Terminal Emulation Competitive Analysis

Feature Comparason

Some terminal emulation products are similar in key features and benefits to Century's products. Competitive products are likely to include:

• The most popular terminal emulations such as SCO ANSI, Wyse 60, Wyse 50, VT 100, 220, 320, and AT386 emulations.
• Printing solutions such as transparent printing, print screen and LPR/LPD.
• Complete attribute mapping, keyboard mapping and color mapping.
• Standard file transfer protocols like FTP, Kermit, X,Y, and Z-modem.
• International Code Page Support and International Character Support.
• Scalable TrueType Fonts.
• SSH Secure Shell Security w/1024 bit encryption from PC to Host. SSH1 and SSH2.
• Full Telnet and Rlogin support, Serial and Modem support, and Host Mode support.

TERM and TinyTERM Features That Standout Over Our Competition

Easy & Simple

Century's products are very easy to install, configure, implement and use. We also include an automated install on multiple PC's from a single network source. Simplicity means easy to train users, less distractions, cost effective and enhances productivity

Superior Solutions

Although many companies have the same terminal emulations as Century, our products stand out with superior, extremely precise terminal emulations 18 years in the making. Customers expect the best when they use Century products. TERM & TinyTERM products are ideal solutions that are flexible, convenient, and powerful

Multiple Solutions

Our products have multiple solutions for all versions of Microsoft Windows, DOS, a Thin Client Solution (on an NT Server), an unlimited Web Server version and many versions for all popular flavors of UNIX/Linux.

Seven Translated Languages

Century's products may be the only terminal emulation products that are translated in seven languages including English, German, French, Spanish, LanguagesPortuguese, Italian, and Polish (with full support for 20+ Polish character coding schemes).

Secure Graphical FTP

Century includes a very intuitive graphical and visual FTP file transfer arotocol with SCP capabilities to the client for secure file transfers. We also include two proprietary file transfer protocols for Century products.

Powerful Scripting Language

Century includes a flexible, yet comprehensive Scripting Language that provides the most intuitive solution to automate all types of repetitive tasks or sequences saving time resources and money. We also include a macro recorder that records keystrokes as scripts, automating repetitive tasks quickly

Advanced Security

Century includes an advanced security feature called Port Forwarding. Other security features include Visual FTP Client with SCP capabilities, Telnet Proxy Services and SSH Fingerprint Services. Our SSH Secure Shell Security has 1024 bit encryption from PC to Host with both SSH1 and SSH2. All of our security features are geared to give customers peace of mind knowing their private and most sensitive company information is well protected from hackers.

Samba SMB

Century includes Samba's SMB Source Code compiled for SCO.

Mainframe & AS400 Emulations

Century includes advanced 5250, 3270, IBM 3101 and IBM 3151 emulations.

Customer Friendly Pricing

Century gives cumulative pricing giving the customer the best price possible. Once a customer reaches a specific price level they will always get that better pricing until they reach the next level no matter how many licenses they purchase. Other competitive companies are now charging a required yearly subscription so that customers are forced to pay for their terminal emulation software over and over year after year while offering no new features, capabilities, or benefits. These other licensing schemes force you into never-ending annual license payouts. Century wants all of our valued resellers and end-users to know that we remain committed to the traditional "single-fee" software license model, which gives customers the best value for their dollar. We feel this offers the best software value and allows our customers to better manage their software investment. Other competitors try to make you purchase a large purchase up front or be forced to pay normal higher prices for any additional licenses.

Stable & Successful

Century Software is a very profitable private company, which means that we don't have to answer to stockholders or submit to the many pressures that our public company competitors have to.

Customers Come First

Century is flexible, quick to respond to customer needs, and we value our relationships in the highest regard.

Customer Service

Century believes that customer service, our highest priority, is one of the most important factors in creating company success.

Excellent Reputation

Century has been a leader in the terminal emulation business for over 18 years. Century specializes in precise terminal emulations. While many terminal emulation companies have come and gone over the past 18 years, Century is still going strong because of our expertise in providing robust terminal emulation solutions. Century is a company that you can count on to be here tomorrow and years from now.

One Focus

Century has only one focus, terminal emulation, and that focus has not and will be diverted, preoccupied or side-tracked by trying to sell unrelated products that can steal attention, people and other critical resources away from the foundation of our company.

The Best Gets Better

Century continues to enhance and develop leading edge features that make our products the best in the industry. We support our products with in-house engineering, sales, technical support and customer care teams dedicated to your complete satisfaction.

We Listen To You

Century listens to the needs of our customers, resellers, and distributors and then we take action to make every situation and every solution better.

Excellent Upgrade Programs

Century makes it extremely easy and fast to upgrade from any older version of our products to our most current version. Century also has an aggressive program for customers to do a competitive upgrade at extremely low prices.

Free Lifetime Technical Support

Century has always had FREE lifetime technical support and we are committed to continue this valuable program for end users, resellers, and distributors no matter what country you are in. Our technical support is given by phone, fax, and email. Our web site also provides our Online User Guide, a Knowledge Base, and Online Documentation. This program benefits end users by actually lowering their total cost of ownership and boosting their ROI.

Partner Program

Century Software's Partner Program is an aggressive marketing and advertising program for Independent Software Vendors, Value Added Resellers, software development firms, application vendors, and other technology-related organizations. The Partner Program offers strong sales and marketing elements focused on helping our partners sell more product and realize more profits through the sale of Century applications.

ResellerNet

Century's ResellerNet gives resellers access to excellent Reseller Resources that provides an array of online marketing materials, competitive product analysis, quick product facts, and downloadable brochures that they can email to their end-users. We've also supplied a full set of advertising materials that resellers can easily customize, so they can run their own direct mail or online campaigns. ResellerNet is also the place to go to request a Century-funded co-op marketing campaign.

Free Thirty Day Evaluations

Century offers all Windows and UNIX/Linux products as downloadable fully operational versions used free for thirty days, not crippled versions offered by other companies. With a purchase, the evaluation can easily be turned into a fully licensed copy without having to reinstall TinyTERM or TERM.

Strong International Support

Century has strong International support with 34 different transmit, receive and keyboard code pages as well as full support for the Euro symbol (_).

6 Months Free Maintenance

Once you register a purchased product Century gives you FREE Maintenance which allows you to receive FREE updates, upgrades, and new releases for 6 full months.

Keeping Customers Informed

Century keeps our customers and resellers informed every month with a Company Newsletter, a Tech Tips Newsletter, and a Reseller Newsletter all going to opt-in lists. Century respects our customers privacy.

Outstanding Website

Century's web site is informative, intuitive, and has an easy-on-the-eyes layout. We have received numerous positive compliments from customers and resellers alike.

Weaknesses of Our Competition

Public Companies Under Pressure

Many of our competitors are public companies and their stock prices have dropped dramatically over the past three years. This has put substantial pressure on many of these companies forcing them to focus their efforts in other areas or on other products leaving their terminal emulation resources depleted and in some cases inadequate. We've seen these companies reduce marketing, sales and technical support diminished, development decreased or stopped completely, and customer support deficient.

Survival of the Fittest

Some of our competitors have gone out of business, some have moved their attention totally into other areas, some have been forced to have huge company layoffs, and now some are negatively adjusting their prices and charging a yearly fee forcing their customers to pay for their software over and over, year after year. Desperation can sometimes lead to extreme tactics at the expense of loyal customers, resellers, and distributors.

Weak Upgrade Programs

Some competitors make the process of upgrading a substantial feat in paperwork, effort, money and time. It's not good business to make your customers wait weeks or months to get an upgrade that they usually need immediately.

Partial Solutions

No other competitor has the depth of solutions that Century has for all Windows operating systems, DOS, thin client solutions, an unlimited web server version and a UNIX/Linux version that works on all popular UNIX and Linux platforms.

Missing Language Support

No other competitor has the support for seven translated languages like Century does.

Questionable Scripting Support

Many competitors have no scripting language or a weak scripting language. Some competitors may have a powerful scripting language but it can be very difficult to use. Century's scripting language is powerful yet very easy to use for automating redundant tasks or sequences.

Too Complex

Some competitors have so many products it's hard for a customer to understand which product is the best solution for their needs. This makes their price list complex and hard to decipher for both the customer and the reseller in may cases.

Taking Advantage

Some competitors make pricing such a hurdle that customers are forced to purchase many more licenses than they really need or they charge a required subscription price every year forcing the customer to purchase the software over and over, year after year while offering no new features, capabilities, or benefits.

Resources, Support, Fading Fast

Competitors that are public companies are under tremendous pressure and scrutiny. Watch them closely. They are prone to drastically reducing resources, people, delivery times, ustomer service, technical support, focus, development and marketing. These are the companies that will be most likely to be inflexible with their policies and tactics and will probably not be around in the near future. Loyalty can go out the door when business decisions that involve money are at stake.

Customers Not Important

Some competitors do not see the value in customer service or loyal relationships.

Can You Count On Them Tomorrow?

How long have these competitors been in business? How strong is their reputation, their customer service, their technical support, their resources? Will they be here tomorrow or even two years from now? Good question.

Going In A Different Direction

The profits of many competitors have dwindled into huge losses causing them to switch their focus towards other divisions, departments and other non-related products like fax software, phone software, music software, etc. What does this mean to you? It means less importance for terminal emulation products which equates to less resources and support for the products you thought you could count on.

The Weak Just Get Weaker

One of the first places that companies tend to cut back when profits turn to losses is engineering and development. This could mean that your products are falling behind the curve and that could be essentially important to you if you are missing key components like advanced security features.

Upgrade Prevention

Some competitors make getting an upgrade a major hair-pulling hassle. They make you fill out form after form and then make you wait for weeks that turn into months. This frustrating procedure costs you time, energy, money and productivity. How many complaints do you have to deal with while you wait for something that should have been done within 24 hours? Is it worth it?

Hidden Costs

Some competitors charge for technical support which is a service we believe should be FREE. Other companies have inadequate technical support which, in the end, will cost you more in wasted time, energy and money.

Conclusion

There are a lot of terminal emulation companies on the market. There used to be a lot more before many of them went out of business. Terminal emulation is not just important to companies that need it, it's key to their overall productivity. When comparing terminal emulation companies it's important to look at everything that a company brings to you. Price alone or product quality alone or reputation alone does you no good if other aspects of a company cost you in productivity, resources, money, time or hidden costs.

When you look at the bigger picture and consider all of the facets that a company and it's products can bring to you Century believes that there is no better company and products than Century Software, Inc. and TERM and TinyTERM. Every part of a company is important to the whole.

Century Software believes in providing our customers with the following:

• High Quality Products
• Excellent Customer Service
• Customer Friendly Pricing
• High Level Technical Support
• A Good Reputation
• Being A Leader In The Industry For 18 Successful Years
• Experience & Expertise
• Customer Loyalty
• Superior & Precise Terminal Emulations
• A Better Choice Of Solutions
• Seven Translated Languages
• Leading Edge Features
• Advanced Security Features
• Customers Come First
• Only ONE Focus - Terminal Emulation
• Continuous Product Enhancements & Development
• Listening To Our Customers
• Low Priced Upgrades & Competitive Upgrades
• FREE Lifetime Technical Support
• Partner Programs, Reseller Resources
• FREE Fully-functional 30-day Evaluations
• Strong International Support
• 6 Months FREE Maintenance
• Keeping Customers Informed
• Outstanding Web Site