Reed Business Information to Buy Online Lead Generation Business - BuyerZone

Business Wire, Dec 4, 2006

NEW YORK -- Reed Business Information (RBI), a leading B2B publisher in the U.S. and part of Reed Elsevier, announced today it will acquire BuyerZone.com, Inc., (BuyerZone) an online lead generation business. The closing is expected to occur on or about January 1, 2007, after the requisite regulatory approval is obtained.

BuyerZone is a leading online B2B marketplace that links prospective buyers to qualified suppliers of more than 125 business product and service categories. These include office and industrial equipment, telecom, technology, software services, human resources, financial products and retail services. Since 2004, BuyerZone has facilitated more than $5 billion worth of transactions.

The acquisition will accelerate online growth for RBI. BuyerZone's search engine marketing expertise will assist RBI in growing its marketing and editorial reach across numerous industry sectors. BuyerZone will benefit from RBI's substantial portfolio of websites, magazines, and email marketing business, as well as search engine optimization skills from Reed Business Interactive and Reed Business' global tradeshows.

Tad Smith, CEO of Reed Business Information commented: "We are pleased to acquire BuyerZone, a company with a strong track record in search engine marketing and lead generation, as a cornerstone of our online growth strategy."

Sam Zales, BuyerZone President and Chief Executive Officer adds: "We are excited to become a part of Reed Business Information. RBI's online and offline reach and resources across a broad set of industries will provide significant growth opportunities for BuyerZone, which will benefit both buyers and suppliers using our marketplace."

The Jordan, Edmiston Group, Inc. (JEGI), the New York-based investment banking firm that specializes in media and information, represented Reed Business Information in this transaction. Jefferies Broadview, a New York City-based global investment bank and institutional securities firm, represented BuyerZone for this transaction.

About Reed Business Information

Reed Business Information (www.reedbusiness.com/us) offers business professionals in the media, manufacturing, electronics, construction and retail industries more than 75 Webzines and portals, 80 market-leading business-to-business publications, directories, plus several market research, email direct marketing, and subscription data base businesses. Reed Business Information is part of Reed Elsevier (NYSE: RUK and ENL) - a world-leading publisher and information provider operating in the science and medical, legal, education and business-to-business industry sectors.

About BuyerZone

Since 1992, BuyerZone (www.buyerzone.com) has helped millions of businesses save time and money on their most essential business purchases. With more than $5 billion in business purchasing transactions facilitated through its marketplace since 2004, BuyerZone's service attracts active buyers seeking purchasing guidance across more than 125 business product and service categories. BuyerZone's free Request for Quotes service uses a dynamic matching process to connect each buyer with the most appropriate providers within a comprehensive network of more than 7,500 top local and national suppliers.