WeatherBug Turns Online Advertising on Its Head, Giving Consumers Power to Select Ads They Want to See; One of the Internet's Top News/Information Sites Debuts 'Sponsor Select' Capability.

GAITHERSBURG, Md. -- A new form of interactive advertising gives consumers the power to select the ads they want to see. This unique and straightforward online advertising model, called Sponsor Select(TM), was introduced today by WeatherBug (http://www.weatherbug.com/). WeatherBug is an online software application that streams live local weather data and forecasts to more than seven million registered users. It is one of the Internet's most popular news/information sites, according to Jupiter Media Metrix (November 2001). At launch, nearly 50 advertisers have signed on to participate in the program.

"With Sponsor Select we are reinventing the relationship between the advertiser and the consumer. This is quite literally a silver bullet for advertisers," said Andy Jedynak, Vice President, Business Development for AWS Convergence Technologies, which owns and operates WeatherBug and the weather network that supports it. "When people have the power to choose the advertising they see, sponsors benefit because they pay only when users select to view their ad and they get more qualified leads. In addition, our research shows that users prefer to have control over what ads they see," he added.

Under the new program, consumers who download WeatherBug are asked to select their sponsor from a list of choices during the required registration process. WeatherBug users can then preview and accept their chosen sponsor company and its advertisement, or go back and select another.

Once the WeatherBug application is up and running, the selected sponsor's ads will be displayed during the first 24 hours of usage via a patent-pending format called the BrandWrap(TM). A BrandWrap seamlessly integrates the sponsor's advertising message and the weather content together. This format dramatically aids brand recall to as high as seventy percent, according to AWS user surveys.

New users also receive a welcome e-mail message from WeatherBug in which the sponsor's ad is embedded. In total, advertisers in the Sponsor Select program reach consumers a minimum of four times - at the time they confirm their choice of sponsor, as the WeatherBug application downloads, once the WeatherBug software runs and in the confirmation email.

"Our Sponsor Select campaign generated extremely qualified leads -- the results were tremendous," said Craig Smith, Director, Business Development for Service Magic. Service Magic, a WeatherBug sponsor, is a leading online marketplace that connects homeowners and property managers with prescreened and customer-rated contractors, handymen and maids. "We have benefited from numerous WeatherBug advertising platforms. With our BrandWrap, we were able to target a specific user base -- this has been very successful. And the Sponsor Select campaign not only generated a higher number of leads, but generated leads that were highly qualified," he added.

For more information about WeatherBug advertising opportunities, contact Shane Lundy at slundy@aws.com or (301) 258-8390 x1627.

About AWS Convergence Technologies, Inc.

AWS Convergence Technologies, Inc. (http://www.aws.com/) owns and operates the largest network of weather stations in the world. This real-time network gathers comprehensive, up-to-the-second weather information from more than 5,000 communities and powers the company's various products and services, including: WeatherBug(TM), an online weather service that provides live neighborhood conditions to more than seven million PC users; WeatherNet for Broadcast, which delivers real-time weather information to more than 80 million US households through partnerships with 105 local television stations; WeatherNet for Education, which provides engaging weather information and educational tools to schools and colleges, including an innovative set of online lesson plans and software called WeatherNet Classroom; and AWS Data Services which uses AWS' unique weather network and software to provide high- value solutions for vertical industries such as energy, retail, and transportation.

    Contact:    Steve Rubel    CooperKatz & Company    212-455-8085    srubel@cooperkatz.com    Andrea Martone    CooperKatz & Company    212-455-8016    amartone@cooperkatz.com 

Contact: Steve Rubel, +1-212-455-8085, or srubel@cooperkatz.com or Andrea Martone, +1-212-455-8016, amartone@cooperkatz.com - both of CooperKatz & Company

Website: http://www.weatherbug.com/ http://www.aws.com/