Philips Broadcast and PRIMEDIA's IndustryClick Announce Alliance for Online Auction Site; New Philips Broadcast `Digital Auction Network' to be Available Through Digibid

Business Wire, April 10, 2000

Business/High-Tech Editors

LAS VEGAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 10, 2000

Philips Broadcast and Digibid, the online industry auction unit of PRIMEDIA's (NYSE:PRM) IndustryClick, have formed a strategic alliance whereby the two companies will jointly develop a Philips auction site to sell Philips broadcast and professional video equipment using Digibid technology.

"Philips Broadcast's choice of IndustryClick's Digibid is a cornerstone relationship on the supply side, and provides an extraordinary opportunity for Digibid members to reinforce our position in the marketplace," said Tim Andrews, president and chief executive officer of IndustryClick.

Jeff Rosica, vice president and general manager, Philips Broadcast, North America said, "The Philips Broadcast Digital Auction Network website is designed to give our customers great deals on professional and broadcast video equipment by bidding on overstocked, discontinued, demo and used gear."

"Philips Broadcast is continually looking for new methods to bring our products and system solutions to our customers. We believe that business-to-business e-commerce, especially in the area of auctions, is one of the newest, most innovative sales methods available today. When searching for a possible strategic alliance, we discovered that most of the companies focused on our industry that we found on the web were still at the `science fair' level. Only one group currently stood out from the rest, and that was Digibid and IndustryClick. Their technologies offer Philips, and our customers, the ease and speed that we all look for when selling and buying on the Internet," Rosica observed.

"Our user base is comprised of highly qualified professional equipment buyers who have quickly grown to appreciate our Internet auction format," added Matt Brosious, IndustryClick's vice president e-commerce. "We are delighted to be joining Philips in building what will become the central on-line marketplace for broadcast and production equipment. Philips brings state-of-the-art digital video equipment to our growing membership. The site will provide broadcasters, production companies and manufacturers with a great venue for remarketing equipment backed by industry leaders," Brosious said.

As part of the alliance, IndustryClick will create a web site at www.bid4philips.com, which will provide on-line broadcast equipment shoppers with access to industry deals on Philips Broadcast's innovative line of digital technology products (www.broadcast.philips.com). The site will be "Powered by Digibid." The pact also involves creation of a Philips Broadcast category within the Digibid Auction Network (www.digibid.com) to provide Digibid users with access to Philips Broadcast products.

"Customers also benefit from the backing of a multi-billion dollar international company standing behind its products," Rosica noted. "Philips is extremely enthusiastic about selling high-end gear in the on-line auction environment. It's an augmentation of our direct sales force and an additional tool for our customers," Rosica said. "We are very pleased to have Digibid as our strategic partner in this exciting new venture."

About PRIMEDIA and IndustryClick's Digibid

PRIMEDIA is a targeted media company, reaching business-to-business and consumer audiences through print, Internet, live events, video and radio. The company had 1999 sales of $1.7 billion. Most recently, PRIMEDIA and CMGI, Inc. announced the formation of a strategic alliance to jointly develop several of IndustryClick's business-to-business vertical on-line communities, including digital entertainment, where IndustryClick's Digibid is the premier online auction site in the entertainment technology field.

Founded in 1998, Digibid (http://www.digibid.com) is a real-time interactive auction site specializing in the sale of professional audio and video production, post production and broadcast gear, and high-end musical instruments. Digibid uses the Internet and its innovative technologies to conduct auctions in a live, easy-to-negotiate, business-to-business format, providing a guarantee to both buyers and sellers. The unique money-back guarantee to buyers, the lack of hidden reserves and the IndustryClick relationship makes Digibid the trusted e-commerce leader in the entertainment technology. The site currently serves 1.2 million page views and receives nearly 65,000 unique visitors per month.

IndustryClick(TM) builds and operates business-to-business vertical online communities for niche industries. The company's communities include TelecomClick(TM) (www.telecomclick.com), MarketingClick(TM) (www.marketingclick.com), Media Central (www.mediacentral.com), AgriClick(TM) (www.agriclick.com), and Digibid(TM) (www.digibid.com). Formed in April 1999, IndustryClick is based in Princeton, NJ and has offices in Kansas City, MO, Chicago and Connecticut.

About Philips

Philips Broadcast is a world-leading provider of advanced digital system solutions for Service and Network providers in broadcasting and video distribution. The broad professional product portfolio includes a comprehensive range of television cameras, studio and compression equipment, conditional access systems and transmission systems for broadband cable networks to deliver a full array of interactive services. A flexible customer support program and active involvement in the bodies setting tomorrow's entertainment and information delivery standards makes Philips a natural partner for the digital broadcast era.