Synacor to Offer Experian Credit Report Services as Part of Online Subscription Bundles Delivered Through Internet Access Providers

Business Wire, March 4, 2003

Business Editors/High-Tech Writers

BUFFALO, N.Y.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 4, 2003

Synacor, the leader in online content provisioning for Internet access providers, today announced a new deal with Experian(R) Consumer Direct, the pioneer in online delivery of direct-to-consumer credit reports and services, to deliver its products through Synacor's Internet access customers. Synacor, which provides aggregated premium content and subscription delivery infrastructure through ISPs, MSOs and telcos, will begin offering Experian Consumer Direct's online credit monitoring service to its customers in early April. Experian's online properties currently receive more than 10 million visitors monthly.

"Experian is one of the big success stories in consumer online subscriptions and we are very pleased to be able to offer their online properties to our Internet access provider customers," said Ron Frankel, president and CEO of Synacor.

"Strategic partnerships have contributed significantly to our tremendous growth over the last five years," said JB Orecchia, senior vice president of Experian Consumer Direct. "Our alliance with a leading online service provider such as Synacor allows us to reach and educate a new group of consumers by bundling our credit products through their service."

Synacor's Portelus(TM) platform enables access providers to increase revenue by offering content and value-added services that their subscribers might otherwise purchase elsewhere. Synacor's robust provisioning platform enables the integration of both video and non-video content and services from multiple content providers. Using the Portelus platform, access providers can customize their offerings into different subscription tiers and bill for content access along with their monthly service charge, much like the cable TV industry. Unified registration, single sign-on and integrated billing make the experience seamless for their subscribers. Synacor's end-to-end solution includes a wide menu of licensed content, integration and unification system, and a brandable and customizable portal framework.

The Online Publishers Association reports that U.S. consumers spent $975 million for online content in the first nine months of 2002, up 125 percent from the year prior.

About Synacor

Synacor (www.synacor.com) brings the cable television model to the Internet by enabling access providers to offer basic and premium content subscription packages to their customers in a compelling and easy-to-use manner. The company's end-to-end solution helps narrowband, broadband and wireless access providers to quickly deploy these value-added services and recognize an immediate positive impact on customer retention and revenues per subscriber. Synacor's Portelus platform delivers the combined strength of a flexible, brandable Internet portal framework, a robust provisioning engine, a unified back end, and a menu of standard and premium content from the industry's top providers. With offices in Buffalo, New York and Los Angeles, Synacor powers a national network of customers.

About Experian Consumer Direct

EXPERIAN(R) CONSUMER DIRECT gives consumers quick, easy and inexpensive access to their credit histories. The division was created in 2002 when Experian combined CreditExpert, its consumer credit management group, with ConsumerInfo.com, the largest provider of online credit reports and other credit-related information to consumers. Experian Consumer Direct's Internet properties, which include ConsumerInfo.com, CreditMatters.com, FreeCreditReport.com, QSpace.com and CreditExpert.com, receive more than 10 million visitors monthly. In 1996, it was the first U.S. Company to offer consumers online access to credit reports, and went on to pioneer online delivery of three-bureau credit reports and lender-style credit scores. The company has delivered more than 1.5 million scores in the past year alone. Its innovative three-bureau report provides consumers access to their complete credit history from their Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion files in seconds. Experian Consumer Direct enjoys prominent co-branded partnerships with companies such as Yahoo!, MSN, EarthLink, LendingTree, Quicken, E-LOAN, Homestore, Etrade, Autobytel and Lycos. The company is part of GUS plc (London Stock Exchange: GUS.L).