Delrina

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Canadian software company founded in 1988

title: "Delrina" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["delrina", "communication-software", "terminal-emulators", "defunct-software-companies-of-canada", "defunct-companies-of-ontario", "software-companies-established-in-1988", "software-companies-disestablished-in-1995", "1988-establishments-in-ontario", "1995-disestablishments-in-ontario", "gen-digital-acquisitions", "1995-mergers-and-acquisitions", "canadian-companies-disestablished-in-1995", "canadian-companies-established-in-1988"] description: "Canadian software company founded in 1988" topic_path: "geography/canada" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delrina" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Canadian software company founded in 1988 ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox company"]

FieldValue
nameDelrina Corporation
typePublic (TSX: DC), (NASDAQ: DENAF)
foundationToronto, Ontario 1988
founder
area_servedWorldwide
logoDelrina logo.svg
logo_altThe name "Delrina" spelled in black serif letters, with the final "A" extended to the upper right by a large blue triangle pattern
fateAcquired
successorSymantec
defunct
locationToronto, Ontario, Canada
key_peopleDennis Bennie chairman and CEO
Mark Skapinker President
Bert Amato Executive Vice President & Chief Technical Officer,{{cite web
titleBrightspark: The Team
urlhttp://www.brightspark.com/pages/default.asp?Section=5
archive-urlhttps://web.archive.org/web/20060628135613/http://www.brightspark.com/pages/default.asp?Section=5
archive-date2006-06-28
access-dateAugust 24, 2009}}
Lou Ryan Executive Vice President of Worldwide Sales{{cite press release
titlePinPoint Software names Lou Ryan president
publisherBusiness Wire
dateFebruary 24, 1997
urlhttp://www.thefreelibrary.com/PinPoint+Software+names+Lou+Ryan+president%3B+Ryan+brings+years+of...-a019151396
access-dateSeptember 14, 2009
archive-dateApril 30, 2019
archive-urlhttps://web.archive.org/web/20190430110349/https://www.thefreelibrary.com/PinPoint%2BSoftware%2Bnames%2BLou%2BRyan%2Bpresident;%2BRyan%2Bbrings%2Byears%2Bof...-a019151396
url-statusdead
num_employees700 (1995)
revenue$132.9 million CAD (sales) (1995)
industryComputer software
productsWinFax, PerForm, FormFlow, Echo Lake, Cyberjack, WinComm, TalkWorks, CommSuite 95
homepage
::

| name = Delrina Corporation | type = Public (TSX: DC), (NASDAQ: DENAF) | foundation = Toronto, Ontario 1988 | founder = | area_served = Worldwide | logo = Delrina logo.svg | logo_alt = The name "Delrina" spelled in black serif letters, with the final "A" extended to the upper right by a large blue triangle pattern | fate = Acquired | successor = Symantec | defunct = | location = Toronto, Ontario, Canada | key_people = Dennis Bennie chairman and CEO Mark Skapinker President Bert Amato Executive Vice President & Chief Technical Officer,{{cite web | title = Brightspark: The Team | url= http://www.brightspark.com/pages/default.asp?Section=5 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20060628135613/http://www.brightspark.com/pages/default.asp?Section=5 | archive-date= 2006-06-28 | access-date = August 24, 2009}} Lou Ryan Executive Vice President of Worldwide Sales{{cite press release | title = PinPoint Software names Lou Ryan president | publisher = Business Wire | date = February 24, 1997 | url = http://www.thefreelibrary.com/PinPoint+Software+names+Lou+Ryan+president%3B+Ryan+brings+years+of...-a019151396 | access-date = September 14, 2009 | archive-date = April 30, 2019 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190430110349/https://www.thefreelibrary.com/PinPoint%2BSoftware%2Bnames%2BLou%2BRyan%2Bpresident;%2BRyan%2Bbrings%2Byears%2Bof...-a019151396 | url-status = dead | num_employees = 700 (1995) | revenue = $132.9 million CAD (sales) (1995) | industry = Computer software | products = WinFax, PerForm, FormFlow, Echo Lake, Cyberjack, WinComm, TalkWorks, CommSuite 95 | homepage =

Delrina Corporation was a Canadian software company active from 1988 to 1995. The company was best known for WinFax, a software package which enabled computers equipped with fax modems to transmit copies of documents to standalone fax machines or other similarly equipped computers. It also sold PerForm and FormFlow, electronic form software. Delrina was acquired by the American software firm Symantec in 1995.

Delrina also produced a set of screensavers, including one that resulted in a well-publicized lawsuit for copyright and trademark infringement (Berkeley Systems Inc. v. Delrina). The case set a precedent in American law whereby satiric commercial software products are not subject to the same First Amendment exemptions as parodic cartoons or literature.

It also sold online communications software with its WinComm product and produced a Web browser called Cyberjack. The firm was sold to Symantec in 1995. After the company was acquired by Symantec, various divisions were sold off and several of Delrina's former executives went on to found venture capital firms.

Corporate history

Delrina was founded in Toronto in 1988 by Zimbabwean expatriate Bert Amato, South African expatriates Mark Skapinker and Dennis Bennie{{cite web | last = Steed | first = Judy | title = Seeds sown at Delrina are still sprouting | url= http://www.brightspark.com/pages/content/article_TorontoStar5202000.shtml | access-date = August 20, 2009 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080116142829/http://www.brightspark.com/pages/content/article_TorontoStar5202000.shtml |archive-date = January 16, 2008}} and American Lou Ryan.{{Cite journal | last = Walmsley | first = Ann | title = Attack of the Softwarriors | journal = Report on Business Magazine | page = 33 | date = March 1994 |title = Delrina Corporation 1994 Annual Report |publisher = Delrina Corporation |year = 1994 |page = 1 | last = MacFarlane | first = James | title = Delrina is making inroads worldwide | journal = Toronto Computes! | page = 56 | date = November 1991

Delrina's initial corporate headquarters was located in a small office on Mount Pleasant Rd. in Toronto. A sales office was set up in San Jose, California which became its worldwide sales center run by co-founder Lou Ryan. From its Toronto headquarters, the company expanded by establishing branch offices in Kirkland, Washington; Washington, DC; and Lexington, Massachusetts. Other offices were later established in the United Kingdom, France, and Germany.{{cite press release | title = Delrina Ships New OEM Fax Software; WinFax LITE 4.0 Easier to Learn and Use, Includes More Robust Feature Set | publisher = Business Wire | date = February 24, 1997 | url = http://www.thefreelibrary.com/DELRINA+SHIPS+NEW+OEM+FAX+SOFTWARE%3B+WINFAX+LITE+4.0+EASIER+TO+LEARN...-a016367875 | access-date = August 27, 2009 | archive-date = October 13, 2012 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20121013190009/http://www.thefreelibrary.com/DELRINA+SHIPS+NEW+OEM+FAX+SOFTWARE%3B+WINFAX+LITE+4.0+EASIER+TO+LEARN...-a016367875 | url-status = dead

Origins of PerForm

Main article: PerForm

Delrina's initial product offering was an electronic forms application called PerForm. Amato and Skapinker came up with the idea for the product while working as consultants that what their clients wanted was a way to fill in forms electronically, rather than an easier way to create paper-based forms from a computer.{{Cite journal | last = Walmsley | first = Ann | title = Attack of the Softwarriors | journal = Report on Business Magazine | page = 34 | date = March 1994 | title = Office of Personnel Management Electronic Forms, FormFlow Versions of Standard Forms, July 14, 2000 | url= http://www.opm.gov/forms/html/ff_sf.htm | access-date = August 24, 2009 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070331223006/http://www.opm.gov/forms/html/ff_sf.htm |archive-date = March 31, 2007}} the latter spurred on in particular by the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction Act to reduce the total amount of paperwork handled by the United States government.{{Cite journal | last = Asbrand | first = Deborah | title = Forms automation needs brains | journal = InfoWorld | page = 79 | date = October 10, 1994 | title = Putting electronic forms to the test | journal = InfoWorld | pages = 93–105 | date = May 2, 1994 | last = Melnitsky | first = Stuart | title = Form is function | journal = Network World | page = 48 | date = December 2, 1996 as its "Product of the Year" in the electronic forms category, and PC World Magazine gave the product its "Best Buy" designation.{{cite press release | title = Delrina's PerFORM Chosen Product of the Year | publisher = Delrina Technology Inc. | date = February 18, 1991 | last = Strehlo | first = Kevin | title = FormFlow has the smarts to truly automate form routing | journal = Network World | page = 88 | date = July 12, 1993

In the early 1990s Delrina made deals with value-added resellers like NCR and GE Information Services who had the staff to customize the product to the needs of corporate customers looking to move away from paper-based forms. The forms products sold well and the annual revenues for the firm grew steadily; 1989 annual revenues (in Canadian dollars) were $5,630,393, in 1990 they were $8,759,623, and by 1991 they were $11,894,474.{{cite book | title = 1993 Delrina Corporate Report | publisher = Delrina Corp. | year = 1993

Struggle for profitability

Despite the growing revenues, the company struggled to make a profit. Heavy expenditures—primarily marketing along with research and development costs—drove the firm's losses from $500,000 from 1989 to $1.5 million by the end of the following fiscal year.{{Cite news | last = Munk | first = Nina | title = Fax killer | newspaper = Forbes | page = 75 | date = April 24, 1995 | title = Delrina Announces Fourth Quarter and Year-End Results | publisher = Delrina Technology Inc. | date = August 28, 1991

Needing an infusion of funds, in April 1991 Bennie managed to raise $7.7 million in a private placement.

The firm subsequently sought to find ways to more widely distribute its electronic form software, with Bennie saying in May 1992 that "we've barely scratched the surface of our market".{{Cite news | last = Greenwood | first = John | title = Star Turn | newspaper = The Financial Post | date = May 1992

In early 1992 word leaked to the press on a possible merger between WordStar International Inc., and soon after both firms made public the fact that they had signed a letter of intent on a merger deal.{{Cite news | title = Company News; Briefs | newspaper = The New York Times | date = March 24, 1992 | url = https://www.nytimes.com/1992/03/24/business/company-news-briefs.html | access-date = September 3, 2009 | title = Wordstar International Inc. says its plan to acquire Delrina Corp. of Toronto, Canada, has fallen through | newspaper = Software Industry Report | date = April 20, 1992 | url = http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-12157521.html | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150329042626/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-12157521.html | url-status = dead | archive-date = March 29, 2015 | access-date = September 3, 2009}} WordStar, whose share of the word processing market had by that time fallen to 5% (from a high of 80%) was seeking Delrina's advanced technologies while Delrina was hoping to utilize the other firm's established global sales network.{{Cite news | last = Leitch | first = Carolyn | title = Delrina–WordStar merger cancelled by complexities | newspaper = The Globe and Mail | pages = Money and Markets, B7 | date = April 11, 1992}} Despite the failure of the merger talks, Bennie said soon after that "we're still convinced that a larger sales force would give us the kind of marketing clout we need. I still believe that it's possible for us to become a global operation". Not long after WordStar merged with Spinnaker Software Corporation and SoftKey Software Products Inc. to form SoftKey International.{{cite web | title = A Potted History of WordStar | url= http://www.wordstar.org/index.php/wordstar-history | access-date = September 3, 2009}} Delrina subsequently signed deals with Wallace Computer Services,{{cite press release | title = Wallace Signs Software Reseller Agreement With Delrina | publisher = Delrina Technology Inc. | date = June 5, 1992 |title = Delrina 1992 Annual Report |publisher = Delrina Corporation |year = 1992 |page = 4

Development of WinFax

Main article: WinFax

In a deliberate attempt to diversify the business, The Company chose to move into the fax software market with its WinFax product.{{Cite journal | last = Walmsley | first = Ann | title = Attack of the Softwarriors | journal = Report on Business Magazine | page = 36 | date = March 1994 | title = Delrina Debuts WinFax Fax Publishing Software for Windows 3.0 at Comdex | publisher = Delrina Technology Inc. | date = November 9, 1990 | last = Munk | first = Nina | title = Fax killer | newspaper = Forbes | page = 74 | date = April 24, 1995

The initial version of WinFax only worked on fax modems containing a specific chipset, and was only capable of sending faxes; it could not receive them. This was remedied with the launch of the WinFax PRO 2.0 product during the summer of 1991.{{cite press release | title = Delrina Announces Three Versions of New Advanced WinFax Software for Windows | publisher = Delrina Technology Inc. | date = May 21, 1991 | title = AST, CompUSA & Laser Computer Announce Support, with Initial Wave of Modem OEMs, for Delrina's WinFax | publisher = Delrina Technology Inc. | date = September 16, 1991 | title = Delrina Announces Support for Intel's New Network SatisFAXtion Solution | publisher = Delrina Technology Inc. | date = September 11, 1991 | title = Delrina Announces Support for DSP Fax Modems | publisher = Delrina Technology Inc. | date = February 22, 1993

Bundling the LITE version of WinFax proved to be lucrative for Delrina. Whenever a person used the program for the first time and submitted their registration information by fax to the company, Delrina would subsequently mail the user an upgrade offer for the PRO version. This sales technique proved to be very effective, and the firm ended up making most of its sales from these upgrades.

In order to reach Apple computer users in this marketplace Delrina acquired Solutions Inc. and their BackFax software for the Macintosh platform in December 1991,{{Cite journal | last = Picarille | first = Lisa | title = Delrina acquires BackFax program | journal = InfoWorld | page = 76 | date = December 23, 1991 | last = Brownstein | first = Mark | title = Delrina to unleash brawny fax manager bundle | newspaper = InfoWorld | page = 41 | date = March 23, 1992 | title = Delrina Ships DosFax PRO | publisher = Delrina Technology Inc. | date = June 1, 1992

Initially looking for ways to further improve its electronic forms software, in November 1991 Delrina had attempted to buy two associated firms that produced Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software, with the intention of incorporating OCR functionality into its forms products.{{Cite journal | last = Picarille | first = Lisa | title = Delrina signs letter to acquire OCR, Nonlinear | journal = InfoWorld | page = 3 | date = November 18, 1991 | title = Delrina Technology & Caere Corporation Ink Fax/OCR Agreement | publisher = Delrina Technology Inc. | date = March 11, 1992 | title = WinFax Pro 3.0, fax software with OCR and a cool cover-page designer | journal = Byte | page = 54 | date = November 1993 | last = Leinecker | first = Richard C. | title = Test lab: Windows-based fax software | journal = Compute! | issue = 158 | page = 20 | date = November 1993 | url = http://www.atarimagazines.com/compute/issue158/20_Test_lab.php | last = Mace | first = Scott | title = WinFax Pro 3.0 features better OCR module | journal = InfoWorld | page = 44 | date = October 12, 1992 | last = Gerber | first = Cheryl | title = Workflow automation choices expand: Delrina's FormFlow uses scanned images of real forms on-screen | journal = InfoWorld | page = 45 | date = May 10, 1993 | last = Patrick | first = Marshall | title = Delrina, Caere set fax standards | journal = InfoWorld | page = 121 | date = April 25, 1994

Based on strong sales of WinFax, by October 1992 Delrina posted its first profitable quarter in three years.{{Cite news | last = Urlocker | first = Michael | title = Newly profitable Delrina on acquisition trail | newspaper = The Financial Post | page = 17 | date = October 15, 1992

Acquisition of Amaze Inc.

In October 1992 Delrina acquired Amaze Inc., based out of Kirkland, Washington.{{cite book | last = Globerman | first = Steven | title = Canadian-based Multinationals | publisher = University of Calgary Press | year = 1994 | page = 291 | isbn = 1-895176-49-2 | url = https://archive.org/details/canadianbasedmul00glob/page/291 | last = Fuochi | first = Andre | title = Amaze-ing! Delrina acquires Far Side company — acquires Amaze Inc | journal = Computing Canada | page = 48 | date = November 9, 1992 | title = Delrina Announces Amaze Inc. Acquisition | publisher = Delrina Corporation | date = October 23, 1992

''Berkeley Systems Inc. v. Delrina''

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/ff/OpusShootingToastersWithHelicopterRotors.jpg" caption="A scene from the revamped "Censored Toaster Module" issued after the court case" alt="Opus the penguin using a shotgun to successfully blast a flying top-loading toaster"] ::

CyberLaw: The Law of the Internet p.27 Springer. 1996. 0-38794-832-5-- One of Delrina's screensaver products was based on the licensed Bloom County characters Opus the Penguin and Bill the Cat. The initial Opus 'n Bill screensaver, launched in 1993, landed the company in court as its Death Toasters module depicted Opus taking shots at a number of flying toasters, a well-known emblem in Berkeley System's Flying Toasters module from their After Dark screensaver.{{cite book | last = Rosenoer | first = Jonathan | title = CyberLaw: The Law of the Internet | publisher = Springer | year = 1996 | pages = 26–32 | isbn = 0-387-94832-5 | url = https://archive.org/details/cyberlawlawofint0000rose/page/26 Berkeley Systems sued for copyright and trademark infringement. The following court case of Berkeley Systems Inc. v. Delrina was fought by Delrina on the basis that a software-based parody should fall under the same First Amendment protection offered to the press.

A preliminary injunction was filed against Delrina in September 1993{{cite book | last = Rosenoer | first = Jonathan | title = CyberLaw: The Law of the Internet | publisher = Springer | year = 1996 | page = 27 | isbn = 0-387-94832-5 | url = https://archive.org/details/cyberlawlawofint0000rose/page/27 which halted the sale of the product, and subsequently forced a recall of it through the court. The case drew political satirist Mark Russell to speak in defense of Delrina, who argued in favour of the screensaver as a valid parody, while the estate of composer Irving Berlin sided with Berkeley. Commenting on the case involving his characters, cartoonist Berkeley Breathed said: "If David Letterman can depict the NBC peacock wearing men's boxer shorts, then Delrina should be able to plug a flying toaster with hot lead".{{cite book | last = Hyman | first = Michael | title = PC Roadkill | year = 1995 | page = 378 | publisher = Programmers Press | isbn = 1-56884-348-8 | url = https://archive.org/details/pcroadkill0000hyma/page/378

Judge Eugene Lynch found in favour of Berkeley, citing that a commercial software product was not subject to the same exemptions as parodist literature,{{cite book | last = Scott | first = Michael D. | title = Scott on Multimedia Law | publisher = Aspen Law and Business Publishers | year = 1995 | page = 7 | isbn = 1-56706-333-0}} and that the toasters were too similar in design. The total cost of the court case and the recalled product was roughly $150,000 U.S.{{Cite journal | last = Walmsley | first = Ann | title = Attack of the Softwarriors | journal = Report on Business Magazine | page = 32 | date = March 1994

In the court case, it was also cited that the design for winged toasters was not original and that the Berkeley Systems' design was itself derived from the Jefferson Airplane album Thirty Seconds Over Winterland, which also used flying toasters adorned with wings. Berkeley argued that the firm was unaware of the previous artwork until 1991, and that the album cover's toasters had clocks in addition to their wings. Jefferson Airplane later sued Berkeley Systems in turn for the use of the same flying toaster emblem.{{Cite news | title = You Be the Jury | newspaper = The New York Times | url = https://www.nytimes.com/1994/07/10/magazine/sunday-july-10-1994-you-be-the-jury.html | access-date = August 17, 2009 | date=July 10, 1994}}{{Cite news | last = Rose | first = Lance | title = Another Poppin' Fresh Lawsuit | newspaper = Wired | date = October 1994 | url = https://www.wired.com/wired/archive/2.10/eword.html?pg=9 | access-date = August 17, 2009

The court decision was interpreted by the writer L. Ray Patterson as an erosion of First Amendment rights over the increasing protection provided to copyright holders.{{cite web |last=Patterson |first=L. Ray |title=Mocking the Monopoly of Copyright |url=http://www.hackvan.com/pub/stig/etext/fair-use/mocking-the-monopoly-of-copyright.txt |access-date=August 17, 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040629040334/http://hackvan.com/pub/stig/etext/fair-use/mocking-the-monopoly-of-copyright.txt |archive-date=June 29, 2004

While Delrina lost the court case, the publicity it generated was substantial, with coverage in over a thousand newspapers across North America, resulting in consumers turning out in droves to buy the offending program before it could be recalled.

Delrina subsequently removed the wings from the toasters and replaced them with propellers in order to avoid trademark infringement. The module was also renamed from "Death Toasters" to "Censored Toaster Module". Thanks to the publicity from the court case, sales of this new version ended up being triple what had been expected. Updated modules for this particular screensaver were sold for the next couple of years.

Josef Zankowicz, who managed the firm's publicity during this period, later commented: "We had the feeling that we might get sued—actually, we prayed to get sued. Because by suing us, the number one player in the marketplace opened up the door. Anyone can create an interesting product, spend $10 million and create awareness of it. But it's another thing to create a product and spend one-tenth that amount and create twice as much awareness."

This division of the firm at its height only represented less than 15% of the company's total revenues.

Success of WinFax

The increasing sales of the WinFax product lead to significant growth in revenues for the firm; by 1992 its sales had climbed to $19,208,420, and more than doubling the next year to $48,583,932. The product soon overtook that of the initial forms product in terms of revenues, and within a few years of its launch, WinFax would account for 80% of the company's revenues. By 1994 the firm had sold more than 3 million copies of WinFax, and it regularly featured in the "Top 10" lists of software applications sold during this period.

The rapid growth in sales of this product was unexpected, with Bennie quoted in an interview from late 1993 as saying "the success of WinFax really caught us by surprise".{{Cite news | last1 = Willet | first1 = Shawn | last2 = Orrange | first2 = Kate | title = Hot Seat: Delrina continues to nurse WinFax Pro's growing pains | newspaper = InfoWorld | page = 6 | date = December 27, 1993 | title = Delrina to Sell Carolian Division | publisher = Delrina Technology Inc. | date = February 15, 1993 | title = Delrina Forms New Division to Market Communication Services to PC Users | publisher = Delrina Technology Inc. | date = October 12, 1993 | last = Walmsley | first = Ann | title = Attack of the Softwarriors | journal = Report on Business Magazine | page = 39 | date = March 1994 | last = Cringely | first = Robert X. | title = Sorry, Andy, but our calculations demonstrate there is no Santa Claus | newspaper = InfoWorld | page = 94 | date = December 19, 1994

In order to further enhance the appeal of its new flagship product, in 1993 the firm established a Communication Services division, designed to tap into the commercial market. The firm started making deals with major telecommunication companies, such as BellSouth{{Cite journal | title = In Partnership | journal = InfoWorld | page = 50 | date = June 13, 1994 | title = Briefs | journal = Network World | page = 33 | date = October 25, 1994 | last = Harris | first = Michael T. | title = Delrina's Bennie: Canada's King of the Fax | journal = Software CEO Magazine | page = 35 | date = February 1995 | last = Lenk | first = Frank | title = Delrina WinFax Pro 4.0: The best computer fax software gets a whole lot better | journal = Computing Now! | page = 2 | date = April 1994 | last = Barney | first = Doug | title = Delrina gets OK to offer its fax retrieval services | journal = InfoWorld | page = 24 | date = June 6, 1994

By late 1994 the firm was considered one of the fastest-growing software companies in North America,{{cite book |title = Delrina Corporation 1994 Annual Report |publisher = Delrina Corporation |year = 1994 |page = 2 | last = Harris | first = Michael T. | title = Delrina's Bennie: Canada's King of the Fax | journal = Software CEO Magazine | page = 32 | date = February 1995 | last = Harris | first = Michael T. | title = Delrina's Bennie: Canada's King of the Fax | journal = Software CEO Magazine | page = 34 | date = February 1995

Impact of Windows 95 {{anchor|The impact of Windows 95}}

In November 1992 Skapinker met Bill Gates at a Microsoft-sponsored dinner where he asked whether there were any plans to include any fax functionality in their forthcoming operating system (which could become Windows 95). Gates replied that there were plans to include "base-level fax capability" in the next version of Windows, and suggested that Skapinker get in touch with his development staff in order to produce a value-added product for it.{{Cite journal | last = Walmsley | first = Ann | title = Attack of the Softwarriors | journal = Report on Business Magazine | pages = 36, 38 | date = March 1994

The firm decided to work on a suite of applications designed to be an enhancement on what was to be available in Windows 95. In response to a question about Windows 95, Bennie responded by saying: "We are quite convinced that on top of Windows 95, we can build four different applications and will encompass fax, data, telephony or digital voice, and Internet access". This would later become the CommSuite 95 product.

In 1994 the firm acquired AudioFile, a company that specialized in computer-based voice technology. The company created a product called TalkWorks, which enabled users to use certain fax/modems as a voice mail client.

Seeing a growing business in online communications utilities, Delrina licensed Hilgraeve's HyperACCESS terminal emulator system in 1993, and used it as the basis for the initial version of its WinComm online communications software. The initial version of the product was originally bundled with WinFax as part of the Delrina Communications Suite, but in March 1994 was issued as a standalone product. It was a relative latecomer to the market, which was then dominated at the time by Datastorm's Procomm series of communications software.

Delrina tried to expand aggressively into this market space, first by acquiring the Canadian online bulletin board service CRS Online,{{Cite journal | last = Burger | first = Dale | title = Delrina enters cyberspace with buyout of CRS Online Computing Canada | journal = Computing Canada | date = March 29, 1995

When the Internet was opened to commercial interests in the mid-1990s, Delrina started to expand in this nascent market space with their Cyberjack 7.0 product, launched in December 1995. Created by a development team based in South Africa, it included a Web browser, Usenet news reader, ftp client, IRC and integration with the Microsoft Exchange email program. The program used an interesting variant of the now-common bookmark, using a "Guidebook" to store information for various Internet addresses.

CommSuite 95 shipped later that same month, bundling WinFax PRO 7.0 along with WinComm PRO 7.0, TalkWorks and the Cyberjack suite of Internet components.{{Cite journal | last = Howard | first = Millman | title = CommSuite 95: One size fits all | journal = InfoWorld | page = 96 | date = February 5, 1996

With the release of Windows 95 in August 1995,{{Cite news | last = Segal | first = David | title = With Windows 95's Debut, Microsoft Scales Heights of Hype | newspaper = The Washington Post | pages = A14 | date = August 24, 1995 | url = https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/business/longterm/microsoft/stories/1995/debut082495.htm | access-date = September 4, 2009 | last = Willett | first = Shawn | title = Delrina eases access to fax and dial-up services | journal = InfoWorld | page = 45 | date = October 18, 1993 | last = Livingston | first = Brian | title = Will freeware and personalization bring new life to browsers? | newspaper = InfoWorld | page = 42 | date = March 29, 1999

Acquisition by Symantec and aftermath

In late Spring of 1995, Delrina Chairman Dennis Bennie met with Symantec CEO Gordon Eubanks to discuss the possibility of merging the two firms.{{Cite news | title = Delrina Goes Gold | newspaper = Canadian Computer Reseller | page = 16 | date = August 2, 1995 | title = Symantec, Delrina to merge | newspaper = Software Magazine | date = September 1, 1995 | url = https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-17337839.html | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160213081015/https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-17337839.html | url-status = dead | archive-date = February 13, 2016 | access-date = August 25, 2009 | title = Symantec Issues Redemption Call for Delrina Exchangeable Shares | publisher = Business Wire | date = July 19, 2002 | url = http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Symantec+Issues+Redemption+Call+for+Delrina+Exchangeable+Shares.-a089262509 | access-date = September 3, 2009 | archive-date = October 13, 2012 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20121013190015/http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Symantec+Issues+Redemption+Call+for+Delrina+Exchangeable+Shares.-a089262509 | url-status = dead | last = Leitch | first = Carolyn | title = Giving up Delrina hard to do | newspaper = The Globe and Mail | pages = B1 | date = July 7, 1995 | title = Symantec Announces Results for the December 1995 Quarter | publisher = Symantec Corporation | date = January 24, 1996 | url = http://www.symantec.com/about/news/release/article.jsp?prid=19960125_02 | access-date = September 6, 2009 | archive-date = June 7, 2011 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110607154206/http://www.symantec.com/about/news/release/article.jsp?prid=19960125_02 | url-status = dead

At its height the company employed more than 700 people worldwide, the majority based in Canada. Symantec was following a general trend of large American firms buying smaller Canadian software companies. Other contemporaneous examples include Softimage and Zoom-it being bought by Microsoft, and Alias being bought by Silicon Graphics.{{Cite news | last1 = Wood | first1 = Chris | last2 = Turbide | first2 = Diane | title = Canadians Succeed in Animation | newspaper = Maclean's | date = June 24, 1996 | url = http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/canadians-succeed-in-animation/ | access-date = August 28, 2009 | last = Clarkson | first = Stephen | title = Uncle Sam and Us | url = https://archive.org/details/unclesamusglobal0000clar | url-access = registration | publisher = University of Toronto Press | year = 2002 | page = 251 | isbn = 0-8020-8539-3}}

Parts of the company were subsequently sold off, such as the sale of Delrina's Electronic Forms Division to JetForm in September 1996.{{cite press release | title = JetForm Corporation Purchases Symantec Corporation's Delrina Group Electronic Forms Division | publisher = Symantec Corporation | date = September 10, 1996 | url = http://www.symantec.com/about/news/release/article.jsp?prid=19960910_01 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110607154013/http://www.symantec.com/about/news/release/article.jsp?prid=19960910_01 | url-status = dead | archive-date = June 7, 2011 | access-date = August 25, 2009}} JetForm, which later changed its name to Accelio, was in turn bought by Adobe Systems. Adobe officially discontinued the electronic forms products in 2004. Creative Wonders bought the rights to the Echo Lake multimedia product, which was re-shaped as an introductory program on multimedia and re-released as Family Album Creator.

Though the market for fax software would shrink significantly as the use of email became more pervasive, WinFax brought in significant revenue for Symantec; a year after the merger sales of fax software accounted for 10% of Symantec's revenues.

Post-Delrina

Delrina was a catalyst for entrepreneurial talent and greatness, as many of the principals and employees of Delrina went on to find new successful ventures. With investments from Skapinker and Amato, and Bennie as lead Director, Davis went on to form Lanacom, which developed an early Internet "push content" product. This firm and its technology were sold just over a year after its inception to Backweb, a NASDAQ listed software company; Davis remained president and Bennie was brought on as Director.

Skapinker and Davis then went on to found Brightspark, a software venture capital firm. Brightspark Ventures raised a number of VC Funds from Canadian Financial institutions raising $60m in 1999 and $55m in 2004. Brightspark employed a number of ex-Delrina employees including Allen Lau, Eva Lau, Sandy Pearlman, Marg Vaillancourt. Brightspark Ventures has twice won the Canadian Venture Capital Association "Deal of the Year Award", for the sale of ThinkDynamics to IBM and for the sale of Radian6 to Salesforce.com.

Bennie would move on to found XDL Capital, a company which manages venture capital funds. XDL Capital—appropriately named after "Ex Delrina"—raised money for two funds: XDL Ventures (XDL), raising $25 million in 1997, and XDL Intervest (XDLI), raising $155 million in 1999. David Latner, former legal counsel for Delrina, was a partner in both funds, and Amato (former partner, Delrina) was an advisor and major investor to XDL Capital. He also participated in several investee companies as a Director and/or Advisor.

XDL Intervest focuses primarily on internet-specific entrepreneurial companies and Bennie brought in two new principals: Tony Van Marken, former CEO of Architel Systems Corp. (ASYC), and Michael Bregman, former CEO of Second Cup Ltd. (T.SKL). XDL has assembled an established board and advisory team, which includes Canadian billionaire Robert Young, a native of Hamilton, Ontario, who co-founded Red Hat Inc (RHAT) and remains its chairman. Several of XDL's venture investments were in companies started or run by ex-Delrina employees who founded successful businesses, fostered by the innovative and entrepreneurial environment of Delrina. A few of the successes today are listed below:

Delano Founded by Bahman Koohestani, another early developer at Delrina, was a company which developed e-business solutions for corporations. XDL Capital provided seed capital prior to Delano listing publicly. Bennie was the Chairman. Delano was listed on NASDAQ (DTEC) was subsequently sold to divine in 2003.

Pinpoint Software Corporation a supplier of software solutions for managing networked PCs, was founded in 1992 by Lou Ryan. Ryan was CEO & President with Bennie acting as director. Pinpoint was partially funded by XDL Capital. Pinpoint changed its name to ClickNet Software in 1998. Uniting the company name with the successful ClickNet product family name strengthens the product and corporate identity. The company was eventually renamed Entercept Security Technologies Inc. In 2004, Entercept was sold to Network Associates for $120M where they incorporated Entercept's technology into its McAfee line of antivirus protection and other security products.

Protégé Software was formed in 1996 and was founded by Larry Levy, Delrina's European Managing Director. Levy acted as president and CEO with Bennie as the principal investor. The company raised a $120M round of finance with XDL Intervest participating in 2003. Protégé has successfully launched 20 U.S. companies in Europe, nine of which are among Red Herring Top 50 Private Companies. In addition, five of these companies have gone public during Protégé's tenure with them. The company was ultimately sold to various buyers including Warburg Pincus after the internet bubble burst.

Netect Ltd., an XDL financed venture developing network security software, was purchased by Bindview Development Corporation (NASDAQ:BVEW) in 2001. Marc Camm (Ex Delrina GM Desktop Communications Business Unit) was brought on by Bennie to manage Netect. After the Company was purchased, Camm joined Bindview as the E.V.P. of Marketing. Prior to joining Netect, Marc was the general manager of Symantec and systems group product manager for Microsoft Canada.

Within a few years all of Delrina's major market focuses—fax and form software—would be overtaken or superseded by email, e-commerce and the Internet. Daily planning software remains a niche market, and the immersive 3D environment used for creating multimedia presentations has (so far) fallen by the wayside in favour of more traditional user interfaces. Symantec ended support for its final WinFax PRO product in June 2006.{{cite web |title=List of discontinued Symantec products at symantec.com |url=http://service1.symantec.com/SUPPORT/tsgeninfo.nsf/0/da154569194ac07588256e900077ca29?OpenDocument&seg=hm&lg=en&ct=us |access-date=September 27, 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081005105900/http://service1.symantec.com/SUPPORT/tsgeninfo.nsf/0/da154569194ac07588256e900077ca29?OpenDocument&seg=hm&lg=en&ct=us |archive-date=October 5, 2008

Delrina is best remembered by its former employees as an incubator for ideas and for providing industry experience to the many people who would go on to work at subsequent software and hardware companies, many in the Toronto region. A forum exists on Yahoo called "xdelrina", where many former employees of the firm continue to keep in contact with each other. | title = Yahoo! Groups: Delrina | url= http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/xdelrina/ | archive-url= https://archive.today/20130105115622/http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/xdelrina/ | url-status= dead | archive-date= January 5, 2013 | access-date = August 27, 2009}}

Software and services{{anchor|Delrina software and services}}

Forms products

Main article: PerForm, FormFlow

The company's first product was PerForm, an electronic forms software package. PerForm and its sibling product, FormFlow, (which was aimed at workgroup and enterprise-level electronic forms processing and delivery) became one of the best selling products in its market. Delrina competed against WordPerfect's Informs package, Microsoft's Electronic Forms Designer, Novell's Informs, Lotus Software's Forms and JetForm's JetForm Workflow software.{{Cite journal | last = Eckerson | first = Wayne | title = Forms work flow gains momentum | journal = Network World | page = 59 | date = May 3, 1993 | last = Radosevich | first = Lynda | title = Electronic forms technology show maturity | journal = Computerworld | volume = 28 | issue = 30 | page = 47 | date = July 25, 1994

PerForm and FormFlow were designed to allow users to create self-contained form applications which could be passed back and forth across a network. Both PerForm and FormFlow consisted of two distinct parts: "Designer", which created the form application, and "Filler", so users could submit the forms either by fax or, later, e-mail. The program could ease repetitive fill tasks, include mandatory fields, and use an input mask to accept only data entered in a valid format. The information could be saved and restored in a dBase file that used a Public-key cryptography system to encrypt the data running from client to server.

The initial version of PerForm was designed for the Graphics Environment Manager (better known as "GEM"), a DOS-based windowing system.{{cite web | title = PerForm Pro | url= http://www.zisman.ca/Articles/1991-92/Input_May92.html | access-date = August 24, 2009}} Later versions of this program, known as PerForm PRO, were designed to work under Windows 3.1 and subsequent Windows operating systems. PerForm PRO 3.0 included integration with Delrina's own WinFax software, and included a range of automation tools.

As PerForm captured the retail market, it became apparent that there was a need for electronics forms delivery and processing at the workgroup and enterprise levels. In 1994 Delrina FormFlow was released, which was designed to meet this need. One of the key features of FormFlow 1.1 was forms integration with email, and its Filler module was available for DOS, Windows and Unix.

WinFax

Main article: WinFax

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6d/WinFax3AboutScreen.jpg" caption="The "About" screen for WinFax 3.0 from 1992, depicting several of its principal programmers." alt="Delrina WinFax 3 "About" dialog with pictures of several of the lead developers about to be fed into a fax machine"] ::

WinFax enabled computers equipped with fax-modems to send faxes directly to stand-alone fax machines or other similarly equipped computers.

Several versions of the WinFax product were released over the next few years, initially for Windows 3.x and then a Windows 95-based version. WinFax PRO 2.0 for Windows was released in July 1991.{{cite web | title = Chronology of Personal Computers | url= http://www.islandnet.com/~kpolsson/comphist/comp1991jul.htm | access-date = September 3, 2009}} The Windows versions were also localized to major European and Asian languages. The company made further in-roads by establishing tie-ins with modem manufacturers such as U.S. Robotics and Supra that bundled simple versions of the product (called "WinFax LITE") that offered basic functionality. Those wanting more robust features were encouraged to upgrade to the "PRO" version, and were offered significant discounts over the standalone retail version. All of this rapidly established WinFax as the de facto fax software. By 1994 almost one hundred companies were bundling versions of WinFax in with their own product, including IBM, Compaq, AST Research, Gateway 2000, Intel and Hewlett-Packard.{{cite book | title = 1994 Delrina Corporate Report | publisher = Delrina Corp. | year = 1994

WinFax PRO 3.0 was launched in late 1992 for Windows 3.x machines. This was followed by a version for Macintosh systems. The "Lite" version of WinFax 3.0 was bundled as OEM software by a number of fax-modem manufacturers, which was later superseded by WinFax Lite 4.0 a couple of years later.

The release of WinFax PRO 4.0 in March 1994 brought together a number of key features and technologies.{{Cite journal | last = Willett | first = Shawn | title = WinFax Pro 4.0 unifies fax, E-mail | journal = InfoWorld | page = 39 | date = March 14, 1994 | title = Delrina teams with Fujitsu on PC alternative to fax machine. (WinFax Scanner) | publisher = Software Industry Report | date = June 19, 1995 | url = https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-17620904.html | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160213081016/https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-17620904.html | url-status = dead | archive-date = February 13, 2016 | access-date = August 17, 2009}}

The final Delrina-branded version of WinFax was WinFax PRO 7.0, which shipped in late 1995,{{Cite journal | last = Marshall | first = Patrick | title = WinFax Pro 7.0 speeds background transmission | journal = InfoWorld | page = 130 | date = December 1995 | last = Saarinen | first = Juha | title = WinFax Pro grows up, offers high-end features | journal = InfoWorld | page = 96 | date = April 28, 1997

By the time WinFax PRO 7.0 was being sold from retail shelves, Delrina had been acquired by Symantec.

Multimedia products

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/01/Delrina-OpusNBill-BrainSaver.jpg" caption="The product box cover for the "Opus 'n Bill BrainSaver" screensaver product" alt="The Bloom County characters Opus the Penguin and Bill the Cat emerging from a CRT computer screen, with the cat kissing a surprised-looking user on the nose"] ::

Screensavers were designed to ensure that there would be no phosphor burn-in of images left on a CRT-based screen. Delrina added sound and basic interactivity with its series of screensaver products, arguably qualifying it as an early form of multimedia.

Under Delrina several of the already-licensed cartoons brought over from their acquisition of Amaze Inc. were further developed into screensaver applications. The "Opus 'n Bill Brain Saver", which would land the company in court for copyright violations, was launched in 1993. Subsequent screensavers include a licensed version based on the first Flintstone live-action movie, and "The Scott Adams Dilbert Screen Saver Collection" which came out in September 1994.

Echo Lake

Main article: Echo Lake (software)

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f0/EchoLake_desktop.jpg" caption="The rustic virtual desktop environment for the "multimedia family album" software Echo Lake" alt="A virtual wooden desk, bookshelf, cup of coffee and other items"] ::

A notable multimedia software program produced by Delrina was Echo Lake, an early form of scrapbook software that came out in June 1995.{{cite press release | title = Delrina ships Echo Lake innovative multimedia software now available at retail stores everywhere | publisher = Business Wire | date = June 1, 1995 | url = http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Delrina+ships+Echo+Lake+%28TM%29+innovative+multimedia+software+now...-a016985085 | access-date = September 2, 2009 | archive-date = October 13, 2012 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20121013190019/http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Delrina+ships+Echo+Lake+(TM)+innovative+multimedia+software+now...-a016985085 | url-status = dead |title=My Echo Lake Scrapbook: The Story |url=http://www.kevinsteele.com/mackerel_el_story.html |access-date=September 25, 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081231200929/http://www.kevinsteele.com/mackerel_el_story.html |archive-date=December 31, 2008 | last = McGovern | first = Michael | title = Backlog | newspaper = Log Home Living | page = 159 | date = Feb–Mar 1996 | title = Delrina's Echo Lake Applauded by Computer Industry Pundits | publisher = Business Wire | date = April 3, 1995 | url = http://www.thefreelibrary.com/DELRINA%27S+ECHO+LAKE+%28TM%29+APPLAUDED+BY+COMPUTER+INDUSTRY+PUNDITS...-a016749100 | access-date = August 25, 2009 | archive-date = February 13, 2016 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160213081015/http://www.thefreelibrary.com/DELRINA%27S+ECHO+LAKE+%28TM%29+APPLAUDED+BY+COMPUTER+INDUSTRY+PUNDITS...-a016749100 | url-status = dead | title = Delrina expands presence in home consumer market with Echo Lake for Windows | publisher = Business Wire | date = February 6, 1995 | url = http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Delrina+expands+presence+in+home+consumer+market+with+Echo+Lake(TM)...-a016422647 | access-date = August 25, 2009 | archive-date = November 4, 2012 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20121104004252/http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Delrina+expands+presence+in+home+consumer+market+with+Echo+Lake(TM)...-a016422647 | url-status = dead | title = Book Capsule Review: Echo Lake | url = http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,298600,00.html | access-date = August 25, 2009 | magazine = Entertainment Weekly | date = September 8, 1995 | archive-date = December 4, 2008 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20081204235732/http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,298600,00.html | url-status = dead

List of software

Electronic forms

Multimedia

  • The Far Side Daily Planner Calendar Publisher 3.0 – September 1993
  • Delrina Intermission 4.0 Screen Saver – October 1993
  • Opus 'n Bill Brain Saver – October 1993
  • The Far Side Screen Saver Collection – June 1994
  • Opus 'n Bill On the Road Again Screensaver – September 1994
  • The Scott Adams Dilbert Screen Saver Collection – September 1994
  • Echo Lake – June 1995

Fax

  • WinFax 1.0 – December 1990
  • WinFax PRO 2.0 – June 1991
  • WinFax Lite – April 1992
  • DosFax Lite – April 1992
  • DosFax PRO 2.0 – June 1992
  • WinFax PRO 3.0 – November 1992
  • Delrina Fax PRO 1.5 for Macintosh – September 1993
  • WinFax PRO for Networks – November 1993
  • WinFax PRO 4.0 – March 1994
  • WinFax Scanner – 1994
  • WinFax PRO 7.0 – November 1995
  • WinFax PRO 7.5 (bundled with TalkWorks) – October 1996
  • WinFax PRO 8.0 (bundled with TalkWorks PRO) – March 1997
  • TalkWorks PRO 2.0 – August 1998
  • WinFax PRO 9.0 – August 1998
  • TalkWorks PRO 3.0 – August 1999
  • WinFax PRO 10.0 – February 2000

Online communications

Explanatory notes

References

Evans, David S. Microsoft, Antitrust and the New Economy: Selected Essays, 2002. p. 392. ISBN 0-7923-7667-6 Lesk, Michael Practical Digital Libraries: Books, Bytes, and Bucks, Morgan Kaufmann, 1997. p. 228–299. ISBN 1-55860-459-6

References

  1. "'Transport Canada's' IM/IT Environment 2006/2007', with a contemporary reference to the use of Delrina FormFlow".
  2. "Opus 'n' Bill Screen Saver recall ordered — from Delrina Corp".
  3. Lesk. Michael Understanding Digital Libraries. p.300 Morgan Kaufmann. 1-55860-924-5
  4. "Company History".
  5. "Cyberjack/WinComm Pro 7.0: Cyberjack Plugs in At 32 Bits".
  6. "CommSuite Part II".
  7. "Legacy JetForm/Accelio Form Products Discontinuation Notice".
  8. (August 28, 1996). "Business World: Digital family album". The Journal Record (Oklahoma City).
  9. "Symantec Corp., Form 10-K405, Filing Date Jun 26, 1996". secdatabase.com.
  10. Bertolucci, Jeff. "WinFax Pro 3.0: Sophisticated Fax Software" PC World p.86 January 1993
  11. "WinFax Pro Hits the Network, BYTE Review from February 1994".
  12. Ponting, Bob. (August 22, 1988). "Firm to Ship GEM-Based Forms Design Program". IDG Publications.
  13. Picarille, Lisa. (July 30, 1990). "Vendors delay programs due for Windows 3.0". Ziff-Davis.
  14. Peterson, Franklynn. (July 8, 1991). "Forms-handling software eats red tape for breakfast". Asbury Park Press.
  15. Mace, Scott. (August 10, 1992). "Delrina adds WinFax to PerForm Pro". IDG Publications.
  16. Buckler, Grant. (October 4, 1993). "Workflow automation: risks and benefits". Plesman Publications.
  17. Kerr, Monta. (July 20, 1994). "Electronic forms competition heats up". Plesman Publications.
  18. (November 15, 1994). "Toronto edges up while Dow surges". The Gazette.
  19. Bowen, Ted Smalley. (September 6, 1993). "Delrina revisits the Far Side". Ziff-Davis.
  20. Siegmann, Ken. (September 12, 1991). "Far Side Creatures to Invade Personal Computers". San Francisco Chronicle.
  21. Staff writer. (September 15, 1993). "Delrina release". Financial Post.
  22. Staff writer. (May 23, 1994). "''Far Side'' Screensavers on Way". Star-Gazette.
  23. Sherman, Heather. (September 26, 1994). "Delrina debuts Dilbert to delight of internet and comic strip fans". Business Wire.
  24. Reidy, Chris. (December 18, 1994). "Hits for the small screen". Boston Globe.
  25. Staff writer. (June 26, 1995). "Delrina launches Echo Lake for PCs". BridgeTower Media.
  26. Flavelle, Dana. (October 13, 1993). "Delrina teams up with MCI, Bell for fax services". The Toronto Star.
  27. (March 7, 1994). "Wincomm Pro unbundled, upgraded". IDG Publications.
  28. Loshin, Peter. (December 1995). "Delrina steps up to Windows 95". IDG Publications.
  29. (December 11, 1995). "Briefly noted". Ziff-Davis.
  30. Computing Canada "Delrina merger will mean job cuts — Symantec buys out Delrina, ensuing changes", by Monta Kerr, July 19, 1995

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