ENGLEWOOD, Colo., and SEATTLE, March 8, 2000 — TransPoint LLC and Go2Net Inc. (Nasdaq
“GNET”
) today announced an exclusive agreement that will allow users of the Go2Net Network to receive and pay bills offered by the TransPoint TM online bill payment service in spring 2000. The agreement gives users of the Go2Net Network access to both the TransPoint e-billing service and the Pay Anyone feature that was launched Feb. 1, 2000, enabling users to pay and manage all of their bills via TransPoint. Today’s agreement also includes a multimillion dollar promotional component, through which TransPoint will be marketed across several of the Go2Net Network’s most popular sites.
Initially, Go2Net will feature the TransPoint service on four of its primary properties, including Go2Net.com, Dogpile, HyperMart and Silicon Investor. The Go2Net Network was among the fastest growing of the Internet’s top 20 destinations in 1999, according to the Media Metrix Web measurement service.
Go2Net becomes the latest Web site to commit to the TransPoint service this year. Earlier this year, TransPoint announced a letter of intent with Intuit that includes distribution through AOL, Quicken and Excite. In addition, Compass Bank and InterWest Bank went live with the service in February. The TransPoint e-bills service is also available to consumers through the MSN MoneyCentral online personal finance service and the TransPoint Web site.
“TransPoint’s service adds tremendous value to the online financial capabilities we offer the millions of people who visit the Go2Net Network each day,”
said Thomas M. Camp, vice president of business development at Go2Net.
“We also believe that this sort of application encourages more frequent site visits by our users, who will be able to pay and organize all their bills in a fraction of the time, and with much less effort than it takes in the offline world.”
“As a leading Internet destination, Go2Net has made a commitment to providing its visitors the valuable resource of online bill payment,”
said Lewis Levin, president and CEO of TransPoint.
“The easy-to-use TransPoint service will empower Go2Net visitors to more effectively manage their finances.”
Through TransPoint’s online payment service, consumers can view and pay bills that arrive electronically through TransPoint, pay bills that arrive through the U.S. Postal Service, and pay nearly anyone else they want. With one fully integrated and convenient service, consumers with Internet access can pay all their bills with a few clicks of a mouse. Companies that deliver bills electronically through TransPoint benefit from targeted marketing, greater control over the billing process, and personalized customer care. Their customers benefit from an easy, convenient service that is fast, flexible and secure.
About Go2Net
Go2Net ( http://www.go2net.com/ ) is one of the Internet’s leading networks, providing consumer services, business services and enabling services. The company offers through the World Wide Web a network of branded properties and aggregated content in the categories of search and directory, personal finance, multiplayer games, small-business services and e-commerce solutions. The company also develops Internet technologies for its own network and for license to strategic partners. The Go2Net Network is home to many of the Internet’s leading vertical destinations, including MetaCrawler, Silicon Investor, the HyperMart Network, PlaySite, Dogpile and 100hot.
About TransPoint
TransPoint, established in June 1997, is a joint venture of Microsoft Corp. (Nasdaq
“MSFT”
) and First Data Corp., with Citibank as a minority equity investor. Englewood, Colo.-based TransPoint is a leader in the emerging electronic bill presentment and payment (EBPP) industry with a seamless e-bills service built from the ground up. The TransPoint system uses innovative technology and integrates easily with billers and banks’ existing payment systems. The TransPoint service is designed to be the fast, easy way for consumers with Internet access to make all of their payments online from a single, secure Web site. Consumers can pay their bills at multiple Internet locations, including the MSN MoneyCentral online personal finance service, the TransPoint Web site, and at the Web sites of participating financial institutions.
On Feb. 15, TransPoint entered into a definitive merger agreement with CheckFree Corp., a leader in electronic billing and payment. The combined technologies and relationships of the two entities are expected to accelerate moving the billing and payment process from paper to the Internet and to advance the rate at which consumers sign up for electronic billing. The transaction will be accounted for as a purchase by CheckFree, and is expected to be final in four to six months. More information about TransPoint is available at http://www.transpoint.com/ .
This announcement contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties, including those relating to the company’s ability to grow its user and advertiser base. Actual results may differ materially from the results predicted, and reported results should not be considered as an indication of future performance. The potential risks and uncertainties include, among others, the company’s limited operating history, the competitive environment in which the company competes, the early stage of the Web as an advertising and electronic-commerce medium, the company’s dependence on advertising, sponsorship and commerce revenues, the company’s dependence on strategic relationships to drive traffic to its Web sites, consumer acceptance of the company’s new products and services, the company’s ability to develop and integrate new technologies and services into its existing services and into new platforms, such as broadband, and the increased use of the Web for commerce. More information about the potential factors that could affect the company’s business and financial results is included in the company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended Sept. 30, 1999, which is on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
TransPoint is an exclusive U.S. trademark of TransPoint LLC.
The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.
Note to editors: If you are interested in viewing additional information on Microsoft please visit the Microsoft Web page at http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/ on Microsoft’s corporate information pages. If you are interested in viewing additional information on First Data, please visit the First Data Web page at http://www.firstdatacorp.com/ . If you are interested in viewing additional information on Citibank, please visit the Citibank Web page at http://www.citibank.com/ .
