, the company is uniquely positioned to answer growing market demand for platform-independent data access to heterogeneous data within SOA, WOA and the Cloud.

In the keynote presentation, “SOA, WOA and Cloud Computing: The New Frontier for Data Services,” Rob Steward, vice president of research and development at DataDirect Technologies will review the technologies, best practices and patterns shaping the way enterprise data is used. The presentation will offer technical insight and valuable advice for enterprise, system and data architects as well as application developers and managers.

Eric Samson, CTO of data services at DataDirect Technologies and former founder and CTO of Xcalia, will participate in the power panel discussion, “The Future of Database and Data Services in a Time of SOA and Cloud Computing.” DataDirect Technologies joins panel moderator and database expert, Ken North and executives from m2mi Corporation, Reuters, salesforce.com and Netrics, to present a hands-on session focused on data quality, data services and data access issues, problems and solutions. The interactive format will allow conference attendees to ask questions, gather valuable tips and feedback and learn from example demonstrations.

Dr. Carlo Innocenti, senior XML program manager at DataDirect Technologies will discuss using XML and XQuery for integrating data from heterogeneous data sources during the conference workshop, “Data Quality, Data Access and Data Services.” Dr. Innocenti will be joined by workshop moderator Peter Coffee of salesforce.com and participants Dr. Stefanos Damianakis of Netrics and Tom Tague of Thomson Reuters.

To learn more about Data Services World and to register, go to http://dataservicesworld.sys-con.com/

About DataDirect Technologies
DataDirect Technologies is the software industry’s only comprehensive provider of software for connecting the world’s most critical business applications to data and services, running on any platform, using proven and emerging standards. Developers worldwide depend on DataDirect^® products to connect their applications to an unparalleled range of data sources using standards-based interfaces such as ODBC, JDBC^TM and ADO.NET, XQuery and SOAP. More than 300 leading independent software vendors and thousands of enterprises rely on DataDirect Technologies to simplify and streamline data connectivity for distributed systems and to reduce the complexity of mainframe integration. DataDirect Technologies is an operating unit of Progress Software Corporation (Nasdaq: PRGS). For more information, visit www.datadirect.com.

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