Lotus Selects Lycos as Web Portal for Lotus Notes

Business Wire, June 21, 1999

WALTHAM, Mass. and CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 21, 1999--

Global Distribution Agreement Allows Lycos and Lotus to

Market Personalized Web Content to More than

37 Million Lotus Notes Users

Lycos, Inc. (NASDAQ:LCOS), the fastest growing Internet portal and the world's largest online community, and Lotus Development Corp., the market leader in messaging and collaborative software, today announced an agreement to embed the diverse Internet tools and rich content of the Lycos Network into the desktop of Lotus Notes Release 5 (R5), the world's leading product for information management, messaging, and collaboration. This agreement extends the information and tools available on the Notes Welcome page and will offer Notes users worldwide localized news and information for each country.

The diverse Internet tools and the content of the Lycos Network will be integrated into a forthcoming version of Notes R5, and will be distributed around the world in several languages. Shipment of the new version is expected to begin in July.

The new Notes Welcome page serves as a "personal portal" linking users to many diverse information types -- including calendar appointments, e-mail, and intranet information as well as the Web. The Lycos Web content and search capabilities give Notes users access to their vital Notes information tools and Lycos Web management functions all in one convenient place. Through the co-branded "My Lycos" site, users can build their Internet start pages to display targeted and local news, weather and financial information, and then use the same personalized interface to search the Web without leaving their Notes desktops.

"This agreement advances the strong positions of both Lycos and Lotus, and represents a milestone in Lycos' global distribution strategy," said Bob Davis, Lycos CEO. "Lotus is a natural choice for Lycos because of its leadership position in enterprise collaboration. Expanding Lycos' reach to millions of Notes users is a significant market opportunity for Lycos, and adds superior utility to the Notes platform so that it will continue to outdistance the competition. The integration of the two companies' products on the desktop will provide users with the easiest portal to the Internet."

"Giving users choices is what Lotus is all about. Through our partnership with Lycos we are able to bring Notes users around the world a rich, unique and constantly changing set of Web content and services to integrate into their Notes desktop," said Eileen Rudden, senior vice president of Lotus' Communications Products Division. "Integration is a snap. With two mouse clicks any Notes Release 5 user can make Lycos part of their daily starting point."

The agreement with Lotus was finalized by Lycos as well as by Lycos Bertelsmann in Europe and Lycos Japan.

About Lycos, Inc.

Founded in 1995, Lycos, Inc. is a leading Web media company and owner of the Lycos Network, one of the most visited hubs on the Internet reaching one out of every two Web users. The Lycos Network is a unified set of Web sites that attracts a diverse audience by offering a variety of services, including leading Web navigation resources, homepage building and other Web community services and a comprehensive shopping center. The Lycos Network is composed of premium sites: Lycos.com, Tripod, WhoWhere, Angelfire, MailCity, HotBot, HotWired, Wired News, Webmonkey, Suck.com and MyTime.com. Lycos.com (http://www.lycos.com), "Your Personal Internet Guide," is dedicated to helping each individual user locate, retrieve and manage information tailored to his or her personal interests. Headquartered near Boston in Waltham, Mass., Lycos, Inc. is a global Internet leader with a major presence throughout the U.S., Europe and Asia.

About Lotus

Lotus Development Corporation, founded in 1982, is a subsidiary of IBM Corporation. Lotus sets the standard for truly innovative software products and services that reflect the company's unique understanding of the new ways in which individuals and businesses must work together to achieve success. Lotus is redefining the concept of conducting business through practical knowledge management, e-business and other ground-breaking ways of connecting the world's ideas, thinkers, buyers, sellers and communities via the Internet. Lotus markets its products in more than 80 countries worldwide through direct and extensive Business Partner channels. The company also provides numerous professional consulting, support and education services through the Lotus Professional Services organization.

1999 Lycos, Inc. - Lycos is a registered trademark of Carnegie Mellon University. All other product or service marks mentioned herein are those of Lycos or their respective owners. All rights reserved.

Lotus and Lotus Notes are registered trademarks and Notes and Domino are trademarks of Lotus Development Corporation. All other trademarks are owned by their respective companies.

EDITOR'S NOTE: All news releases and related information are available on the Internet, via Lotus Developers Central Home Page at http://www.lotus.com/developers and via the Lotus Development Corp. Home Page at http://www.lotus.com. The Lotus Home Page is an easy way to find information about Lotus and its business partners' products and services.