New York, NY, April 21, 2003 - Swandivedigital, a design and communications agency, today announced that it has been selected by The Markle Foundation, a leading non-profit Foundation that uses technology to address critical public needs, to design, build and implement a complete redesign of the Foundation's existing Website.

In advance of the site architecture and design phases, swandivedigital has already worked closely with the Foundation to complete an extended Discovery phase with the stated purpose of identifying areas for potential site enhancement.

The current site was assessed utilizing swandivedigital's proprietary "User-centric Assessment" technique - a method whereby sites are evaluated along the following metrics: Usefuleness, Ease-of-Use, Functionality, Engagement and Trustworthiness. Organizational desire and goals; target audience needs and underlying technical infrastructure were also considered in arriving at final Website recommendations and proposed solutions. A substantial portion of these recommendations will be implemented upon the new site.

Highlights of the new site will include the following:

• The site, through relevant and illuminating use of visual elements, will more engagingly reflect the Markle Foundation spirit of innovation on behalf of information and communication technology (ICT) best practices, education, policy and deployment.
• In light of an evolving Foundation focus away from grantmaking and towards high level strategic partnerships and in-house research, the information architecture will be optimized to help likely users access the research, news and information they are looking for quickly and intuitively .
• The site will offer an enhanced search tool, allowing site visitors to search through a substantial library of reports and publications contained upon the site.
• The site will align tone and visual presentation to more closely synchronize with offline organizational communicative efforts.
• Technologically, the site will embody the same ICT best practices the Foundation supports. For instance, the site will be programmed to comply with Section 508 Universal Accessibility guidelines and will be built upon an Open Source platform.

About the Markle Foundation
Emerging information and communication technologies possess enormous potential to improve people's lives. The Markle Foundation works to realize this potential and to accelerate the use of these technologies to address critical public needs, at present principally in the areas of healthcare and national security. The Markle Foundation's overarching goal in the health area is to accelerate the rate at which information technology enables consumers and the health system that supports them to improve health and healthcare. The Foundation's goal is to ensure that the extraordinary potential of 21st century information technology to improve the health and healthcare of each citizen is translated into everyday use as quickly and as effectively as possible. For more information, see www.markle.org.

About Section 508
In 1998, Congress amended the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 to require Federal agencies to make their electronic and information technology accessible to people with disabilities. Section 508 was enacted to eliminate barriers in information technology, to make available new opportunities for people with disabilities, and to encourage development of technologies that will help achieve these goals. While this law applies only to Federal agencies, it sets the de facto standard for universal accessibility. See www.section508.gov for more information.

About swandivedigital
Swandivedigital (www.swandive.com) is a next-wave convergence design and marketing communications agency specializing in brand conception and evolution, interactive design, and integrated marketing materials for online and offline campaigns. Swandivedigital's clients include emerging businesses seeking a distinct look, existing companies looking to "graduate" to the next level, and Fortune 500 companies with unique goals.

The swandivedigital mission: "Great design... on purpose" is based on the agency's belief that good design is fundamentally about effective communication - the intentional structuring of clear, aesthetically appropriate, persuasive visual and editorial messages to successfully advance social, personal or business goals.

For more information, please contact:
Raphie Frank, Senior Producer | 917.202.2610

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