STOCKHOLM, Sweden, Jan. 21, 2002 (PRIMEZONE) -- The City of Stockholm has purchased FormPipe from the stock exchange-listed company Sign On. The city will offer companies and local residents the opportunity of fully electronic communication using signatures. The agreement will run in the first instance for three years and is worth an initial net figure of SEK 2 million.
The City of Stockholm will install Sign On's FormPipe software on its central platform. The software allows electronic signing of forms and documents and transmission of these via the Internet. The city will pay a basic fee and the 50 administrative units, local government departments and companies, etc. within the city will then each pay an annual fee of SEK 100 000 on connection.
"We have found a good solution which not only gives our local residents the opportunity to sign and send in forms and documents but also to receive direct confirmation that this has taken place," said Stefan Svensson, City of Stockholm.
Anyone wanting to sign and send something to the City of Stockholm will be able to complete and send in applications and registrations to the City via the Internet using a process which is simple and intuitive. Local residents will need to use an electronic ID document, e.g. a smart card.
"This deal can be seen as a milestone for Sign On and fires the starting shot for us to supply similar solutions to other towns and cities in Sweden and Europe. We are convinced that Stockholm's choice will carry a lot of weight," said Andreas Halvarsson, vice president of Sign On.
Since January 1, 2001 Swedish and European legislation has provided that electronic signatures shall be given the same status as conventional signatures in pen.
"We at Sign On already have 40 or so Swedish towns and cities using our Form Archive Service, which allows local residents to download, complete and print out forms. We are in discussion with several of these as well as several towns and cities outside Sweden concerning the possibility of using FormPipe," finished Halvarsson.
Writing on behalf of the Swedish government, Cabinet Minister Leijon stated that: "all information and services which can be supplied electronically, while maintaining or improving cost effectiveness, should be supplied in this way." Sign On and the City of Stockholm are the first to use a broad electronic-communication solution to serve the public -- a first step towards a 24-hour authority! The deal is being signed via Ernst&Young, which has a framework agreement with the City of Stockholm and is also responsible for developing and introducing the new service.
This information was brought to you by Waymaker http://www.waymaker.net
Images for free publication are available to download at www.signon.se