ARBA: Ariba Enhances Electronic Invoicing Capabilities

Ariba, Inc. (Nasdaq: ARBA), the leading spend management solutions provider, today announced that it is enhancing its electronic invoicing capabilities to make it easier than ever for companies doing business in Europe to transition to a fully automated and VAT compliant environment. The enhancements were announced at Ariba LIVE™ London, the first in a global series of spend management conferences that Ariba is hosting throughout the year (www.aribalive.com).

Through new, country-specific features embedded in Ariba Electronic Invoice Presentment and Payment™, Ariba Procure-to-Pay™ and Ariba Supplier Network™, companies of all types and sizes can implement a completely paperless, dematerialized approach to invoice presentment and payment that enables them to automatically capture, validate, process and store data electronically in accordance with country-level regulations and facilitate VAT compliance.

"Paying, reporting and getting reimbursed for VAT payments are integral parts of the electronic invoicing process and vital links in the procure-to-pay chain," said Bob Shecterle, Vice President, Solutions Marketing, Ariba. "By implementing a fully automated, end-to-end approach to invoice presentment and payment, companies can streamline these processes and drive improved productivity and cost savings."

Comprehensive Solutions for a Paper-Free Process
Ariba offers a complete range of solutions that enable companies to manage invoice presentment and payment electronically from data capture, transmission and receipt through processing, exception management and archival. Leveraging Ariba Electronic Invoice Presentment and Payment, Ariba Procure-to-Pay and Ariba Supplier Network, companies can optimize their processes and generate bottom-line results by:


Capturing "early pay" and sourcing-negotiated discounts to reduce invoice cycle time and ensure prompt payments;

Developing and implementing integrated cash management strategies to improve the efficiency of the entire procure-to-pay cycle;

Tracking and analyzing spend and compliance with contract terms to increase accuracy of payments and to avoid disputes; and

Providing access to invoices for internal and regulatory audits to drive process efficiencies and productivity improvements.



Enhanced Capabilities for Greater Automation and Compliance
Through the new features embedded in Ariba’s solutions, companies doing business in Europe can facilitate VAT compliance and streamline reimbursement processes by:

Capturing 100 percent of invoices electronically according to European regulations;

Creating tailored invoices that contain fields required by buyers, suppliers and local tax authorities;

Confirming completion of all data fields on reimbursement forms;

Archiving invoices and their accompanying electronic signatures to guarantee authenticity;

Passing invoice data to ERP systems for processing and VAT Reclaim Document submission; and

Eliminating or minimizing the need for accompanying paper documents.



"Moving to a completely paperless environment isn't easy," Shecterle added. "But with Ariba Electronic Invoice Presentment and Payment solutions, companies can make the transition quickly and begin reaping the benefits that a fully automated approach provides."

About Ariba, Inc.
Ariba, Inc. is the leading provider of spend management solutions to help companies realize rapid and sustainable bottom line results. Successful companies around the world in every industry use Ariba Spend Management™ software and services. Ariba can be contacted in the U.S. at 1.650.390.1000 or at www.ariba.com