Accoona's ''Exchange Place'' Launches Revolutionary Online Pay-Per-Lead Advertising Model

Business Wire, July 20, 2006

NEW YORK -- Accoona Corp., the artificial intelligence-based Internet search leader, today launched Exchange Place, the first cross-industry online advertising platform and pay-per-lead bidding system. Exchange Place (www.exchangeplace.net) will be unveiled to the advertising industry tonight during a celebration at New York City's Hayden Planetarium.

"While the pay-per-click advertising model has served the online ad industry well, Exchange Place will offer the ultimate cost-per-action solution," said Stuart Kauder, CEO of Jersey City, N.J.-based Accoona Corp. "Given the rising demand in the advertising industry for return-on-investment accountability, we believe that the time is right for Exchange Place to take hold. The platform is the industry's first pay-per-lead bidding system for real-time qualified sales leads for both the online and offline markets."

Exchange Place goes beyond the click to deliver freshly originated, qualified and verified leads. It's an interactive cross-industry marketplace where pre-screened buyers and sellers are matched in real time. Advertisers sign up for free at www.exchangeplace.net/seller to manage lead segmentation criteria, bids and budgets. Consumers share information online or over the phone through a simple questionnaire and receive targeted product and service offers, comparison pricing, direct sales access and other services -- from up to four advertisers that submit the top bids for specific leads.

Exchange Place is already generating interest from major advertisers. "The Exchange Place pay-per-lead bidding system has the potential to provide advertisers with a better return on investment," said Steve Carbone, president of G2 Direct and Digital, formally Grey Direct. "It facilitates the market-based pricing of leads for a range of goods, services, industries and geographic markets."

How it works for advertisers/sellers:

--Select the vertical and specific consumer and geographic segmentation (e.g., life insurance, existing policy amounts, demographics, national areas, regional areas).

--Set lead qualification criteria, maximum amounts they're willing to pay per lead, and total daily and monthly budget caps. Exchange Place displays top bids in real time by lead type.

--Get matched with qualified buyers in real time when they successfully submit one of the top four bids. The leads are delivered based on selected options.

--Manage their individual campaigns online via the Exchange Place self-service console.

--Place ads on the confirmation page that the buyer sees after filling out the questionnaire -- to create the first impression, provide contact and other information, send to a product page or checkout, or any other messaging.

According to the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB), the U.S. online advertising market will reach $25.5 billion by 2010, up from $12.5 billion in 2005. Advertisers continue to migrate their budgets online, especially into search advertising, which is expected to soar to $11.6 billion by 2010. In addition, the IAB reported a 200 percent increase in online lead generation from 2004 to 2005, the fastest-growing online ad segment.

About Accoona

Based in Jersey City, N.J., Accoona uses sophisticated artificial intelligence search technologies to provide online users with a richer search experience. The company is well-capitalized and includes financial backing from private investment funds. Accoona's Chairman is Eckhard Pfeiffer, the former Compaq Computer CEO, and its investor and advisory board includes former world chess champions Garry Kasparov and Anatoli Karpov. The company has strategic business agreements with Dun & Bradstreet, Euro News, FAST Search and Transfer, GuruNet, Moreover and Yahoo!. Exchange Place, an Accoona company, is a new online advertising platform that matches buyers and sellers via a pay-per-lead advertiser bidding system. For more information, please visit www.accoona.com.

Note to media: Tonight's demonstration of Exchange Place is open to the media. A cocktail reception will begin at 5:30 p.m., followed by the formal presentation at approximately 7 p.m., at New York's Hayden Planetarium (entrance at the Weston Pavilion, Columbus Avenue and W. 79th Street). Please R.S.V.P. by contacting: Valerie Cashour, (212) 453-2239, cashourv@fleishman.com or Peter Collins, (212) 453-2395, collinsp@fleishman.com.