Harris NorthStar Utilities Solutions Completes Integration of the ONLINE Utility Exchange

Providing their customers with a cutting-edge risk assessment tool for bad-debt prevention

Winterville, NC - ONLINE Information Services, Inc. announced today the successful integration of its premier bad-debt elimination tool, the ONLINE Utility Exchange, with the Harris NorthStar Utilities Solutions customer information system. This integration will allow Harris NorthStar's utility customers to eliminate bad debt during the application process.

Through its partnership with ONLINE, Harris NorthStar now offers an integrated real-time credit risk assessment and Red Flag compliance tool to their customers. The ONLINE Utility Exchange will utilize application data entered in NorthStar to verify the applicant's identity, return an accurate deposit amount according to the Utility's policies, and highlight unpaid utility bills and disconnects from ONLINE's unique national Utility Exchange database and other national sources. Further, the integration will allow Harris NorthStar customers to send their customer payment information to ONLINE automatically, helping to track customers who do not pay their bills from utility to utility through ONLINE's national Utility Exchange database.

Both ONLINE and Harris are confident this integration will have an immediate positive impact for customers. According to ONLINE President, J.W. Blair, "With the ONLINE Utility Exchange, Harris clients can access ONLINE&rsquos state-of-the-art decisioning tools directly through the Northstar Platform. By identifying possible Red Flags, validating applicant identity, returning deposit decisions, and highlighting outstanding utility bills, the ONLINE Utility Exchange helps Utilities reduce their write offs. In these tough economic times, knowing who your applicants truly are is a vital first step in that process, and we are excited by the opportunity to work with Harris NorthStar and their customers. As a provider of world-class technology and systems for the Utilities market, Harris is a true industry leader, and ONLINE looks forward to assisting their customers in eliminating bad debt at the point of application." Harris NorthStar Vice President, Ken Hayes, adds, "The integration effort with ONLINE will provide extensive opportunities for our customers to control losses, comply with changing governance, and enjoy a source of secure, accurate credit information."

About the ONLINE Utility Exchange:

Established in 1956 as a credit bureau and collections agency, ONLINE Information Services, Inc. is currently the nation's leading developer of risk management and debt recovery solutions for the Utility, Property Management, Healthcare, and Mortgage industries. Servicing Utilities throughout the nation, the ONLINE Utility Exchange is a utility-specific credit bureau with the single goal of providing the tools necessary to eliminate bad debt. For more information, visit the website at www.ONLINEUtilityExchange.com or contact:

Christoph Turner, Director of Sales & Marketing
chris@onlineis.com
(866) 630-6400, ext. 2125

About NorthStar Utilities Solutions:

NorthStar has been serving the utility market for more than 30 years. NorthStar provides utilities with integrated solutions for customer information and billing, financial management and meter data management. Our 200 customer in North American and the Caribbean, benefit from our solutions that let utilities manage their revenues, deliver superior customer service and improve efficiencies while reducing total cost of ownership.

About Harris:

Harris is a wholly owned subsidiary of Constellation and is a leading provider of software and business solutions to the utility, local government, and school management markets. Since 1976, Harris NorthStar has focused on providing feature-rich and robust turnkey solutions to all of its customers throughout North America. Harris&rsquo focus is on creating long-term relationships with our customers and ensuring that we meet the changing needs of our customers over time. For further information on Harris Computer Systems, please visit our website at www.harriscomputer.com, or call (888) 847-7747.