New Quicken Financial Planner Lets Users Create a Personal Financial Plan in Minutes; Step-By-Step Financial Planning Software Now Also Includes College and Life Insurance Planning

Business Wire, May 6, 1996

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 6, 1996-- Intuit Inc. (NASDAQ:INTU) today announced Quicken Financial Planner 2, a new release of its easy-to-use financial planning software.

Key new features include QuickPlan, which enables users to create a basic financial plan in minutes, and new modules that integrate college and life insurance planning into an overall financial plan. With these additions, users can create a personalized financial plan and take control of their financial future.

"Personal financial planning gives people peace of mind that their retirement and financial future are secure," said Scott D. Cook, co-founder and chairman of Intuit. "This new release of Quicken Financial Planner will empower people to create a savings and investment plan that achieves their financial goals."

Step-by-Step Process Enables Anyone to Create a Plan

A step-by-step interview guides users through a series of questions that enables them to create a financial plan. Based on answers to these questions, Quicken Financial Planner 2 creates personalized graphs, reports and action steps that provide a roadmap to a successful financial future. Users can also explore any number of "what if" scenarios to help them create the plan that is right for them. The result is a personalized saving and investing schedule that users can implement themselves or with the help of financial professionals.

QuickPlan Gives Immediate Feedback

For those who seek immediate feedback, the new QuickPlan feature focuses on the most important planning questions to deliver a quick financial plan in minutes.

College Planning Helps Parents

For parents, Quicken Financial Planner 2 also includes costs on over 1,700 colleges and universities nationwide, including tuition, room and board, and other costs. This information enables parents to plan for college expenses in the context of their overall financial plan.

Life Insurance Needs Calculated

As an additional benefit, Quicken Financial Planner 2 makes it easy for users to figure out how much life insurance they need to meet their objectives. The program uses information already entered in the user's plan to calculate whether the individual is over- or under-insured.

Access to the Internet

Included with Quicken Financial Planner 2 is a copy of the Netscape Navigator Intuit Edition, which comes with free access to the Quicken Financial Network, Intuit's rapidly expanding offering of online financial services on the World Wide Web. In addition to providing direct access to technical support, this integrated feature enables the user to purchase and download quarterly data updates for the Mutual Fund Finder, Quicken Financial Planner's database of 4,400 mutual funds. People can access the new Quicken Financial Planner internet web site at http://www.intuit.com/qfp/.

Expert Advice from Jane Bryant Quinn

At every step in the product, users can access expert advice from Jane Bryant Quinn, Newsweek and newspaper columnist and author of "Making the Most of Your Money". This advice makes the process of planning easier by clearly explaining the fundamentals of good financial planning.

A Software Leader Gets Better

In addition to the features described above, Quicken Financial Planner 2 provides additional features that show why it led the financial planning category in 1995. These are:

- Importing Quicken for Windows information to get the user started quickly;

- Printing a customized, professional-quality plan, complete with colorful graphs, reports and a personalized summary.

- Handling major retirement plans, including 401(k), IRA, 403(b), SEP, and Keogh; and

- Searching 4,400 mutual funds, as rated by Morningstar, the country's leading mutual fund research firm.

Pricing and Availability

Quicken Financial Planner 2 is available in both 3-1/2 inch floppy disk and CD-ROM formats. The anticipated street price for Quicken Financial Planner 2 is $39.95. There is also a $15 mail-in rebate included with the program for all retail purchasers, while supplies last. The product will be available at leading retail stores in the United States or directly from Intuit beginning May 6, 1996. Quicken Financial Planner 2 is available directly from Intuit for a special introductory price of $29.95, plus shipping and handling, through August 31, 1996. For more information, call Intuit at 1/800-624-8742.

Intuit Inc.

Intuit Inc., the maker of Quicken, develops and markets personal finance, small business accounting and tax preparation software and services that enable individuals, professionals and small businesses to better manage their financial lives. Through partnerships with many of the nation's leading financial institutions, Intuit offers its customers online financial services and investment information. Intuit's web site, the Quicken Financial Network (http://www.qfn.com), is an online community for Intuit customers, offering product and financial information, news and technical support assistance.

Intuit pioneered the personal finance software category with the introduction of Quicken in 1984. Today, Quicken is the best selling software application in retail stores. Intuit's Quicken family of financial planning and management products includes Quicken, Quicken Deluxe and Quicken Financial Planner -- all designed to help individuals make better financial decisions for today and for their future.