The news begins!Entertainment Publications, Inc. to Offer InfoSpace Electronic Promotions Services to Local Merchants Nationwide InfoSpace services will be offered to Entertainment Publications, Inc.'s (Entertainment) rapidly growing base of 275,000 merchant locations through Entertainment's 400+ merchant sales and service employees; these services will enable merchants to deliver targeted local electronic discounts and promotions to wide range of Internet, wireless and other devices
BELLEVUE, Wash. and TROY, Mich., Sep 14, 2000 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- InfoSpace (Nasdaq: INSP chart, msgs), a leading global provider of cross platform merchant and consumer infrastructure services, and Entertainment Publications, Inc. (Entertainment), the leading marketer of discounts and local merchant promotions, today announced an agreement where Entertainment will offer InfoSpace's electronic promotions to local merchants, including its current base of over 275,000 merchant locations. These merchants represent over $10 billion in combined Entertainment promotions-driven consumer transactions annually.
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Entertainment, best known for its flagship product the Entertainment(R) book, will offer these services in Entertainment's 150+ local markets through its 400+ member merchant sales and service organization. These services will provide merchants with access to millions of local customers via a wide range of internet, wireless and other devices through InfoSpace's more than 3,100 premier Web sites that reach over 90% of all Internet users and its affiliate network of leading wireless carriers including Verizon Wireless and AT&T Wireless. InfoSpace's services will be offered with Entertainment's comprehensive promotions network enabling merchants to deliver targeted local electronic discounts and promotions to a wide range of Internet, wireless and other devices. This agreement is subject to financing, which must be approved by InfoSpace's board of directors.
"Enabling our merchants to deliver geographically relevant electronic discounts and promotions via the Internet and mobile devices for the products and services that consumers are looking for at any given moment represents a fantastic opportunity for Entertainment Publications. This will forever change the way our merchants drive consumer traffic through their doors," said Alan Bittker, President and CEO of Entertainment. "We are excited to have the opportunity to leverage InfoSpace's established network of PC's and wireless devices reaching millions of consumers around the world."
"The delivery of electronic discounts and promotions to wireless devices and Web sites represents an enormous opportunity for local merchants and service companies who, until now, have not been able to leverage the Internet to drive customer traffic," said Naveen Jain, chairman of InfoSpace. "The key to mobile commerce is to leverage wireless Internet technology to drive mobile users to offline, 'brick and mortar' retailers and service companies where 90% of customer spending, amounting to over $3.7 trillion, is conducted annually."
About InfoSpace
InfoSpace is a leading global Internet information infrastructure services company. InfoSpace provides commerce, information and communication infrastructure services to wireless devices, merchants and Web sites. InfoSpace's affiliates include a network of wireless and other non-PC devices including PCs, cellular phones, pagers, screen telephones, television set-top boxes, online kiosks, and personal digital assistants. These include relationships with AT&T Wireless, Intel, Ericsson, Nokia, Mitsui and Acer America. InfoSpace's affiliate network also consists of more 3,100 Web sites that include AOL, Microsoft, Disney's GO Network, NBC's Snap, Lycos, DoubleClick and ABC LocalNet, among others.
InfoSpace's recent announcement that they have entered into an agreement providing for the acquisition of Go2Net (Nasdaq: GNET chart, msgs) positions the company to tap the market for broadband wired (DSL and cable) and broadband wireless (2.5G and 3G) services such as interactive gaming, television and other entertainment services. In addition, the announcement brings full back end payment processing to InfoSpace's existing commerce services, allowing InfoSpace to offer everything a merchant needs to conduct the entire lifecycle of a transaction, one of the key drivers of mobile commerce adoption.
About Entertainment Publications, Inc.
Entertainment Publications, Inc. is the leading marketer of discounts and local merchant promotions. Best known for its Entertainment(R) books which are sold in over 150 markets across the United States, Canada and Australia, Entertainment's books and its entertainment.com website offer "2-for-1" and "50% off" discount offers on restaurants, hotels and leisure activities. In 1999, over eight million households purchased The Entertainment Book(R). In addition, Entertainment also owns and distributes the Sally Foster(R) Gift Wrap, Summer Vacation(TM), Gold C(R) and Entertainment(R) Values product lines through its network of schools, community groups and corporate employee clubs. Entertainment also produces hundreds of customized, private-label discount programs and promotions for major national consumer marketing companies including Amoco, General Motors, Sam's Club and Verizon Wireless. Entertainment employs more than 1,300 people and is headquartered in Troy, Michigan. Entertainment is owned primarily by The Carlyle Group, a leading global investment firm.
This release contains forward-looking statements relating to the development of the Company's products and services and future operating results, including statements regarding the Company's agreement with Entertainment Publications, Inc., that are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected. The words "believe," "expect," "intend," "anticipate," variations of such words, and similar expressions identify forward-looking statements, but their absence does not mean that the statement is not forward-looking. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to certain risks, uncertainties and assumptions that are difficult to predict. Factors that could affect the Company's actual results include the progress and costs of the development of our products and services and the timing of market acceptance of those products and services. A more detailed description of certain factors that could affect actual results include, but are not limited to, those discussed in InfoSpace's Annual Report on Form 10-K, in the section entitled "Factors Affecting InfoSpace's Operating Results, Business Prospects and Market Price of Stock." Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this release. InfoSpace undertakes no obligation to update publicly any forward-looking statements to reflect new information, events or circumstances after the date of this release or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.
Source: InfoSpace
Contact:
Adam Whinston of InfoSpace, 425-201-8946, or
adam.whinston@infospace.com
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