Wednesday July 28, 9:38 am Eastern Time
Company Press Release
Forbes and Audible Announce Partnership to Deliver
Magazine Content in Audio Over the Internet
NEW YORK and WAYNE, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 28, 1999--Forbes magazine and Audible, Inc. (Nasdaq:ADBL -
news) today announced an agreement that will result in the delivery of audio versions of selected content from Forbes magazine to
listeners via the World Wide Web.
Subscribers to Audible's Internet audio service at www.audible.com will have exclusive access to audio editions of Forbes
content. Starting this week, they can download the entire cover story from each issue of Forbes, as well as selected articles from
the magazine's editorial departments on entrepreneurship, technology, and management. Users will be able to listen to Forbes
stories at their personal computers, or away from their PCs with any number of AudibleReady mobile devices, such as new PC
companions powered by Microsoft's Windows CE operating system, as well as the forthcoming Rio 500 digital audio player.
The first Forbes cover story to be offered through Audible, a profile of cigarette manufacturer Philip Morris, is taken from the
magazine's August 9, 1999, issue. Audio offerings will soon be expanded to include articles from Forbes magazine's lifestyle
supplement, Forbes FYI, and its technology supplement, Forbes ASAP, in addition to original content from its Web site,
Forbes.com, and selected Forbes conferences and events.
''Our alliance with Audible further expands Forbes' presence on the Web, utilizing an exciting new platform,'' said Timothy C.
Forbes, Chief Operating Officer of Forbes.
''Our new partnership with Forbes magazine, one of the truly distinctive brands and voices of business journalism, represents an
important contribution to the growing collection of premium spoken audio available at audible.com,'' said Donald Katz, founder and
chairman of Audible, Inc. ''We are delighted to welcome Forbes to audible.com.''
Audible, Inc.'s Web site, audible.com, offers business, technology and Internet industry audio for mobile playback, including daily
selected audio digests from The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, and The Economist and Harvard Management
Update. Among the thousands of audiobooks available, the site offers hundreds of audiobooks from information age business
leaders such as Bill Gates, Guy Kawasaki, Jeff Bezos, Michael Dell and many more. The site also features a powerful collection
of Internet pundits including, Chris Shipley and Mitch Ratcliffe. With more than 16,000 hours of audio newspapers, audio
magazines, audiobooks, on-demand radio (including Marketplace, Nightly Business Report, Fresh Air, and Car Talk), speeches,
lectures, and language learning, audible.com is a leading source for premium spoken audio on the Internet.
Founded in 1995, Audible, Inc., based in Wayne, NJ, aims to combine the growing popularity of spoken audio programming with
the rapid development of commercial viability of the Internet. The company is focused on audio content sourcing, development,
packaging, secure delivery, and playback, as well as continued development of the platform, tools, services, and varied licensing
opportunities afforded by the Audible Service. The company services Internet-savvy business professionals and other consumers
whose primary needs include staying informed of critical business information and having access to the best entertainment-based
audio. Audible provides unique content services that allow customers to program their own listening time and take better
advantage of their commute and travel time by delivering premium information and entertainment when and where they need it.
Published biweekly, Forbes magazine has a total worldwide readership of more than five million. Every issue contains more than
fifty concise, original articles written for executive decision makers, about companies and the people who run them, as well as
stories about industries, finance, international business, marketing, law, taxes, science and technology, computers and
communications, investments, and starting your own business. For the past seven years, Forbes has run more advertising pages
than any other business magazine, according to the Publishers Information Bureau (PIB). Forbes, the magazine's parent company,
is a leading provider of business information for executives and affluent investors. Forbes also publishes Forbes Global, the
magazine's English-language international edition, and other publications, in addition to Forbes.com, which provides information
about business and technology for executives in the digital age.
Statement from Audible: The statements contained in this release which are not historical facts may be deemed to contain
forward-looking statements. Actual results may differ materially from those anticipated in any forward-looking statements as a
result of certain risks and uncertainties, including, without limitation, Audible's limited operating history, history of losses, uncertain
market for its services, and its inability to license or produce compelling audio content and other risks and uncertainties detailed in
the company's Securities and Exchange Commission filings. |
