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DataSourceContent Delivery and Maintenance Solution for Your Electronic Product Catalogs

TM

T E C H N O L O G Y W H I T E P A P E R

December 2004

DataSource™: Content Delivery and Maintenance Solution for Your Electronic Product Catalogs cnetchannel.com

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Copyright © 2004 CNET Networks, Inc. All rights reserved. CNET Channel | Page 1

DataSource™: Content Delivery and Maintenance Solution for Your Electronic Product Catalogs

a CNET Channel Technical White Paper

Table of Contents

Introduction DataSource™ Technology Foundation Page 2 Product Data Model – Patent-Pending Technology Page 3 Searchable Attributes Page 5 Publishable Components Page 5 Building Transactive Product Data Page 6 Content Production Page 6 Quality Control Page 7 The DataSource Comprehensive Product Catalog Maintenance Solution Page 7 The DataSource Service Page 7 The DataSource Product Page 7 Automated SKU Delivery Page 8 Optional Features Page 8 Customer Feedback Page 8 Insight: A DataSource Case Study Page 9 Powering Online Catalog and Purchasing Applications with DataSource Page 10 DataSheets Page 10 Browsing Page 11 Grouping / Navigation Page 11 Product Comparison Page 11

Related Products & Accessories Page 12 Search Page 13 Compatibility Information Page 14 Customizable Components Page 14 Integrating DataSource into the Existing IT Environment Page 15 Conclusion Page 15 Customer Testimonials Page 16 About CNET Channel Page 16

CNET Channel Corporate Headquarters 235 Second Street San Francisco, CA 94105 USA U.S. Toll Free: 1.877.276.5560 Europe Toll Free: 00 800 654 654 00 www.cnetchannel.com [email protected]

About Insight Page 16



Introduction Access to organized and up-to-date product information is a powerful competitive tool for selling throughout the IT channel. This requirement has spurred leading companies to implement a comprehensive and reliable product content solution to power their e-commerce applications. If your company faces this challenge, DataSource™ offered by CNET Channel is the solution. Timely and up-to-date comprehensive product information is imperative for today’s IT channel businesses such as resellers, retailers, distributors and manufacturers. As these organizations have moved core businesses online, their reliance on electronic catalogs and web-based businesses to generate a significant percentage of their overall revenues has simultaneously increased. Providing customers with the right product information—at the right time—is crucial to attaining a competitive advantage in today’s business environment. Today’s online retailers are expected to provide an environment where the tech-savvy user can search very large catalogs quickly, examine detailed product features, compare products from different vendors and confidently come to an informed buying decision. Any lack of information along this path may lead users to turn to other sites to provide better answers. Without physical access to products, users also have to rely solely on product information to form their judgment; a consistent level of information from brand to brand and product to product will be a good omen that all products are presented on equal footing, neutralizing some of the more subjective marketing traits of usual manufacturer catalogs. Building an electronic catalog which meets this “product information baseline” is a costly and time-consuming activity, especially when certain quality, coverage, localization and functional requirements are added. To meet this need, CNET Channel has developed the DataSource™ product content delivery solution. DataSource provides the content, data, infrastructure and services IT manufacturers, distributors, resellers, and portals need in order to conduct online commerce. This paper will help CIOs and IT/eCommerce engineers in channel businesses understand the technologies that comprise the DataSource solution, how these technologies work together to provide the richest and most complete product information in the industry, and how their businesses can use DataSource to reduce operating costs and drive revenue.

DataSource™ Technology Foundation Using patent-pending technologies and implementing business processes that govern product data and e-catalogs, DataSource from CNET Channel solves the product information challenge for CIOs in IT channel businesses. DataSource enables IT channel businesses to convert vast amounts of non-standardized product information from multiple sources into usable content for electronic product catalogs. By taking this OEM product information, processing it into a standard product data model and storing the standardized data in a structured data repository, DataSource delivers the most technologically sophisticated, cost-effective product content delivery solution in the industry.

Figure 1: DataSource converts product information from multiple vendors and multiple sources into usable content for electronic product catalogs.



DataSource is comprised of the following technology components, internal to CNET Channel: DataSource Product Data Model™ – A patent-pending common reference system to describe products in a given category

from thousands of different vendors DataSource Transactive Product Data™ – Elementary pieces of information resulting from the capture of a product’s features

into the Product Data Model Together, these foundation technologies enable DataSource to provide the rich, consistent, and detailed product information (pictures, specs, marketing descriptions, etc.) IT channel businesses need to improve customer satisfaction and increase revenue. The remainder of this section will describe Product Data Model (PDM) and Transactive Product Data (TPD) in detail. Product Data Model – Patent-Pending Technology The DataSource Product Data Model, or PDM, defines the internal structure of standardized product information through a set of attributes, determines the format of product data classification and presentation, and defines a universal terminology and framework to represent products from multiple vendors in a consistent format. The PDM uses the following hierarchy to define each product:

Class – The highest level of definition of a product, such as “System” or “Monitor” Category – A more granular definition of a product within its class. For example, with the class “System”, you might have the

categories, “Desktop” and “Laptop” Attribute – Features attached to products in a category. Attributes define a single, elementary piece of information which

should or could be captured for a given product. Each category has a certain set of attributes attached to it. For example, the attribute “Storage Hard Drive / Formatted Capacity” was attached to the “Desktops & Servers” category

Value – The actual value captured for a product. For example, the “Storage Hard Drive / Formatted Capacity” attribute could contain the value “60” and the unit “GB”

Today, the DataSource PDM contains over 100 categories in 15 classes for PC, Networking, Software and Consumer Electronics products. Over 9,000 attributes provide structured capture guidelines.

Figure 2: An example of the Class/Category/Attribute/Value hierarchy within DataSource



Each category has a unique set of attributes that best describe all SKUs from the category. This means that all products in the same category are described by the same set of attributes. The example in Figure 2 refers to the “Laptop” category. “Printer speed” (measurable in “pages per minute”) is an attribute that refers to the “Printers” category. Once product data has been captured in its most detailed (“atomic”) form, two additional PDM by-products can be generated from it:

Searchable Attributes – A subset of category-specific attributes that enables search and classification functionalities Publishable Components – Data chunks that enable the building of customizable product technology sheets, including pictures,

specs, and related products, from attributes. Those are “sentences” built by aggregating atomic values using a category-wide grammar (“generators”)

Figure 3: Illustrates DataSource deliverables to customers from product information that flows through internal Product Data Model and Transactive Product Data processes.



Searchable Attributes As the name implies, searchable attributes are used to search the database in a variety of different methods. Spanning over 100 active categories, DataSource searchable attributes are ideal building blocks for category navigation and parametric search. Within searchable attributes, a product's characteristics can be captured and presented in a very detailed manner, using attribute/value pairs. For example, a laptop has specific attribute/value pairs for processor manufacturer, processor type, and process speed, while a printer has attribute/value pairs for printer speed (measurable in pages per minutes), maximum media capacity, and printer technology (ink-jet, laser, etc.). Publishable Components Publishable components are ready-to-use blocks of information that can be used in product technology sheets, search results, and accessory listings. For each product, TPD includes the following publishable components:

Standardized Product Description – A standardized description of the product or the product name itself Main Product Specification – Principal technical specifications of the product. Presented in table format, the primary

specification includes all information a user needs in order to make a purchase decision Extended Product Specification – Complete technical specifications of the product. Also presented in table format, it contains a

more granular level of specifications for end-users that need to know every detail of the product. Each data chunk is a concatenation of smaller data units

Product Image – Photo or image of the product. Typically, this image is either the manufacturer’s original product image or a generic image for the product category

Marketing Description – Additional content about the product provided by the manufacturer Related Product Information – The product manufacturer’s suggested related product information Accessory Compatibility – Additional information about compatible accessories for the product

Each of these components can be used separately and formatted to meet specific interface requirements.

Figure 4: Illustrates publishable components



Building Transactive Product Data Rather than building SKUs based on a ‘best guess’ format, DataSource generates SKUs based on specific direction from actual customers—members of the IT channel community. Because customers request SKUs that actually exist in their active catalogs, the growth of CNET Channel’s database mirrors that of the active channel. The remainder of this section describes how CNET Channel produces and ensures the quality of its product content. Content Production When CNET Channel receives a request for a SKU, the manufacturer name of the requested product is mapped to a manufacturer name used within the TPD database. The manufacturer part number, a unique product identification code assigned to a product by its manufacturer, is then mapped against the master catalog of products; in most cases CNET Channel will already have produced content for the requested product, and will be able to ship it in the next data-delivery cycle. If the requested product does not yet exist in TPD, it is sent to the CNET Channel data production factory where the product information is researched, captured, standardized, packaged and distributed back to the customer.

Figure 5: Illustrates the Content Production cycle



After a new product request is transmitted to production, the corresponding class and category of a requested product are assigned. Once the product has been categorized, its values are researched for the attributes specific to that category. After all values have been captured, the product is stored as atomic level data. The data packaging phase aggregates the atomic level data to form publishable components for the product, including standardized description, main product specification, extended product specification, and searchable attributes. Localized data, such as product images or marketing text, are then added to complete the content production process. Quality Control When the production process is complete, each product is sent to quality control. The quality control process starts before a product is released and continues on an ongoing basis after the product has been distributed. Before a product is distributed, quality control checks that all major technical attributes are defined, that an image (either specific or generic) has been linked to the product, and that any available marketing text is linked. If any attribute is found to be incorrect, the product is sent back to production and all attributes are researched again.

The DataSource Comprehensive Product Catalog Maintenance Solution DataSource is a comprehensive catalog maintenance solution—offered both as a service and as a licensed software product—that empowers IT channel businesses to build and manage their multi-vendor, online product catalogs with a global focus and create a compelling online purchase experience for customers both quickly and cost-effectively. The DataSource Service Implemented as a service, CNET Channel works with the customer to develop data for the business’ individual catalogs. The IT channel customer submits actual SKUs from its catalog and CNET Channel returns rich content that describes the products. With the capacity to build 40,000 new SKUs per month, CNET Channel can categorize each newly requested SKU and deliver it back to the customer—quickly and accurately—along with the searchable attributes and publishable components related to the product category. CNET Channel also validates manufacturers and manufacturer part numbers submitted by each customer. The DataSource Service enables customers to outsource many of the costly labor- and time-intensive tasks needed to capture data for use in electronic applications. The DataSource Product As a licensable software product, DataSource supplies the customer with the searchable attributes and publishable components for each of the SKUs in the CNET Channel database. These attributes and components not only improve the look and feel of the channel partner’s web site but also enable advanced functionality—such as parametric search, full-text search, product comparisons and category navigation—that improve the end-customer’s purchase experience.



Automated SKU Delivery With time-to-market paramount in the industry, getting started with the DataSource solution is easy. Upon first installation, the customer submits all active SKUs in the organization’s current catalog to CNET Channel. CNET Channel then enriches this initial catalog and returns the appropriate, rich content for all existing SKUs to the customer. Keeping catalog content up-to-date is just as easy. Using a ‘pull’ delivery model, CNET Channel updates each customer’s specific product catalog on a daily basis. Additionally, incremental catalog changes can also be submitted for enrichment to CNET Channel. This ensures that customers always have the most up-to-date, accurate rich content in their online product catalogs. DataSource delivers product data in a relational database format in which your internal product identifier is substituted as the Primary Key in each of the tables (files). Optional Features Customers can augment their DataSource implementation with several optional features. These include:

Markets and Languages – Available today in 35 markets and in 12 languages, DataSource enables companies to display product data in multiple languages—automatically. Given that a hardware system sold in the United States has a different keyboard, power supply, and software than the same computer sold in France, this feature can mean the difference between a satisfied and a disgruntled customer. Marketing text publishing is also available for six markets: USA, United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, and Spain. With multi-market, multi-language support, DataSource enables IT channel companies to secure a global reach—easily and cost-effectively

Universal Standard Products And Services Classification (UNSPSC) – A standard classification code used to categorize

inventories and catalogs, request quotes, conduct internal spend analysis and publish catalogs on e-marketplaces, UNSPSC is supported by DataSource. One or more UNSPSC codes are allocated to each SKU in the DataSource catalog

CNET Reviews and User Opinions – Customers can link to product reviews and user opinions available on CNET’s technical web sites to expand the information available to end-customers during the purchase decision-making process

High Resolution Images – Often, end customers want images that are higher resolution than the standard 2-13K images delivered by DataSource. If available, IT channel businesses can download larger, higher-quality product images to present to the customer

Customer Feedback CNET Channel values customer interaction and communication and deems the customer feedback process vital to the reliable and timely delivery of product content. To facilitate communication with customers, improve data quality, and enhance customer satisfaction, CNET Channel has created the CNET Channel Customer Extranet. Using the CNET Channel Customer Extranet, customers can check on production status of SKUs and read data flow reports—in real time. The site also enables customers to contact customer service and access the claims tracking system for swift resolution of issues.



Insight: A DataSource Case Study

Insight Direct U.S., Inc. ("Insight"), a leading provider of information technology ("IT") products and services to businesses in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom, offers a staggering 200,000 products to customers—and has the ability to source more through virtual connections with distribution partners. But what sets Insight apart in this crowded market are its comprehensive solutions that customers can specify and purchase online, combining best-of-breed business computing products and a complete range of services—from advanced integration to asset disposal to resource management and training to leasing and financing. Anticipating growth in online demand for tailored solutions, Insight realized that it needed to enhance the content management of its website in order to transform it into a robust sales channel featuring much more than price and availability information. “The Insight website had to reflect the breadth of our solutions, which distinguish Insight from the rest of the online product vendors,” says Jim Cook, vice president, e-commerce marketing for Insight. After evaluating a number of product content management solutions, Insight tapped CNET Channel’s DataSource™ to manage Insight’s extensive solution portfolio and create a foundation for a rich, purchase experience that engenders a high level of customer satisfaction—and encourages repeat business. In partnership with CNET Channel, Insight deployed a fully electronic sales channel that allows customers to easily and quickly find the product—or solution—they need, compare products, and make a purchase decision. In just six weeks, the Insight website was fully powered by DataSource and integrated with the company’s SAP system to automate order fulfillment. Deployed as an outsourced service, DataSource populates Insight’s back-end systems with detailed product information, images and accessories, and provides a categorization structure for online product display. One of the most popular features on the site is attribute-based searching, which enables customers to search by product and category—even identify compatibility information for a particular product or solution—and gives Insight a competitive advantage. “We set out with the goal of delivering a best-in-class website for IT purchasing,” says Cook. “Partnering with CNET Channel, we have transformed our e-commerce capabilities with enhanced content management that allows our customers to make informed decisions.” The tangible results of the partnership are reflected in both increased customer satisfaction and improved revenue. According to Cook, “Good product information is the foundation for a robust sales channel where customers not only browse for end-to-end solutions but also purchase them online. Functionality powered by DataSource and unique to Insight, such as providing product compatibility information and suggesting additional products, has resulted in an increase in online purchases and a drop in order returns—hard evidence of the partnership’s success.”



Powering Online Catalog and Purchasing Applications with DataSource With a single, consistent source of product descriptions and specifications, IT channel companies can add value to their online merchandising applications. This section illustrates several examples of how customers can use DataSource to enhance and extend their online applications using publishable components and searchable attributes. Data Sheets Using publishable components, companies can easily build custom data sheets that mirror the corporate brand and identify on the Web site.

Figure 6: Sample custom Data Sheet



Browsing The structured nature of standardized descriptions allows end-customers to visually browse a search result and identify products for which they are looking—simply by scanning for specific information in the columns of a product listing.

Figure 7: Illustrates how an end-user would browse the search results Grouping / Navigation In a majority of cases, DataSource customers use a different category structure than the one shipped natively with DataSource – one that is better suited to the particular market the customer is addressing (consumer, reseller, corporate buyer etc…). By leveraging DataSource’s searchable attributes customers can re-assign incoming product data to the right category. For example, if an “Ink-Jet” category exists on the site, all DataSource products which are (i) printers and (ii) have the searchable attribute “Printer / Technology” set to “inkjet” will be pushed under it. Product Comparison Through searchable attributes, DataSource supports extremely targeted product comparisons, which can be crucial in the purchase decision-making process. Because products in the same category are described by the same attributes, it is simple to display two or more products, side-by-side, to provide a quick feature comparison. Optionally, the information which differs from one product to another can be highlighted or a “reference” product against which all others will be compared can be specified. This functionality, albeit simple to implement, is one of the most useful in the later steps of product selection.



Product comparisons can be combined with a Similar Product search to yield up-selling opportunities. In this case, products sharing same-class values for a few attributes (Processor Speed, Hard Disk Size for example) to the “master product” would be searched and then compared.

Figure 9: Illustrates how end users can conduct side-by-side product comparisons Related Products & Accessories DataSource provides information on OEM related products and accessories in publishable components. Companies can use this information to direct shoppers to additional products to consider at the time of purchase (i.e. cross-selling). The related product information can also be used to give extra compatibility information (e.g. docking station for Compaq Armada …).



Figure 10: Packaging popular (parent) products with a complete listing of high-margin OEM accessories enables you to maximize each end-users sales potential at the peak of buying interest.

Search Searchable attributes are delivered in an ideal format to power parametric (feature-based) searches. This search method allows users to successively refine their search pattern while being guided into the next step - only “relevant” remaining feature values being shown. This type of search is nowadays very common and can be considered part of the base tools online shoppers expect to find. Parametric search can also be combined with full-text search to allow for further refinements to be made.

Figure 11: Filtering search results



Compatibility Information Complementing the solution’s ‘related products’ capability, DataSource also includes the ability to find accessories deemed compatible with a specific product by either the product or accessory manufacturer. Using the Accessory Of link, accessories can be linked to the ‘product line’ and ‘product model’ attributes.

Figure 12: Illustrates compatibility information Customizable Components DataSource publishable components can also be used to build customizable components that meet an enterprise’s unique requirements. For example, the standard description for accessory products, such as printer toner cartridges, may look alike when viewed as a result set of a product search. 017G0050B S2142231 Lexmark Cartridge No. 50 - Print cartridge - 1 x black - 410 pages 7032894 S2087210 Lexmark - Paper - plain paper - Roll (4.5 in x 100 ft) 0015M0640BL S2046954 Lexmark - Print cartridge - 1 x black - 900 pages 0010N0217BL S2046955 Lexmark - Print cartridge - 1 x black - 205 pages 0010N0227BL S2046956 Lexmark - Print cartridge - 1 x color (cyan, magenta, yellow) - 140 pages 0056P1412 S2054665 Lexmark - Maintenance kit - 300000 pages 0018L0032BE S2054468 Lexmark Cartridge No. 82 - Print cartridge - 1 x black - 600 pages



Using searchable attribute data, the description of the toner cartridges could be appended to include parent product line and model compatibility details in order to provide a meaningful description, as depicted below: ‘Lexmark Cartridge No. 26 - Print cartridge - 2 x yellow, cyan, magenta - 275 pages - for Lexmark Color JetPrinter Z23, Z33, Z13, Z25, Z35’

Integrating DataSource into the Existing IT Environment Just as with other usual IT projects, the effort needed to integrate DataSource will depend on a variety of factors:

Legacy - what existing environment should it be linked to? Will the data be embedded into an existing content management workflow?

What functionality level is required - will only tech-sheets be published or are we looking at implementing parametric search? Third party products: are there needs to align the data to a particular format for uploading into search tools or content

management systems? Team size and technical proficiency

The simplest of situations is when DataSource is the only provider of product data and when low legacy connectivity is required. In this case, minimal efforts will be necessary to create and maintain a DataSource repository and allow surfacing its data. Integration timeframes in this case are usually in the 3-8 week range. More complex scenarios involve designing complex search functions (similar products, parametric search) and including DataSource into existing an content management framework, allowing for additional content to be added and existing content to be overwritten using strict policies. In this case, the project will take from two to four months. CNET Channel offers two training courses with the goal of rapidly transferring knowledge and code samples in the following areas:

Database set-up and maintenance Publishing tech-sheets Comparing products Full-text search Custom categorization Parametric search

In the event an enterprise needs integration assistance, CNET Channel's team of experienced technical consultants are available.

Conclusion As e-catalogs become the platform of choice to market technology solutions, IT companies must provide comprehensive product content that enables buyers to make well-informed purchase decisions while keeping down costs of providing this up-to-date, reliable and rich data. CNET Channel meets the needs of IT channel companies by offering a single, consistent and constantly updated source of technology product information across multiple vendors and multiple markets that enables a global reach and quick time-to-market. Already adopted by leading computer manufacturers, distributors, resellers, and retailers worldwide, CNET Channels’ TPD has become the de facto standard for defining the way in which products are classified, described and documented in the IT industry. In this role, CNET Channel is at the forefront of the industry, expanding the functionality and capabilities of DataSource to include new and emerging types of product content to meet the constantly evolving needs of customers. For more information on DataSource technology matters, please contact a CNET Channel Technical Consultant at 1-877-276-5560 (U.S.) or 00.800.654.654.00 (Europe.)



Customer Testimonials "DataSource was the one and only solution that could provide the structured and granular product information as well as product search and multiple criteria product comparison functions. These functions were essential to the development of our reseller site." - Serge Amsellem, Director Development & MarCom, Tech Data France "CNET Channel is the first vendor to truly understand product data market requirements. CNET was attentive to our needs and has met our expectations, providing fast and effective solutions meeting our requirements." - Roland Tripard, Marketing Manager, WStore "We opted for CNET Channel's solution as it offered the most comprehensive and in-depth product data, while facilitating the integration of the technical specifications into computeruniverse.net's data structures." - Reiner Schramm, Manager for IT & Development, computeruniverse.net "We had more than 100,000 products in our back office sales inventory database but the information was out of date and poorly formatted, so we were unable to use it as a base for our electronic catalog. Using DataSource we were able to gain efficiency by automating our catalog production process and improve product data quality." - Elaine Thompson, Systems Development Manager, ISC Networks "The decision we were faced with was to either manually re-key 100,000+ descriptions hoping for a greater level of consistency, or locate an outside source that could provide clean, consistent data on products across a wide range of manufacturers. That is when we contacted CNET Channel." - Colin Erven, web development manager, Pomeroy "CNET Channel offered a sustainable solution with interesting development perspectives, which was fully in line with our requirements." - Alain Champlon, e-business director, SCC "By using the DataSource service from CNET Channel, Euralliance's sales teams can spend more time on their core business processes, and thus create more added value: focusing on sales rather than on administrative tasks. The time we save is devoted to getting to know our customers better, being more proactive and dealing with customer ‘projects’—rather than just customer ‘orders’." - Pierre Leconte, CEO, Euralliance's "We chose CNET Channel because they are seen as the major player in this market. We briefly looked at smaller competitors but they couldn't provide the breadth and depth of data required." - Richard Millman, Marketing Director, PC World Business

About CNET Channel CNET Channel has defined within the industry how IT and consumer electronic products are categorized, described and documented to deliver valuable information to help users make well informed buying decisions and purchases. The company has built a worldwide production and distribution network that reaches, through more than 900 customers, a vast community of 150 million buyers and users in 35 markets and in 12 languages. CNET Channel's product information coverage recently surpassed 2 million SKUs. For more information, visit www.cnetchannel.com or call 1-877-276-5560. About Insight Insight Enterprises Inc. is a leading provider of information technology ("IT") products and services to businesses in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom. The company's offerings include brand name computing products, advanced IT services and outsourcing of business processes. The company has more than 4,000 employees worldwide and generated sales of $2.9 billion for the 2003 fiscal year. Insight Enterprises Inc. is ranked No. 537 on Fortune Magazine's 2004 “Fortune 1000” list. For more information about Insight Enterprises Inc., call 480-902-1001 in the United States or visit www.insight.com

CNET ChannelCorporate Headquarters235 Second StreetSan Francisco, CA 94105 USAU.S. Toll-Free: 1.877.276.5560Europe Toll Free: 00 800 654 654 [email protected]

CNET Channel, Product Data Model, Transactive Product Data and DataSource are trademarks of CNET Networks. All other company and product names may be trademarks of their respective owners. Copyright © 2004 CNET Networks. All rights reserved.

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