Internet Access: America Online and Intuit Launch New Mortgage Area in AOL's Industry-leading Personal Finance Channel

Edge: Work-Group Computing Report, July 20, 1998

America Online, the world's leading Internet online service, and Intuit Inc. Monday announced the launch of the new Mortgages area featuring QuickenMortgage in the Real Estate Center within AOL's industry-leading Personal Finance Channel.

The launch of Intuit's QuickenMortgage on AOL is part of the three-year, multi-million dollar agreement between America Online and Intuit announced by the two companies in February.

In the new Mortgages area, Intuit's QuickenMortgage tools now offer AOL members easy access to expert mortgage editorial content, as well as the ability to prequalify, comparison shop and apply for a mortgage online from a set of the nation's top lenders.

Through a simple online interview process, AOL members can calculate whether it is beneficial for them to refinance their current mortgage, and also get up-to-date mortgage rates and information available to them locally.

"Our partnership with AOL brings a leading online mortgage service the leading consumer Internet online service, providing big wins for consumers and access to millions of online customers for our participating financial institutions," said Bill Harris, Executive Vice President of Intuit. "This extends the reach of QuickenMortgage and Quicken.com to many new consumers, and provides them apples-to-apples comparisons of mortgages from 11 different lenders - helping them to find the mortgage that best meets their needs."

Barry Schuler, President of AOL Interactive Services added, "As our members continue to play more active roles in managing and planning their financial future, we are working to provide them with the best information available. Researching and applying for a mortgage can be a daunting task, but through America Online's and Intuit's shared commitment to ease-of-use and convenience, we believe that the process is now easier through AOL than in the off-line world."

In February, Intuit and AOL announced an alliance that made Intuit a key provider of financial content in AOL's Personal Finance Channel, and also the primary source of original programming for the Personal Finance Web Channel on AOL's Website, AOL.COM, the most visited consumer site in cyberspace from the home.

Under that exclusive agreement, Intuit will offer much of the personal finance content found on its popular Website Quicken.com, on AOL.COM, allowing AOL.COM to offer all Web users easy and convenient access to the comprehensive financial tools, content and programming found at Quicken.com.

AOL's Personal Finance Channel offers the most comprehensive suite of financial tools and information available in cyberspace.

With more than five million regular users, more than three times as many users as the top three Web-based financial sites combined, AOL's Personal Finance Channel enables members to research and trade stocks and mutual funds, conduct their online banking, get the most up-to-date business and market news, access detailed financial data, and chat with other members about market trends and financial information.

The Channel maintains over eight million active investment portfolios, with 11,000 new portfolios added every trading day, and provides AOL members with more than 80 million stock quotes per trading day -- more than six times the typical daily total just two years ago.

Launched in March, the AOL Real Estate Center contains many of the most respected names in the real estate, mortgage and loan industries.

The Real Estate Center offers members top-notch information in one convenient place. It is comprised of a main screen and five categories, Looking, Selling, Renting, Moving, and Mortgages, to quickly give AOL members easy and direct access to loan information, financial calculators, and over a million home listings, among other resources.

The Personal Finance Channel also offers access to financial information from popular sources such as Business Week, Intuit, Realtor.com, Bloomberg, Standard & Poor's, Hoover's, MarketGuide Zacks, Disclosure, Morningstar, Reuters, Investor's Business Daily, TheStreet.com, The Motley Fool and Sage.

And the Personal Finance Channel enables members to do their taxes, research and trade stocks and mutual funds, conduct their online banking, handle insurance matters, get the most up-to-date business and market news, access detailed financial data and chat with other members about market trends and financial information.

America Online Inc., based in Dulles, is the world's leader in branded interactive services and content. America Online Inc. operates two worldwide Internet online services: America Online, with more than 12 million members; and CompuServe, with approximately 2 million members. America Online Inc. also operates AOL Studios, the world's leading creator of original interactive content.

Other branded Internet services operated by America Online include AOL.COM, the world's most accessed Web site from home; AOL NetFind, AOL's comprehensive guide to the Internet; AOL Instant Messenger, an instant messaging tool available on both AOL and the Internet; and ICQ, an instant communications and chat technology on the Internet.