The offering will utilize Chordiant's Enterprise Platform, Decision Management Suite and Contact Center Advisor as the basis for this highly scalable, multi-tenant system.

The new value added service will deliver an enhanced user and customer experience to First Data's strategic VisionPLUS processing solution by facilitating natural-style conversation, flexible business process automation, an intelligent full view of the customer, and a highly intuitive user interface. VisionPLUS is a world class processing platform, used by financial services companies around the world, and today processes approximately 380 million card and loan accounts. By deploying the Chordiant front-office solution for VisionPLUS, First Data will help its clients to manage growth by streamlining operations, while greatly improving the customer experience and reducing operational overhead.

"Our international business revenues grew 39 percent in 2006 and 2007 is looking equally robust," said Nadeem Shaikh, senior vice president EMEA, First Data International. "To maintain that kind of growth and as part of our ongoing commitment to technology leadership in support of our clients, we are investing in innovative ways to drive operational excellence. Chordiant's software is a proven standard for call centers in the financial services industry and can scale to the levels we need across geographies, languages and clients, while seamlessly integrating our clients' legacy systems. Through our agreement with Chordiant, our clients will deliver improved quality of service through timely and consistent customer treatments and well-informed, intelligent interactions tailored for maximum impact and return."

Offering a sixth generation services-oriented architecture and AJAX-based user interface, the Chordiant solution is designed to fully exploit the flexibility and capabilities of First Data International's core issuing products, while providing key productivity-enhancing features, including: improved quality of interaction and reduced activity time; streamlined process flows; increased use of automation; seamless integration with external information sources; and the use of predictive analytics technology within the customer conversation.

First Data clients will be able to access the Chordiant solution through a hosted, thin-client application, removing the need for the deployment and support of local hardware and infrastructure. The new solution will be hosted by First Data and made available to their clients on an on-demand, pay-as-you-go basis, increasing resource and capital flexibility. For Chordiant, this SaaS-based offering signals the first time that the customer experience leader will have its award-winning, patented solutions delivered as a service to the marketplace.

"In today's market, smart electronic payments providers are increasingly seeking to differentiate themselves based on the experience they provide for their customers," said Kathleen Khirallah, managing director and practice leader for TowerGroup's Banking Practice. "Organizations that plan to lead the payments business in the future are improving their customer-centric practices now, as this will be critical for differentiation and building brand loyalty."

"First Data International touches a large percentage of merchant transactions that occur worldwide," said Steven R. Springsteel, chairman, president and CEO, Chordiant Software. "For many global banks, First Data is at the heart of the customer experience, and this Chordiant-powered solution will transform their customer experience and be available to millions of consumers. This is not only a strong validation of our strategy and technology, but a move in the right direction for the industry. We are extremely pleased to cooperate with First Data and help them bring innovation to their global front-office."