<FONT COLOR="#000000" SIZE=5>Clarke & Company Warns of
Escalating Y2K Concerns

<FONT COLOR="#000000" SIZE=3>BOSTON, April 24 /PRNewswire/ -- The first
wave of Year 2000 Millennium Bug lawsuits has begun, and costs estimates for
dealing with the Y2K problem continue to rise.

"Perception is becoming reality," says Brian Delaney,  Clarke & Company
Executive Vice President and Director of its Crisis Communication Center.
"Companies need to have a communications plan in place to demonstrate to
their critical audiences that they are dealing proactively with and are in
control of the situation.  This is a classic example of how companies can
prevent a crisis from happening through planned strategic communications."

Indicators causing heightened concern include:

 -- Class-action complaints filed by end-users against software developers in
Ohio and California.

-- Nearly 200 other Y2K-related legal disputes have arisen, according to a
Gartner Group survey released April 8.

-- The cost of business disruptions and the resulting litigation is put at $1
trillion by Ascent Logic, a San Jose, CA-based systems engineering company
that helps insurance companies write Year 2000 policies.

-- That's in addition to the cost of dealing with the Millennium Bug itself.
Analysts estimate the total cost to U.S. companies for fixing the bug at
anywhere from $115 billion to $670 billion.

"The Y2K problem is real, it is pervasive and it is potentially deadly for
businesses and organizations that fail to handle it effectively," says
Delaney.  "Every business needs to do two things:

 -- Have a strategic communications plan in place and operating now to assure
your critical audiences that you are in control of the situation.

-- Be prepared for the reality that if damage to your business does result
from either real trouble or from the perception of trouble, the officers and
directors of your company can be held personally liable."

Clarke & Company's Crisis Communication Center formed a Year 2000 Team two
months ago and is helping companies to communicate how they are dealing with
the Millennium Bug.  Clarke & Company, based in Boston, has more than 20
years' experience in helping businesses and organizations deal with crisis
communications.

For more information on Clarke & Company and its Y2K programs, visit its
website at www.clarkeco.com.

SOURCE  Clarke & Company  

CO:  Clarke & Company

ST:  Massachusetts