Arthur Levitt Joins CCBN as Chairman of Advisory Board; Former SEC Chairman Continues Efforts to Level the Playing Field for Individual Investors

Business Wire, June 11, 2001

Business/Technology Editors

BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 11, 2001

CCBN (www.ccbn.com), the leading provider of Internet-based shareholder communications services, today announced that former U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Arthur Levitt will join CCBN effective July 1, 2001, in a senior advisory capacity.

Levitt's joining CCBN is another significant step in the company's rapid rise in the investor relations (IR) industry. In just three years, CCBN has grown to become the leading webcast provider, conducting over 3,000 conference call webcasts in a typical quarter - an increase of over 50 percent since the passage of Regulation FD and more than twice the level of other competitors in the industry. In addition, CCBN is the leading outsourced provider of the investor relations section of corporate Web sites with over 2,000 public company clients including 40 percent of the Fortune 500.

The architect and outspoken champion of Regulation FD (Fair Disclosure), Mr. Levitt served as the 25th Chairman of the SEC from 1993 until February 2001. During his tenure at the SEC, Levitt worked to protect the interests of the individual investor, which manifested itself most clearly in the passage of Regulation FD. Regulation FD, which went into effect in October 2000, mandates that public companies must broadly disseminate material, non-public information simultaneously to all investors. In the wake of Regulation FD, webcasting of company conference calls and other investment events has emerged as one of the most efficient and effective ways companies can help immunize themselves against potential selective disclosure issues.

Levitt's focus on individual investor protection complements CCBN's mission of fostering full disclosure of corporate information to all investors. "I have a passion for disclosure issues and a strong desire to continue to be involved in the communication between companies and their shareholders," said Levitt. "I am impressed by the quality and experience of CCBN's management team, its products and services, and their outstanding track record in building their business."

"CCBN's core focus is leveraging the Internet to help companies meet fair disclosure requirements in a cost-effective, turnkey way," said Jeff Parker, CEO and co-founder of CCBN. "With Arthur's guidance and input, we will continue to passionately pursue our goal of harnessing the power and reach of the Internet to revolutionize communications between public companies and the investment community."

CCBN relies heavily on the input and feedback from their clients to guide their development of current and new product offerings. The East and West Coast Advisory Boards are comprised of a team of experienced IR professionals who provide input from the front lines of IR into CCBN's new product development process. These Advisory Boards meet frequently to review new product ideas, test beta versions of products in development and provide insight into current trends in IR. East Coast members include Bob Burrows of Gene Logic, Chuck Wessendorf of Pitney Bowes Office Systems, and Jim Flanagan of IR Strategic Advisors. West Coast members include David Allen of Palm, Lisa Magleby of Cisco Systems, and Tori Robinson of AMB Property Corp.

Before joining the SEC, Levitt owned Roll Call, a newspaper that covers Capitol Hill. From 1989 to 1993, he served as the Chairman of the New York City Economic Development Corporation, and from 1978 to 1989 he was the Chairman of the American Stock Exchange. Prior to joining the AMEX, Levitt worked for 16 years on Wall Street. He graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Williams College in 1952 before serving for two years in the Air Force.

About CCBN

Co-founded in 1997 by Jeffrey P. Parker, creator of First Call, and Robert Adler, CCBN is the global leader in enabling direct communications between public companies and the investment community over the Internet. CCBN builds, manages and hosts the investor relations sections of Web sites for more than 2,500 public companies, providing detailed shareholder information through interactive, multi-media solutions. In addition, CCBN hosts live and archived quarterly conference calls for more than 3,000 corporations each quarter. Through its StreetEvents institutional event management database, (http://www.streetevents.com) and partnerships with leading retail financial portals, CCBN has created a revolutionary investor distribution network that delivers an unprecedented body of direct corporate information to the largest collective audience of institutional and individual investors in cyberspace. Headquartered in Boston, Mass., CCBN has additional offices in San Francisco and London.