`The Maytag Repairman': Not So Lonely Anymore; Louisville-Based Service Net Partners With Maytag to Manage Warranty and Service Program Covering All Appliance Brands.

Business Editors

LOUISVILLE, Ky.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 30, 2000

The famed "lonely Maytag repairman" is about to get a lot busier - and not necessarily from working on Maytag-branded products. Service Net, Inc. has signed an agreement with Maytag Corporation (NYSE:MYG) to manage the appliance manufacturer's extended warranty and service contract programs, including a service plan that will cover all brands of appliances and consumer electronics, regardless of the manufacturer.

The multi-brand warranty will carry the Maytag name and will be sold to consumers through retail outlets. The program will allow retailers to sell a Maytag-branded extended warranty and service contracts on not only Maytag products, but also on any and all appliances and consumer electronic products carried by their stores.

"Customers associate the Maytag name with quality and reliability, and now that trust can carry over to other brand appliances and electronics covered by a fully-insured Maytag warranty backed by our technical support and service team," said Kevin Callahan, president of Louisville, Ky.-based Service Net (www.servicenetdirect.com).

Service Net will manage service-contract marketing and provide underwriting, claims processing, service dispatch and customer-telephone support for all service contracts sold by Maytag dealers or directly by Maytag through various after-market initiatives. Service Net also will assume management of Maytag's existing service contract portfolio which includes hundreds of thousands of customers. A $4.3 billion company, Maytag Corp. produces home and commercial appliances under the Maytag, Jenn-Air, Magic Chef and Admiral brands.

"Maytag is one of the most respected names in the appliance industry, and Service Net is proud to be a partner," Callahan said. "We'll ensure that the long-established customer trust in the Maytag product carries over to the service contract programs as well."

The warranty product Service Net will provide Maytag customers - or customers of another appliance brand who purchase the Maytag warranty - upgrades the industry-standard one-year manufacturer's warranty. The Service Net warranty will extend coverage an additional one to four years, depending on what retailers choose to offer consumers. Service Net also provides 7-day/24-hour customer service support in the years that follow the manufacturer's warranty period.

Through Service Net's data-management software, Maytag will also have access to vital customer information. Knowledge of who purchased what appliance, and when, opens up several cross-selling opportunities. For instance, someone who purchased an oven, could be a potential washer and dryer customer, and be approached via direct marketing efforts.

Service Net will manage such aftermarket sales efforts through a relationship with Accent Marketing, also of Louisville. Previously, Maytag managed its own aftermarket sales and administration in-house.

The Maytag announcement comes on the heels of Service Net's arrangement with Creative Computers Inc., the third of the nation's top computer sellers to contract with Service Net in a year.

Service Net, Inc. - which has experienced over 380 percent annual growth since its inception in 1996 - creates, markets and administers fully insured warranties and service contracts for PCs and peripherals, home-office equipment, home appliances and electronics, outdoor power equipment, and heating, ventilation and air conditioning equipment. The company provides risk management, claims processing, warranty underwriting, service contract marketing and telephone customer support.

Service Net is headquartered in Louisville, Ky., and maintains call centers in New Albany, Ind., and Zephyr Hills, Fla., and sales offices in Denver, Colo., and Laguna Hills, Calif.