ThomasNet to Launch Call Tracking Service Powered by eStara; Leading Industrial Search Engine Adds Value-Added Service to Prove ROI to Advertisers

Business Wire, Nov 1, 2005

RESTON, Va. -- eStara (www.estara.com) - the first VoIP-based call tracking provider -- today announced a partnership with ThomasNet (www.ThomasNet.com), the world's largest industrial search engine, to provide free-call tracking numbers to its clients including manufacturers, distributors and industrial service providers.

Currently, ThomasNet plans on introducing the service to a select number of customers as a value-added feature. "We're delighted to provide this free service to our clients to help them better measure the quality traffic they are enjoying from ThomasNet.com," said Pat Daloisio, Director of Strategic Initiatives, Thomas Industrial Network.

"We know that more than 9 out of 10 industrial buyers go online first when looking for products and services. A good portion of our clients' business is initiated online, and completed offline. This is difficult to track for anyone," continued Daloisio. "eStara tracks every phone call generated, which gives our clients a complete picture of ROI."

Because it is built on eStara's proven VoIP platform, eStara's Track the Call (www.trackthecall.com) is faster and less expensive to deploy and is more robust and reliable than traditional switch-based call tracking services. "We wanted to feel comfortable that we would not be putting our advertisers at risk of losing leads," said Daloisio. "eStara's VoIP infrastructure and network reliability made us feel confident that we were choosing the right provider."

In addition to tracking inbound phone activity, the eStara service offers coast-to-coast local and toll-free coverage with the largest local number inventory in the industry and provides real-time reporting and provisioning.

"As the leading industrial search engine, ThomasNet has a well-deserved reputation for delivering results to their suppliers. They recognize that they have an obligation to their customers to provide them with best-of-breed technology and unparalleled service," said Cid Jenkins, Vice President of Business Development for eStara. "We're very pleased that ThomasNet has chosen eStara to provide them with this service."

About ThomasNet(SM)

ThomasNet (www.ThomasNet.com) brings together industrial buyers and sellers nationally, regionally, and locally. For industrial buyers, ThomasNet.com is the one-stop destination that enables them to find the exact product, service or supplier they need, at the exact time they need it. Through ThomasNet.com, buyers also have instant access to the detailed information they need to make a purchasing or specifying decision, including line-item product details, supplier product catalogs, CAD drawings, and more. For industrial suppliers, ThomasNet.com delivers powerful Internet marketing solutions that help suppliers grow their business online by not only driving qualified industrial traffic to their websites but converting that traffic into buying customers. ThomasNet's complete range of online catalogs, CAD drawings, and e-commerce solutions help suppliers deliver the detailed information buyers need, want and expect on the web. ThomasNet is part of Thomas Industrial Network, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Thomas Publishing Company, LLC.

About eStara:

eStara (www.estara.com) develops business-to-consumer communications services for large enterprises, media companies, online directories and search engines that improve communication and collaboration, increase revenue, and enable clients to attract and retain more online customers.

eStara's Push to Talk service is the most widely deployed "click to call" service in the world with over 3,000,000 users in 113 countries. The company serves more than 350 global enterprises across multiple industries including directory and on-line publishers and lead generation companies, financial services, retail, travel and hospitality, real estate and automotive.

eStara's Track the Call (www.trackthecall.com) service provides a flexible, scalable call tracking and monitoring service that supports a variety of revenue models, including pay per call and subscription with the largest inventory of local numbers in the industry. eStara call tracking technology is used by search engine and directory publishers including ThomasNet, Amazon.com's A9.com and Verizon's Superpages.com.