etrials Partners With Eclipse to Boost Global Expansion and Deliver Superior Service to Large...

Business/Technology Editors

MORRISVILLE, N.C.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 20, 2002

New Partnership's First Joint Client is Global 6000 Patient

Clinical Trial with 50 European Sites in Seven Countries

etrials, Inc., a leading provider of data management technologies and

services for the healthcare industry, today announced a partnership with Eclipse Clinical Technologies, Ltd. a leading European contract research services company. Under the terms of the agreement, Eclipse will provide European-based sales personnel, project management guidance and technical support to help etrials offer its electronic data capture (EDC) solution to European customers staging clinical trials. The first client of this new partnership is a 6,000-patient clinical study for a major U.S.-based pharmaceutical company with 270 sites total including 50 European sites in seven countries. Eclipse will provide technical support and services to the 50 European sites.

In addition, Eclipse has selected etrials as its preferred EDC vendor through a separate software licensing agreement. etrials will provide Eclipse with EDC software that simplifies data collection and speeds up the clinical research process for healthcare, pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies worldwide.

"We selected etrials as our preferred EDC partner because the company offers the most reliable and scalable solution in the market," said Pascal King, chief executive officer, Eclipse Clinical Technologies. "etrials' technology coupled with our contract research services will enable us to satisfy the clinical research needs of European life sciences companies and help speed valuable medicines and devices through the European approval process."

"etrials is expanding our global sales and customer support capabilities, most recently marked by our technology deployment in one of the largest current international clinical trials with over 6,000 patients," said John Cline, president, etrials. "The cornerstone of etrials' success has always been offering superior EDC technology with exceptional customer service to our clinical research customers. Our relationship with Eclipse allows etrials to offer the same high-quality level of customer service throughout Europe."

About Eclipse Clinical Technologies, Ltd.

Eclipse Clinical Technologies Ltd. is a leading European provider of electronic clinical trial services to the pharmaceutical, biotechnology and medical device industries. By integrating web technologies with clinical research methodologies, Eclipse delivers superior service solutions that provide clients with real competitive advantage. Founded in June 2001, Eclipse is privately financed and headquartered in Dublin, Ireland. For more information please visit the website at www.eclipsect.com

About etrials, Inc.

etrials has earned the loyalty of its healthcare partners by guiding them to simplify and accelerate the processes associated with collecting data in clinical trials. Using innovative technologies and proven business processes, etrials offers efficient data management products and services for collecting, monitoring and assessing quantitative and qualitative study data. etrials leads healthcare and pharmaceutical companies through the critical processes involved in turning a technology into a solution, successfully migrating clients from paper-based to electronic data capture methods.

Formed in 1999, etrials is a privately financed company located in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina. For more information, visit the company's Web site at www.etrials.com.