ADSTW Adstar Wts 12/16/2004 (MM)

AdStar and CityXpress Join Forces to Extend Marketplace Technology to Newspaper Classifieds AdStar to Integrate and Market CityXpress' Technology Capabilities, Helping Publishers Respond to Online Competitors in Their Local Marketplaces MARINA DEL REY, Calif. and VANCOUVER, B.C., Aug. 30 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- AdStar, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADSTNASDAQ:ADSTW) today announced an agreement with CityXpress Corp. under which the companies will integrate their products and offer a complete solution to help newspapers e-commerce enable their online classified ads. As a result of the agreement, AdStar will be able to provide newspapers with a new paid tier of transaction-enabled classified advertising services, benefiting both advertisers and readers. The CityXpress features, including fixed price and best offer functionality, will empower AdStar's newspaper customers to offer online e-commerce products that more effectively compete with offerings from eBay, craigslist and other new entrants into publishers' local Web marketplaces. The new services complement AdStar's other Web-based ASP services. CityXpress' components allow AdStar to deliver an additional value-added service to existing clients. Advertisers that have created, scheduled and paid for their classified ads using AdStar's Web-based ad transaction technology will have the ability to enhance their online ads with e-commerce transaction capabilities. Using the new technology, newspaper advertisers will be able to sell their merchandise for a fixed price or accept a best offer from an online buyer. Buyers can complete the transaction online using CityXpress Fulfillment, paying for their purchases with a credit card, debit card or an electronic check through AdStar's EdgCapture online payment software. This new technology provides an additional revenue-generating opportunity for AdStar and its newspaper customers, while attracting new advertisers and buyers to newspapers' Web sites that might otherwise use competitive online alternatives. "During the past two years, CityXpress has been involved in the implementation of more than 200 event auctions that generated more than $46 million in revenue for newspapers," said Leslie Bernhard, president and chief executive officer of AdStar. "CityXpress has a proven platform that is bringing together publishers, advertisers and consumers in unique online auction marketplaces. By incorporating CityXpress' technology into our suite of e-commerce tools and services, we can empower our newspaper clients to compete effectively with eBay and other auction venues, while generating new advertisers, more traffic and incremental revenue through their online operations. The technology allows newspapers to compete directly with online auction sites by converting their 'read-only' online classified ads sections into virtual online marketplaces with a variety of e-commerce features and click-to-buy functionality." CityXpress' auction and online event technology is appropriate for consumer-to-consumer transactions, as well as continuous business-to-consumer and business-to-business marketplaces. The company's core technology includes the following applications: * XpressAuction: A full newspaper solution that allows newspapers to directly manage every aspect of their online auctions, including item maintenance, advertiser proofs, a fully-paginated print-ready catalog, online bidding, payment processing and management reporting. * GetAwayXpress Travel MarketPlace: A travel specialty marketplace that aggregates travel items from dozens of newspaper markets into a common auction site that is promoted as a single event auction. "CityXpress is the only company to offer newspapers a comprehensive online strategy supported by a technology platform that provides a common user experience across the key components of a local online marketplace -- event and specialty auctions, transaction-enabled online display ads, and online classifieds," said Phil Dubois, president and CEO of CityXpress. "Access to AdStar's newspaper clients, which represent the 'Who's Who' of the publishing industry, will significantly extend the reach of our technology. Working together, we can allow newspapers to integrate a new buying and selling channel for advertisers, by converting classified ads into dynamic marketplaces that are trusted and user-friendly." AdStar's suite of e-commerce services includes AdStar's Web-based classified ad transaction technology; XML Gateway, which allows newspapers to "reverse publish" existing print ad content and offer a variety of online and print classified advertising packages and "up-sell" opportunities; and EdgCapture, an automated payment processing solution, and remote and online ad-transaction services that allow publishers to integrate print and online classified advertising initiatives. Recently, AdStar added to its e-commerce suite, Innovectra's ActivClassifieds Directory local search product and Data Based Ads next generation Internet advertising product, SmarterAds(TM). About CityXpress CityXpress (http://www.cityxpress.com/), the leading supplier of online auctions for the newspaper industry, has pioneered event auctions for newspapers since 2001. CityXpress works with newspapers throughout the United States, Canada and Europe, to stage local auctions through its hosted software and on-site sales and customer support services. The company currently provides services to newspaper companies such as Knight Ridder, MediaNews Group, Cox Enterprises, McClatchy, CanWest Global, Lee Enterprises, Scripps Howard, Freedom Newspapers, the New York Times Company and the Northcliffe Newspaper Group. CityXpress is headquartered in Vancouver, BC and Seattle. In 2004, CityXpress announced a strategic relationship with Knight Ridder, the nation's second largest newspaper publisher, to be the exclusive provider of online auctions for its newspapers. About AdStar, Inc. AdStar, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADSTNASDAQ:ADSTW) is the leading provider of e-commerce transaction software and services for the advertising and publishing industries. AdStar's proprietary suite of e-commerce services includes remote ad entry software and web-based ad transaction services, as well as payment processing and content processing solutions that are provided through its Edgil Associates subsidiary, the industry's largest supplier of automated payment processing services. AdStar's ad transaction infrastructure powers classified ad sales for more than 40 of the largest newspapers in the United States, the Newspaper Association of America's bonafideclassifieds.com, CareerBuilder, and a growing number of other online and print media companies. EdgCapture, Edgil's automated payment process solution, is currently employed by call centers at more than 100 of the nation's leading newspaper and magazines. AdStar is headquartered in Marina del Rey, Calif., and its Edgil office is located in North Chelmsford, Mass. For additional information on AdStar, Inc., visit http://www.adstar.com/. Forward Looking Statements This release contains forward-looking statements concerning the business and products of the company. Actual results may differ from those projected or implied by such forward-looking statements depending on a number of risks and uncertainties including, but not limited to, the following: historical business has already matured, new online business is unproven and may not generate expected revenues, and Internet security risks. Other risks inherent in the business of the company are described in Securities and Exchange Commission filings, including the company's annual report on Form 10-KSB. The company undertakes no obligation to revise or update any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this release. For more information, please contact: Jeff Baudo of AdStar, Inc., +1-310-577-8255, ; or media, Kevin Wilson, +1-513-885-5520, , for AdStar, Inc.; or Peter de Souza of CityXpress, +1-604-638-3825, , or Angie Frazier, +1-206-689-8505, , for CityXpress. DATASOURCE: AdStar, Inc. CONTACT: Jeff Baudo of AdStar, Inc., +1-310-577-8255, ; or media, Kevin Wilson, +1-513-885-5520, , for AdStar, Inc.; or Peter de Souza of CityXpress, +1-604-638-3825, , or Angie Frazier, +1-206-689-8505, , for CityXpress Web site: http://www.cityxpress.com/ Web site: http://www.adstar.com/

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