The new edition will enable customers worldwide to comply with updated specifications from the leading ATM manufacturers and incorporates the latest updates to the EMV standard. It contains an improved user interface, additional support for foreign languages and advanced new capabilities for the automation of ATM regression testing.

The ATM channel is increasingly viewed by banks as a key differentiator, enabling revenue generation through the introduction of new services, while enhancing their customer retention and acquisition capabilities. Regression testing is essential when deploying new ATM services, as it checks that existing ATM capabilities are not compromised or ‘regressed’ by the addition of new ones. With the technology inherent in Release 2.7, Level Four’s customers will now have better quality control when developing and introducing new services to the ATM channel.

The regression testing enhancement uses the bank’s existing testing policy and specifications, importing the organisation's testing data and using it to minimise the amount of effort for a set of tests to be executed. It provides documented test output and highlights differences against a base-lined set of results. It also provides a mechanism for automatically documenting test scripts which themselves can be used for manual testing using physical ATMs.

"Automated testing processes are becoming well-established within banks but quality control can still be overlooked," said Martin Macmillan, CEO of Level Four Software. "Our customers can now be confident that comprehensive, automated regression testing has taken place prior to the deployment of new ATM services, so that existing capabilities and customer service will not be compromised."

A significant enhancement to Release 2.7 is to enable Level Four customers to adhere to specification updates, in particular those relating to regulatory compliance such as the EMV chip card mandate. Since 2000, Level Four has helped leading banks worldwide migrate from magnetic stripe cards to EMV chip cards by automating the end-to-end testing process of their ATM networks.

Additionally, Release 2.7 enables banks to comply with the latest manufacturer specification updates including Diebold's 912, NCR's NDC+, and Wincor Nixdorf's ProCash/NDC or ProCash/DDC. Ensuring users are compliant with industry specifications is a core element of Level Four's commitment to its client base. With the enhancements featured in Release 2.7, customers can approach the market confidently knowing their operations are in line with industry standards.

In the past 18 months, Level Four has gained five new Middle East customers and has continued its expansion plans in Eastern Europe with customer wins and partnerships. Release 2.7 delivers increased support for foreign languages, including alternative character fonts for Arabic and Eastern European languages.

"The ATM market place is constantly evolving, and as such solution providers need to be one step ahead of the game. Through ongoing research and development, and valuable feedback from customers, we are able to maintain our innovative approach to ATM testing and development, delivering new functionality and product enhancements that enable our customers to keep ahead of the competition," Macmillan continued.

Release 2.7 of the ATM Channel Development Suite is available at no charge to existing Level Four customers. Level Four will migrate existing customers to the new release from July 2005 onwards. As part of the migration process, Level Four will train users on Release 2.7's new functionality, and will provide additional training and consultancy for regression test management.