Amazon.com becomes Exclusive Bookseller in Excite's topic-based Channels
SEATTLE, WA and REDWOOD CITY, CA (July 7, 1997)--Excite, Inc. (NASDAQ:XCIT) and Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN), the largest online bookseller, today announced that Amazon.com will make a multi-million dollar Internet advertising buy on Excite. The two companies have also established a strategic relationship where Amazon.com will be Excite's exclusive bookseller integrated throughout Excite's channels.
The three-year relationship combines Excite's core competencies in distribution and programming with Amazon.com's strengths in bookselling and editorial content to offer consumers the opportunity to buy topic-related books while browsing Excite's channels. Throughout Excite's channels pages, Excite will offer users links that will take them directly to the related Amazon.com search results page. The full range of links is expected to be in place in the fourth quarter of 1997. Amazon.com's advertising will begin running immediately throughout Excite's popular topic-based channels at http://www.excite.com.
"Coming right on the heels of our partnership with Ticketmaster, Amazon.com is another partner who sees value in our large audience base and rich channel environment. Amazon.com has chosen to offer their content expertise in book selection and editorial content to provide a valuable experience to the Excite network user," said George Bell, president and CEO, Excite. "The Web has established itself as a valuable medium for consumers searching for all kinds of information, including books. The value of delivering best-of-breed content with Amazon.com delivers on our promise of consistently providing the best content available for Excite's customers."
First time ever - Amazon.com extends availability of book selections and editorial content For the first time ever, Amazon.com's editorial staff will create original content specifically for a site not their own. Amazon.com's editors will select books for each of the relevant topic-based channels within Excite. For example, users browsing the Arts & Entertainment channel will also be able to browse a selection of critically acclaimed and best-selling books about Arts & Entertainment, as well as browse reviews and editorial content about each book. The book summaries provided by Amazon.com will be uniquely created for Excite's channels. "We are bringing together the unique benefits of our Web sites and services to further enhance our users' shopping and navigation experiences," said Jeff Bezos, president and CEO of Amazon.com. "As Excite is one of the major points of distribution on the Web, we are delighted to work with Excite to offer this convenient access to our huge selection of books and outstanding editorial content to Excite's users."
Pricing and Availability
Amazon.com's book recommendations and editorial content are expected to be in place late this summer. The content will be available for free to Excite's users throughout Excite's channels at http://www.excite.com.
About Amazon.com, Inc.
Amazon.com, Inc. (http://www.amazon.com), Earth's Biggest Bookstore, is the leading online retailer of books, offering a catalog of 2.5 million titles, easy-to-use search and browse features, email services, Web-based credit card payment and direct shipping to customers. Amazon.com has virtually unlimited online shelf space and can offer customers a vast selection through an efficient search and retrieval interface.
About Excite, Inc.
Founded in 1994, Excite, Inc. is one of the Web's most popular networks. The Excite Network consists of four of the Internet's leading brands: Excite (http://www.excite.com), WebCrawler (http://webcrawler.com), Excite Travel by City.Net (http://city.net) and Magellan (http://www.mckinley.com). Excite, Inc. is committed to providing consumers with the most comprehensive network of directory and search services online. Excite offers topic-based channels of information where consumers can find topical news and content, reviews and guides, bulletin boards, chat and search. WebCrawler offers consumers simple, but powerful online search solutions. Excite Travel by City.Net offers travelers the Web's most comprehensive travel resource for travel planning, complete with destination information and transaction capabilities. The Magellan Internet Guide offers a guide of 'green light' or safe Web sites on the Internet. Based in Redwood City, Calif., Excite, Inc. (NASDAQ: XCIT) has strategic relationships with America Online, Inc., Intuit Inc., Tribune Company, CUC Investments Inc., Apple Computer, Inc. and Netscape Communications Corp.
Forward-looking statements in this release are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Investors are cautioned that such forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties, including and without limitation, risks relating to consumer acceptance of the companies' proposed personal finance channel; the consummation of Intuit's investment in Excite; the ability of Excite to realize sustained increases in users resulting from its recent advertising campaign; the ability of Excite to experience increases in traffic from AOL, Netscape and other online and Internet access providers; the demand for advertising on the companies' proposed personal financial channel, as well as continued increases in the number of companies advertising on Excite's current services and on the Web generally; the commercial acceptance and success of new "gateways" to the Web such as WebTV; the viability of the Internet as a commercial medium; continued acceptance of the companies' respective products and services; technological changes; governmental regulations, including but not limited to those relating to content on and usage of the Internet and the Web; general economic conditions; and other risks detailed in Intuit's and Excite's most recent annual and quarterly reports on Forms 10-K and Forms 10-Q (as amended), on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
This announcement contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties, and actual results may differ materially from predicted results. Potential risks and uncertainties include, among others, Amazon.com's limited operating history, the unpredictability of its future revenues and risks associated with capacity constraints and management of growth. More information about factors that potentially could affect Amazon.com's financial results is included in the company's final prospectus dated May 15, 1997, as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Amazon.com and Earth's Biggest Bookstore are service marks of Amazon.com, Inc. All other names are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of their respective owners.