World Opponent Network Announces Exclusive Partnership With Prima Publishing

Business Wire, March 11, 1998

BELLEVUE, Wash.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 11, 1998--World Opponent Network (WON), the online entertainment initiative of the world's largest consumer driven organization, Cendant Corporation, and Prima Publishing, whose Prima Entertainment division is the world's largest publisher of game strategy guides, today announced an exclusive partnership that names Prima Publishing as the preferred provider of strategy guides for all games on WON's FREE online gaming and entertainment site WON.NET (http://www.won.net).

Prima will provide WON with specially created guides based on Prima's best-selling game books. These guides will be accessible in the co-branded "Hints & Strategy" section of the WON gaming site. The selection of game guides will include all top games released in 1997 such as Quake, Red Baron II, Riven, and Ultima Online, and new best-selling titles released in 1998 such as HalfLife and StarCraft. WON and Prima will also jointly produce hints and tips for all existing and future WON enabled games.

WON offers exciting features sure to appeal to new and experienced online gamers. The site differs from other online multiplayer gaming sites by offering the widest selection of content absolutely free. It also features daily news and editorial from GameSpot, the largest online source of information about PC gaming in the world, as well as professionally executed gaming tournaments, extensive download libraries, game search engine, community message boards, extensive links and research tools, and other informational and entertainment oriented content.

"Our goal with WON is to be the best all-inclusive gaming and entertainment site on the World Wide Web," stated Bill Moore, president of WON. "Prima's high quality game guides will enhance the experience on WON by providing gamers and enthusiasts with a wealth of information and hints and tips for all the top games."

"This exciting new relationship with WON provides Prima with new ways to serve game enthusiasts," said Ben Dominitz, president of Prima. "We are pleased to contribute our game know how and brand-name recognition to this hot new game site. When WON is officially launched later on in the spring, we invite our millions of loyal customers throughout the world to visit our hints & strategies area, and to enjoy WON's many other fine offerings."

WON features the combined talents of Cendant Software's industry-leading companies: Sierra, Impressions, Dynamix, Papyrus, Synergistics and Berkeley Systems, as well as games and editorial content from third-party providers. WON currently has over 30 active games from seven major developers scheduled to be live and playable before the official site launch in the spring of 1998. Games which are currently available include: Lords of Magic, Red Baron II, Civil War Generals 2, Lords of the Realm II, Outpost 2: Divided Destiny, MissionForce: Cyberstorm, 3D Ultra Minigolf, The Time Warp of Dr. Brain, Sierra Sports: Football '97 & '98, Sierra Sports: Golf, Trophy Bass 2, and Trophy Rivers, Shivers 2, Birthright, Hoyle Black Jack, Hoyle Poker, Hoyle Board Games (Backgammon, Battling ships, Checkers, Chinese Checkers, Chess, Yacht), Hoyle Cards (includes Spades, Hearts, Gin and Poker), Hoyle Casino (includes four versions of Poker: 5-card draw, 5-card draw low-ball, 7-card stud and Texas Hold'em), Power Chess and Power Chess '98. By the end of the year Sierra Sports: Skiing will be added. (Note: although the above service is free, players must have purchased the actual CD-ROM version of the above games to connect and play.)

Also, gamers may participate in one of three free online only games (which do not require the pre-purchase of a CD-ROM), YOU DON'T KNOW JACK the netshow, YOU DON'T KNOW JACK Sports the netshow and Acrophobia, by accessing Berkeley's award-winning online gaming site, Bezerk (http://www.bezerk.com) which will be linked to WON.NET. Bezerk was recently named Best Games Site by The WEB Magazine at the 1998 Webby Awards held this month in San Francisco.

Prima Entertainment (www.primagames.com) is the world's leading publisher of strategy guides for computer and console games, now with more than fifteen million strategy guides in print. Renowned for its consistently high quality, the Rocklin, Calif.-based company has captured the hearts and minds of game players as "The Most Trusted Name in Games(TM)" and continues to dominate the field it created in 1990.

Founded in 1984, Prima Publishing, the parent of Prima Entertainment, has four divisions including Entertainment, Lifestyles, Health, and Computers & Technology, and offices in the United States and the United Kingdom.

The World Opponent Network, http//www.won.net, is a free online gaming environment recently announced by Cendant Corporation of Stamford, Conn. The site celebrated its public beta launch earlier this year and will officially launch in spring of 1998. WON currently features over 20 online games targeted to both the new online gamer as well as the seasoned online veteran. WON's corporate headquarters is located in Bellevue. -0-