IDG Books Worldwide Enlists Ask Jeeves to Bring For Dummies Content to the Web

Business Wire, Oct 5, 1999

EMERYVILLE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 5, 1999--

IDG Books Worldwide Adopts Ask Jeeves' Corporate Question

Answering Service To Power the Dummies Help Desk

Ask Jeeves, Inc. (Nasdaq:ASKJ) today announced that IDG Books Worldwide (Nasdaq:IDGB) will use its Question Answering Service to offer consumers a faster and easier way to access technology-related information on the Web.

IDGB will use Ask Jeeves to help launch its new Dummies Help Desk, which will initially offer regularly updated ...For Dummies technology content, including Internet navigation, PC troubleshooting and software applications.

"Similar to Ask Jeeves, IDG Books' mission is to make it easy for people to understand complex topics, products and information," said Frank Vaculin, senior vice president and general manager of the Corporate Question Answering Service. "By using Ask Jeeves' intuitive question answering model, IDGB is expanding and enhancing the ...For Dummies online presence and extending its quick, fun and insightful approach to learning."

For Dummies is IDGB's flagship brand, with more than 400 active technology, business and consumer lifestyle titles, and over 70 million books in print. Through the Ask Jeeves service, visitors to www.dummies.com can ask questions in plain English, such as "How can I build my own Web page?" or "How can I upgrade the memory on my PC?" and be directed to relevant content in the ...For Dummies technology series. Visitors interested in more in-depth solutions will also be able to buy books online, creating a comprehensive service for consumers looking for fast, easy answers.

"As the technology market continues to flourish with new products and features, consumers are often left with unanswered questions," said Brenda McLaughlin, senior vice president of IDGB's Internet group. "By combining the ...For Dummies ability to demystify complicated subjects, with Ask Jeeves' capability to quickly connect consumers to relevant answers online, we hope to make it extraordinarily easy for people to find answers to their questions."

IDGB joins a growing list of companies in the technology market that use Ask Jeeves' Corporate Service to enhance e-business initiatives, including Compaq Computer Corporation, Dell Computer Corporation, E

RADE, Iomega Corporation, Micron Electronics,
Oxygen.com and Toshiba Corporation. Subscribers to the Corporate
Question Answering Service can both license the Ask Jeeves knowledge
bases supporting Ask.com and enlist Ask Jeeves to develop customized
knowledge bases linking to existing Web content.

     About Ask Jeeves, Inc.

     Ask Jeeves provides natural-language question answering services
for consumers and companies on the Web by allowing users to ask
questions in plain English and be directed to Web sites containing the
answer. The Consumer Question Answering Service at Ask.com makes it
easier for people to quickly find relevant information, products and
services online. The Corporate Question Answering Service, which sets
the standard for customer interaction on the Internet by providing
Web-based businesses with question answering products and services
that humanize the online experience, helps companies manage electronic
commerce and online customer service initiatives. Both services
leverage Ask Jeeves' proprietary technology, using knowledge bases
containing questions and answers to connect consumers to answers. The
knowledge bases are designed to become more intelligent with use and
can be integrated together to create a question answering network. Ask
Jeeves, Ask Jeeves for Kids and Ask.com are trademarks and service
marks of Ask Jeeves, Inc. For more information visit
http://www.ask.com or call 510/985-7400.

     About IDG Books Worldwide

     IDG Books Worldwide, Inc. (Nasdaq:IDGB), headquartered in Foster
City, Calif., is a leading global knowledge company with a diverse
portfolio of technology and consumer book brands, computer-based
learning tools and Web sites. IDGB's best-selling brands include For
Dummies(R), 3-D Visual(R), Bible, Cliffs Notes(TM), Frommer's(R),
Betty Crocker's(R), Weight Watchers(R), Webster's New World(TM), and
JK Lasser(TM). The company has more than 4,000 active titles, plus
translations in 36 languages around the world. More information about
IDGB is available from the company's SEC filings or by visiting the
company Web site at www.idgbooks.com. IDGB is a subsidiary of
International Data Group, Inc., a leading global provider of
information technology media, research, conferences and expositions.

     This news release may contain projections or other
forward-looking statements regarding future events or the future
financial performance of the Company that involve risks and
uncertainties. Readers are cautioned that results or events discussed
in these statements may differ materially from actual future events or
results. Readers are referred to the documents filed by Ask Jeeves
with the Securities and Exchange Commission, specifically its recent
S-1 registration statement, which identify important risk factors such
as the Company's limited operating history, history of losses and
anticipation of continued losses, potential volatility of quarterly
operating results, and other risks that are contained in the Company's
reports and documents filed from time to time with the SEC.

     Note to Editors: Ask Jeeves, Ask Jeeves for Kids and Ask.com are
trademarks and service marks of Ask Jeeves, Inc.