For Immediate Release

Stirling Douglas Group partners with the Vialink company to extend its world leading forecasting engines to other best of breed vendors in the supply chain

SDG will connect its web-enabled applications with viaLink’s syncLink^SM database of synchronized item, price and promotion data of record to optimize supply and demand chain flows

Chicago, IL April 17,2000: SDG Software (Stirling Douglas Group Inc.), Toronto, and The viaLink Company announced here at Retail Systems 2000 plans to connect SDG’s Suite of Web-enabled consumer demand forecasting applications with syncLink-the only currently deployed database of synchronized item, price and promotion data of record in the consumer packaged goods industry.

"viaLink is clearly the grocery and CPG industries’ thought leader on Internet based product and promotion cataloging, which is of critical importance to our users. Our alliance will allow users to interface with the SDG’s Best-of-Breed store/SKU level Forecasting Replenishment and Planning Systems with other Best-of-Breed Purchase Order Management, Load Planning and Price/Cost Management Solutions" said Tim Simmons, Executive Vice President of Sales and Marketing at SDG. "Current trends definitely show retailers opting for the higher performing Best-of-Breed solutions over ERP Systems and viaLink is the common denominator facilitating the required interfaces and communication links between SDG’s forecasting and the other important elements within the supply chain mix."

"By leveraging the capabilities inherent in syncLink, SDG can significantly extend their functionality and enable collaborative solutions that provide added value to businesses ready to deploy now," said Don Hicks, viaLink’s Vice President, Alliance Management. "We are committed to facilitating the rapid deployment of e-business solutions that benefit our present and future customers. Alliances with respected solution providers such as SDG demonstrate this commitment".

About Stirling Douglas Group

Stirling Douglas Group (SDG) is the world leader in SKU/Store Level consumer demand forecasting engines. Sixteen years of forecasting systems development on mainframe, client server and now web enabled, has made SDG’s PREDICT™ demand forecasting engine the world’s most accurate for baseline and promotion uplift. SDG’s expertise extends to forecast based replenishment, PROMPT™, and forecast based planning, MAPS™. All SDG software is platform independent. For more information visit SDG’s website : www.stirlingdouglas.com

About The viaLink Company

The viaLink Company (Nasdaq: VLNK) is a leading provider of subscription-based, business-to-business electronic commerce services that enable consumer packaged goods (CPG) and grocery industry participants to efficiently manage their highly complex supply chain information. viaLink’s services allow manufacturers, wholesalers, distributors and retailers to communicate and synchronize item, price and promotion information in a more cost-effective and accessible way than has been possible using traditional electronic and paper-based methods. For more information, visit viaLink’s Web site at www.vialink.com.