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Webby Awards Set Stage for First Annual Business Awards

With Finalists Announced Today

BMW’s Mini USA Site Leads With Three Nominations

http://www.webbyawards.com/businessawards/finalists.html

SAN FRANCISCO, Oct. 29 /PRNewswire/ — Providing powerful proof of how the
web continues to transform American business, The International Academy of
Digital Arts & Sciences today unveiled an impressive and diverse list of
finalists for The 1st Annual Webby Business Awards.

The Webby Business Awards honor companies that excel at using the web as a
mature tool to achieve critical business goals. The awards are produced by The
Academy, which also presents the annual Webby Awards, now in their eighth
year. The Academy launched the Webby Business Awards last fall as a separate
awards program aimed at recognizing the best business practices online.

Spotlighting both powerful blue-chip companies like UPS http://www.ups.com (Best
Cost-Cutting), Sprite Remix http://www.spriteremix.com (Best Food & Beverage), and
Cisco Systems http://www.cisco.com (Best IT & Technical Services) and tenacious
upstarts like POM Wonderful http://www.pomwonderful.com (Best Branding & Design) and
Orange Exposure http://www.orangeexposure.com (Best Online/Offline Experience), the
roster of finalists reveals how companies of all sizes and in all industries
have built profits, increased market share, and reduced costs by making the
web a pillar of their business.

A list of all finalists in more than 19 categories can be found below and
online at: http://www.webbyawards.com/businessawards/finalists.html.
The Webby Business Awards are judged by members of The Academy including
Guy Kawasaki, Clement Mok, Red Burns, Howard Rheingold, and Anita Roddick.
Judging is based on strategic criteria (objective, innovation, market
situation, resources, success) and creative criteria (content, structure &
navigation, visual design/branding, functionality, interactivity). All final
votes are tabulated by PricewaterhouseCoopers to insure fairness and accuracy.

"Online business has become so sophisticated and matured so significantly
that it was necessary to create a separate awards program specifically devoted
to recognizing the best in business on the web," said Tiffany Shlain, founder
and creative director of The Webby Awards. "By showcasing what works, The
Webby Business Awards will play an important role in advancing best
practices."

"The finalists for The 1st Annual Webby Business Awards demonstrate that
the web is no longer just one small part of a business plan," said Maya
Draisin, the executive director of The Academy. "Instead, the web has become a
driving force for overall strategy, positively impacting the bottom line and
dramatically changing the way companies of all sizes do business."

Leading the list of finalists is BMW’s Mini USA http://www.miniusa.com, home of
its wildly popular Mini Cooper, which was nominated in three
categories — Best Automotive, Best Branding & Design, and Best Online/Offline
Experience.

Four other sites received more than one nomination including:
— eDiets http://www.ediets.com for Best Healthcare Site and Best Customization
— Southwest Airlines http://www.iflysw.com for Best Travel & Tourism Site and
Best Cost-Cutting
— Salesforce.com http://www.salesforce.com for Best IT Site and Best CRM Site
— KidBuilding http://www.kidbuilding.org, the building services site for the
Boy & Girls Club of America, for Best Cost-Cutting and The "Good
Deeds" Award

The "Good Deeds" Award recognizes the most effective non-profit or
cause-related site. In addition to KidBuilding http://www.kidbuilding.org, finalists
in this category are March Of Dimes http://www.marchofdimes.com, and Mercy Corps’
site for aid to Iraqi families http://www.mercycorps.org/Iraq.

While entries are not currently being accepted for The 2nd Annual Webby
Business Awards, the Academy is accepting entries for The 8th Annual Webby
Awards — recognizing sites that visitors go to daily for information,
entertainment, community, products and services. For more information, please
visit http://www.webbyawards.com/main/submit/index.html. The final deadline
for submissions for The 8th Annual Webby Awards is December 19, 2003.

About the Webby Awards

Founded in 1996, The Webby Awards is the leading international honors for
consumer Web sites and individual achievement in technology and creativity.
The International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences selects the nominees,
winners, and presents the awards event. Sponsors of The 8th Annual Webby
Awards include media partners Business 2.0, Fortune and Fortune Small Business
magazines; Event partners PricewaterhouseCoopers and Nielsen//NetRatings;
Official Sponsors The Creative Group, IDG, Semaphore Partners, Comstock
Images, and Rackspace Managed Hosting. For more information visit
http://www.webbyawards.com/.

About the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences

The International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences is dedicated to the
creative, technical, and professional progress of the Internet and evolving
forms of interactive media. The Academy’s goal is to assemble a brilliant
panel of leading new media experts, visionaries, journalists, and luminaries
to propel the Internet and Interactive Technology into the future. The Academy
is an intellectually diverse organization that includes over 480 members such
as musicians Beck and David Bowie, Internet inventor Vint Cerf, political
columnist Arianna Huffington, Real Networks CEO Rob Glaser, "The
Simpsons"creator Matt Groening, "Smart Mobs" author Howard Rheingold, Oracle
chairman Larry Ellison, and The Body Shop president Anita Roddick. Members
also include web developers, internet experts and technology writers and
editors from publications such as The New York Times, Business 2.0, Fortune,
Spin, Fast Company, Travel + Leisure, the Los Angeles Times, Dwell and AdAge.
For more information, visit http://www.iadas.net.

2003 WEBBY BUSINESS AWARD FINALISTS:

Automotive:
Autobytel http://www.autobytel.com
Edmunds http://www.edmunds.com
MINI USA http://www.miniusa.com

Creative Services:
IDEO http://www.ideo.com
Organic http://www.organic.com
randommedia http://www.randommedia.co.uk

Financial Services:
Advanta http://www.advanta.com
BankOne http://www2.bankone.com/presents/banking/demonew/
Wells Fargo http://www.wellsfargo.com

Food & Beverage:
Campbell’s & NFL Tackling Hunger http://www.chunky.com
Krispy Kreme Intranet - Not for Public Access
Sprite Remix(TM) http://www.spriteremix.com

"Good Deeds":
KidBuilding - B&GCA Building Services http://www.kidbuilding.org
March Of Dimes http://www.marchofdimes.com
Mercy Corps 2 Million in 2 Months for Iraq Campaign (2 x 2)
http://www.mercycorps.org/iraq

Healthcare/Pharmaceuticals:
ediets.com http://www.ediets.com
ehealthinsurance.com http://www.ehealthinsurance.com
Pfizer.com http://www.pfizer.com

Information Technology/Technical Services:
Cisco Systems http://www.cisco.com
Gateway eSupport http://support.gateway.com
salesforce.com http://www.salesforce.com

Marketing & Communications:
Crispin Porter + Bogusky http://www.cpbgroup.com
Brandchannel.com http://www.brandchannel.com
Slack Barshinger http://www.slackbarshinger.com

Media/Entertainment:
AdCritic http://www.adcritic.com
NYTimes.com http://www.nytimes.com
NHL.com http://www.nhl.com

Professional Services:
Career Journal http://www.careerjournal.com
Deloitte http://www.deloitte.com
LexisONE http://www.lexisone.com

Retail:
BEHR http://www.behr.com
iTunes Music Store http://www.apple.com/itunes/store
Shopping.com http://www.shopping.com

Telecommunications:
FreeConference.com http://www.freeconference.com
Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA) http://www.tiaonline.org
Verizon.com http://www.verizon.com

Travel/Tourism:
Fairmont Hotels & Resorts http://www.fairmont.com
Southwest Airlines http://www.iflyswa.com
Travelocity http://www.travelocity.com

HONORABLE MENTION CATEGORIES

Branding & Design:
HP Public Web Site http://www.hp.com
MINI USA http://www.miniusa.com
POM Wonderful http://www.pomwonderful.com

Cost-Cutting/Operational Efficiency:
KidBuilding - B&GCA Building Services http://www.kidbuilding.org
Southwest Air http://www.southwest.com
UPS http://www.ups.com

CRM/Loyalty & Retention:
PeopleSoft http://www.peoplesoft.com
salesforce.com http://www.salesforce.com
The Mazda Dealer Analysis Portal http://digital.mazdausa.com

Integration of Online & Offline Experience:
MINI USA http://www.miniusa.com
Orange Exposure http://orangeexposure.com
Wisk http://www.wisk.com

Product Customization/Personalization:
eDiets.com http://www.ediets.com
NikeiD http://www.nikeid.com
Yahoo! http://www.yahoo.com

Sales Lead Generation/Increased Sales:
Bankrate.com http://www.bankrate.com
coolsavings.com http://www.coolsavings.com
GM Buypower 5.0 Web site http://www.gmbuypower.com

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