Advanstar, ILX Launch Two Skincare Titles into Fast-Growing China Market.

Business Editors

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 5, 2004

Chinese-language editions of Dermatology Times

and Cosmetic Surgery Times tap surging Chinese consumer demand

for world-class clinical treatment, aesthetic services.

Advanstar Medical Economics and ILX / MANDARIN announced today the launch of two leading professional skincare magazines -- Dermatology Times and Cosmetic Surgery Times -- into the Chinese market, pledging to replicate the success of the Chinese edition of Ophthalmology Times.

"Ophthalmology Times validates our core view of China -- that rapid globalization of the vast economy is creating intense demand for world-class news and information that can better enable doctors to perform at international levels," said Jeffrey Parker, chief operating officer of ILX.

"We see a similar situation in dermatology and cosmetic surgery, which are experiencing dramatic growth as Chinese consumers demand the anti-aging and other cosmetic services that they learn about through popular media. Doctors are clamoring for up-to-the-minute information they need to meet this demand," Parker said.

The debut edition of Dermatology Times China won support from many advertisers who have long been frustrated by the lack of an effective vehicle for reaching China's skincare professionals. Advertisers include Novartis, Merck/MSD, Johnson & Johnson China unit Xian-Janssen, Pierre-Fabre's Dermo-Cosmetique unit, Dermik Laboratories, L'Oreal's La Roche-Posay unit, leading China healthcare distributor Profex and Mentor Corp.

The second issue of Dermatology Times, circulating in March, carries a preview Chinese edition of Cosmetic Surgery Times in the form of a 32-page special insert.

As with the Ophthalmology Times eyecare advertisers, major international skincare companies eager to learn more about the fast-changing China market already are turning to the two new magazines' circulation databases to commission some of the most comprehensive research ever conducted on dermatological treatments and aesthetic practices in China.

Advanstar executive vice president Alex DeBarr, who oversees Advanstar's fast-growing portfolio of professional healthcare magazines, said advertisers increasingly are looking for strong global publishing platforms that can take their brands and messages worldwide with high efficiency.

"We are actively responding to advertiser demand for global reach. Ophthalmology Times shows the success of that strategy, as the magazine is reaching doctors in more and more markets with international information and advertising delivered in their own language," DeBarr said, noting the eyecare magazine now has local-language editions in Latin America as well as China.

"Through our growing alliance with ILX, we now are applying this same strategy by launching Dermatology Times and Cosmetic Surgery Times in Chinese," DeBarr said.

Dermatology Times and Cosmetic Surgery Times publish the latest global developments in clinical dermatology, dermatologic surgery and cosmetic surgery (occuloplastic, maxillofacial, laser treatment, general plastics and facial plastics) -- all tailored to China's estimated 20,000 skincare specialists. Clinical coverage encompasses state-of-the-art technique and approach; step-by-step surgical procedures; guidelines and protocols; pre- and postoperative treatments; patient outcomes; non-invasive alternatives; and companion therapies.

Leading skin specialists welcomed the new magazines as an international community of ideas where doctors could learn from each other. "You could say this is a place where everyone can express a view, and speak their mind freely," said Wu Shaoxi of the Institute of Dermatology, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, in Nanjing.

Obtaining strong support from the Chinese skincare community, Dermatology Times has appointed as its chief medical editor one of China's most prominent dermatologists, Professor Qin Wanzhang, Deputy Chairman of the Chinese Dermatology Association and Chairman of the Dermatology Committee of the Chinese Association for the Integration of Traditional Chinese Medicine with Western Medicine. The Cosmetic Surgery Times Editorial Board is chaired by Professor Zhang Disheng, renowned in the profession as the "father of plastic surgery" in China.

Dermatology Times will be published nine times in 2004 and its companion title Cosmetic Surgery Times will be shipped quarterly. The titles have 7,500 readers -- 5,000 dermatologists and 2,500 cosmetic surgeons. Over the coming year circulation is forecast to build to 10,000 dermatologists and 5,000 cosmetic surgeons.

About ADVANSTAR MEDICAL ECONOMICS:

Advanstar Medical Economics, the largest independent healthcare publisher in the United States, is a unit of Advanstar Communications Inc., a worldwide business information company serving specialized markets with high quality information resources and integrated marketing solutions. Advanstar has 100 business magazines and directories, 72 tradeshows and conferences, numerous Web sites, and a wide range of print and electronic direct marketing, database and reference products and services. Advanstar serves targeted market sectors in the automotive, beauty, e-learning, call center, digital media, entertainment/ marketing, healthcare, fashion & apparel, manufacturing and processing, pharmaceuticals, powersports, science, telecommunications and travel/hospitality industries. The Company has more than 1,400 employees and currently operates from multiple offices in North America, Latin America, Europe and Asia.

About ILX / MANDARIN:

ILX is a pioneer in the development of globally focused independent publications and business-to-business marketing services targeting China's rapidly advancing healthcare sector. The company's controlled-circulation magazines and marketing supplements, professional events and market research collectively forge a direct communications link between healthcare advertisers and the Chinese professionals they target. ILX, founded in 2000 and operating from Shanghai, Hong Kong and North Carolina, publishes Chinese editions of Ophthalmology Times, Dermatology Times and Cosmetic Surgery Times in alliance with Advanstar Medical Economics, the largest independent healthcare publisher in the United States.

EDITOR'S NOTE: In the company name ILX / MANDARIN, a vertical line (pipe symbol) should appear between ILX and MANDARIN. This symbol may not appear properly in some systems and has been replaced with a forward slash (/) in this release.