MSNBC.com and The Motley Fool Form Content Distribution Alliance

Business Wire, Jan 17, 2001

Business Editors

REDMOND, Wash.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 17, 2001

MSNBC.com, (www.msnbc.com) the number one Internet news site and The Motley Fool (www.fool.com) financial education service, have entered into a content distribution agreement.

The agreement allows MSNBC.com to increase the scope of its financial news reporting by incorporating daily Fool features into its business section. The Motley Fool joins The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, Newsweek, Inside.com, and ZDnet as specialty news suppliers for MSNBC.com.

"The Motley Fool's reputation for reliable financial education and analysis delivered in a fun, friendly style -- offered in conjunction with MSNBC.com's in-depth business and daily market coverage -- gives our site a competitive edge," said Merrill Brown, editor in chief of MSNBC.com. "Offering business news content focused toward individual investors is an innovative way to position us as a leading business news provider on the Internet."

The Motley Fool will provide MSNBC.com with original reports targeted to individual investors wanting to learn more about in-depth market trends and specific companies. The Fool's award-winning website offers a wealth of personal finance and investment education, as well as company research and strategies for both beginning and seasoned investors.

"We're excited about our alliance with MSNBC.com," said David Gardner, co-founder of The Motley Fool. "The combination of MSNBC.com's number one ranking and the Fool's solution-driven financial education means we will be able to reach and teach more individual investors than ever before."

ABOUT THE MOTLEY FOOL

The Motley Fool's mission is to educate, amuse, and enrich. Begun as a newsletter serving 60 readers in August 1994, the Fool now reaches millions of people every month as it plays host to a celebrated community of individuals dedicated to helping each other make better financial decisions and improve their overall quality of life. The Motley Fool's products and services are available across a variety of media: on its Web site at www.fool.com; via its four Simon & Schuster books, all New York Times bestsellers; through its premium products, including online seminars, self-published books, and Motley Fool Research; through its syndicated weekly column, currently carried by more than 190 newspapers around the USA; via its daily "Market Minutes" and weekly "Motley Fool Radio Show," both joint ventures with Cox Radio that can be heard on more than 150 stations nationwide; and on America Online (keyword: Fool). The Fool's international website can be found at www.fool.co.uk and on America Online (keyword: FOOLUK).

ABOUT MSNBC.COM

MSNBC.com is the number one news site based on audience data tracked by the Internet measurement service Media Metrix(TM). As the leader in breaking news and original journalism on the Internet, MSNBC.com additionally delivers the best of NBC News, MSNBC Cable, CNBC and NBC Sports. MSNBC.com provides expanded content via partnerships with The Washington Post, Newsweek, The Wall Street Journal, ZDNet, MSN Money Central(TM), The Sporting News, Expedia(TM), E! Online, Pencil News, FEED magazine, SPACE.com, Science magazine, inc.com, Inside.com, Internet Broadcasting Systems and Pioneer Newspapers. MSNBC.com's innovative distribution includes delivery of broadband content on HighSpeed.msnbc.com and for Qwest, Road Runner and Excite@Home. MSNBC.com wireless content distribution is delivered through agreements with MSN Mobile, i3 Mobile and Omnisky. In addition, MSNBC.com programs interactive content for MSNBC Cable and NBC News on WebTV Plus.

MSNBC is a 24-hour cable and Internet joint venture of Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) and NBC News (NYSE: GE.)