CMG@Ventures and Bertelsmann Ventures
Team For Investment in ONEList.com
Business Wire - January 11, 1999 10:41
ANDOVER, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 11, 1999--
Leading Provider of Internet E-Mail Communities to Tap Business
Synergies In CMGI and Bertelsmann Internet Portfolios
@Ventures III, the affiliated venture capital arm of CMGI, Inc.
(NASDAQ:CMGI), and Bertelsmann Ventures, the independent venture
capital fund of Bertelsmann AG, today announced a joint minority
investment in ONElist, Inc., the leading provider of e-mail community
services. Financial terms of the investment were not disclosed.
Founded in 1998 and headquartered in Silicon Valley, ONElist
(http://www.ONElist.com) provides free e-mail communities via the
Internet. Users can search for or subscribe to tens of thousands of
communities on different topics or create their own. ONElist has a wide
range of user created communities, on topics ranging from genealogy to
military spouse support, from Muscular Dystrophy to the pop music group
'N SYNC.
"ONEList has developed a unique service that allows online consumers to
create and promote their own email communities based on common
interests," said David Wetherell, chairman and CEO of CMGI. "ONEList's
service is highly complimentary to other companies within the CMGI family.
ONEList has already begun discussions with a number of CMGI affiliates,
and we intend to exploit these synergies further in the months ahead."
Added Wetherell, "The added bonus of this new investment is the expansion
of our relationship with Bertelsmann, already an important international
partner for Lycos. CMGI's diverse family of Internet companies, combined
with Bertelsmann's vast media properties, provides ONElist with a
tremendous opportunity to expand upon their success."
"We're very excited about ONEList's compelling service," said Jan Henric
Buettner, general partner, Bertelsmann Ventures. "The ability of online
communities to capture a large consumer base with a strong viral growth
component is one of the most thrilling phenomena of the Internet.
Bertelsmann has a long history of developing vertical community concepts
and we intend to leverage those skills, as well as the Bertelsmann affiliated
properties, to help ONEList become a very successful business on the
Web."
"This investment by CMGI and Bertelsmann represents a major validation
of ONElist, and we're thrilled to be working with companies of their stature.
This is a tremendous opportunity for us to work with their portfolio
companies to reach millions of new users, and to expand upon our
leadership in this space," said Mark Fletcher, President and CEO, ONElist.
About ONElist, Inc.
Based in Silicon Valley, CA, ONElist, Inc. is the premier provider of free
E-mail communities via the Internet. The ONElist service can be located at
onelist.com.
About Bertelsmann Ventures
Based in Santa Barbara, CA, and focusing on Internet-based investments,
Bertelsmann Ventures is the independent venture capital fund of
Bertelsmann AG, one of the world's largest media companies.
About CMGI
A recognized leader in the Internet arena, CMGI (NASDAQ:CMGI)
combines operating companies with strategic venture investments to create a
broad and diverse set of businesses delivering Internet solutions. Microsoft,
Intel and Sumitomo hold minority positions in CMGI. The CMGI Internet
Group consists of its majority-owned subsidiary companies ADSmart,
Engage Technologies, NaviSite, NaviNet, Planet Direct, Magnitude
Network and ZineZone.
The company's CMG@Ventures affiliates have ownership interests in
Lycos, Inc. (NASDAQ:LCOS), blaxxun, GeoCities (NASDAQ:GCTY),
Vicinity, ThingWorld.com, KOZ, Silknet, Chemdex, Speech Machines,
Softway Systems, TicketsLive, Critical Path, Mother Nature, Raging Bull,
Universal Learning Technology, Visto, Virtual Ink, Ancestry.com, ONEList
and Asimba. CMGI also includes CMG Direct, SalesLink, InSolutions and
On-Demand Solutions as majority owned subsidiaries in the direct
marketing, fulfillment and turn-key arenas.
Corporate headquarters is located at 100 Brickstone Square, Andover,
MA 01810. Telephone: 978-684-3600. Fax: 978-684-3814. Additional
information is available on the company's Web site, cmgi.com.
CONTACT: CMGI
Deidre Moore
(978) 684-3655
dmoore@cmgi.com
or
ONEList, Inc.
Mark Maxwell
(650) 579-3521
press@corp.onelist.com
or
Bertelsmann Ventures
Mathias Schilling
(805) 568-1514
SCHILLIM@aol.com
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