BevNET.com Acquires Beverage Spectrum Magazine Acquisition Lends Further Evidence of Shift in the way Information is Consumed BOSTON, Oct. 19 /PRNewswire/ -- BevNET.com Inc. has acquired the assets of Beverage Spectrum Magazine, a wholly owned subsidiary of CSP Information Group, Inc. Both BevNET and Beverage Spectrum are leaders in the delivery of news to the beverage industry yet focus on different aspects of the business. "Since the beginning of the internet bubble in the late 1990s many major media companies have been struggling to add a profitable internet component to their portfolio," said Jack Craven, Chairman of BevNET.com Inc. "This is not your typical acquisition of internet by a print media company. This is your 'man bites dog' story and may points to an interesting trend: profitable web acquiring print," stated Mr. Craven "The acquisition, which marks a seminal event for the beverage industry, will allow BevNET.com and Beverage Spectrum to deliver a complete information and media package to the beverage industry," said John Craven, President and Editor-in-Chief. "So many people are turning to the Web for information today in favor of print, but the beverage industry is not about to give up the in-depth coverage of beverage retailing that Beverage Spectrum delivers," observed Mr. Craven. Founded in 1996, BevNET.com was created by John and Jack Craven with the intention of covering new age beverages, a category that was in its infancy at the time. Together, John and Jack have evolved BevNET.com into THE information source for the beverage industry, distributors and brand marketers alike. Adding print publishing to the operation has been a longtime desire for Jack, who previously served as Executive VP & CFO of Time Inc.'s Retail Marketing and Sales division as well as Senior VP of Operations / CFO for Jobson Publishing Corp., a leading business to business publisher. "By utilizing the strong readership of BevNET.com and the efficiencies of the internet, we can quickly improve Beverage Spectrum's circulation and vastly increase the value proposition to the reader and advertiser by using the strengths of the BevNET.com web site," stated Mr. Craven. Beverage Industry veteran Barry Nathanson, who will continue as publisher of Beverage Spectrum and has an equity position in the new publication, agrees: "There are a tremendous amount of synergies between our companies. This partnership will be a one stop shop for the industry delivering the beverage industry the immediacy of BevNET and the depth of Beverage Spectrum and giving both media outlets the ability to deliver information that allows our industry to analyze, critique, and act accordingly." BevNET provides instantaneous information for beverage distributors and beverage brand managers. Beverage Spectrum provides in-depth product, trend and research information to the beverage retailer. The partnership creates a broader reach giving the industry the first perspective that brings the supplier base and buyer base together to open the communication line between beverage distributors, beverage brand managers, and beverage retailers allowing all parties to communicate more effectively. The readership of the combined publications in unparalleled in the industry. BevNET.com is the leading beverage industry web site with approximately 200,000 monthly readers worldwide. Beverage Spectrum is the leading beverage retailer print publication with a monthly circulation of over 17,500 retailers, distributors, and brand marketers. Both companies expect the acquisition to lead to a dramatic increase in readership/viewership and note that the partnership will certainly translate into incremental reach for advertisers. "Both brands are deeply in touch with the industry, from a brand and product perspective as well as a retailer perspective," states John McKenna, Associate Publisher of BevNET.com and Beverage Spectrum. "It is almost impossible for the trade to buy the relationships and credibility that our new media outlet has with the industry. "No one publication can reach beverage marketers, buyers, and distributors like BevNET.com and Beverage Spectrum can together. Most beverage trade magazines have long term leads while BevNET.com is almost like the beverage equivalent of CNN Headline News in the industry" states Bill Sipper, Sr. Partner of Cascadia Consulting Group, a leading food and beverage consulting firm. "Beverage Spectrum is nearly the equivalent of the traditional CNN adding in depth stories, data, and critical perspective," adds Sipper. BevNET.com and Beverage Spectrum have been partnering editorially for the last year. The newly combined company anticipates no staff reductions or changes and will maintain its current offices and staff in Cambridge, MA, Manhattan, and Chicago. For more information please contact John Craven at 617-497-0062 or Barry Nathanson at 212-647-0501. DATASOURCE: BevNET.com Inc. CONTACT: John Craven, 617-497-0062, or Barry Nathanson, 212-647-0501 Web site: http://bevnet.com/

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