FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CombineNet Awarded U.S. Patent for Method to Determine Optimal Award Allocations
in Advanced Sourcing Events
Company’s third patent validates advanced sourcing technology leadership position
PITTSBURGH, PA — December 11, 2007
CombineNet, the leading provider of advanced sourcing and optimization technologies,
announced today that it was awarded a patent for its methodology to determine winning
bids in combinatorial auctions, reverse auctions and exchanges. Awarded by the United
States Patent and Trademark Office, U.S. Patent No. 7,305,363, "Method for Optimal
Winner Determination in Combinatorial Auctions" is CombineNet’s third awarded patent
related to the identification of optimal awards in combinatorial auctions, providing
additional intellectual property protection for the company’s advanced sourcing
technologies.
Being awarded a third patent for our advanced sourcing optimization methodologies
demonstrates CombineNet's unparalleled thought leadership in driving innovative
strategies and technologies into the strategic sourcing process," said Tony Bonidy,
CEO of CombineNet. "It is the analytical superiority at the core of our Advanced
Sourcing Application Platform that has consistently enabled our clients to achieve
the next level of savings and supply chain efficiency."
CombineNet's industry—leading sourcing optimization technology facilitates
Expressive Commerce™, an innovative approach to strategic sourcing that combines
the interaction and expressiveness of traditional face-to-face negotiations with
the speed and scale of internet technologies. The methods covered in this patent
help determine which combination of supplier bids in a combinatorial sourcing event
provides the most value to the buying organization.
The inventors of the patent are Dr. Tuomas Sandholm and Dr. Subhash Suri, both of
whom are members of CombineNet's Management team. Dr. Sandholm is the Founder, Chairman
and Chief Scientist of CombineNet as well as a Professor in the Computer Science
Department at Carnegie Mellon University and a recipient of several prestigious
awards including the Sloan Research Fellowship, presented by the Alfred P. Sloan
Foundation. Dr. Suri is the Co—founder and Chief Algorithms Architect at CombineNet
as well as a Professor of Computer Science at the University of California at Santa
Barbara.
About CombineNet
CombineNet, the advanced sourcing technology company, helps companies achieve the absolute best value and lowest total cost of ownership for goods and services. CombineNet's Advanced Sourcing Application Platform enables companies to engage in Expressive Commerce™, the strategic sourcing initiative that allows buyers and sellers to communicate supply and demand more expressively, collaboratively and strategically. The result is a win-win for both buyer and supplier, where greater innovation and efficiency are driven into the supply chain. CombineNet's ASAP consistently produces 10, 15, even 20 percent greater actual cost savings than other e-sourcing solutions, and has delivered more than 45x ROI for the largest businesses in the world including General Mills, PepsiCo, Procter & Gamble, Siemens and others. For more information, visit www.combinenet.com.
Media Contacts:
Greg Holt
CombineNet Inc.
Director of Marketing
Phone: 412.471.8200
gholt@combinenet.com