Apple and Amazon.com Deliver the Computer Hardware Goods Online, Reports Keynote; Several Leading Computer Hardware Sites Unprepared for the Holiday Rush; Dell is the Only ''Top Three'' Site in BOTH Online Service Levels and Customer Experience.

SAN MATEO, Calif. -- Keynote Systems (Nasdaq:KEYN):

--New Competitive Intelligence Details How Leading Online Computer Hardware Sites Compare in Customer Experience, Responsiveness and Reliability

--Apple is Number One in Site Responsiveness and Reliability; Several Leading Sites May Be Turning Away Customers During Peak Periods with Poor Site Reliability and Responsiveness

--Amazon.com is Ranked Number One in Customer Experience, Dell Top Site in Customer Acquisition Success

New competitive intelligence from Keynote Systems (Nasdaq:KEYN), The Internet Performance Authority(R), shows Amazon.com receiving the highest customer satisfaction rankings from online consumers shopping for computers and peripherals, but being edged out by Dell in terms of success in online customer acquisition. Keynote also reports that several leading computer hardware retailers may be unprepared to handle the upcoming holiday rush.

According to the Keynote Customer Experience Rankings for Computer Hardware Web Sites study, Amazon.com and Dell are the top sites in the computer hardware retail industry in terms of delivering a positive online customer experience. Keynote's second annual study of customer experience at computer hardware retailer sites is based on research with 2,000 customers as they interacted with one of 10 leading Web sites that offer computer hardware or peripherals.

A companion study, the Keynote Service Level Rankings for Computer Hardware Web Sites, is the first to benchmark overall site reliability and responsiveness for the computer hardware industry. The study found that many leading computer hardware sites had a difficult time handling customer load during the "Back to School" sales period, indicating a general unpreparedness for the coming holiday sales season. One in 12 customers visiting several leading computer hardware retailer sites was unable to complete a transaction without errors during peak periods during the "Back to School" sales season. The Keynote service level study is based on over 6,500 measurements of site responsiveness and reliability taken from each site over a four-week period in August and September 2005.

Keynote evaluated the Web sites of the following companies: Amazon.com (Nasdaq: AMZN), Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL), Best Buy (NYSE: BBY), CompUSA, Dell (Nasdaq: DELL), Gateway (NYSE: GTW), HP (NYSE: HPQ), Lenovo, PC Connection (Nasdaq: PCCC) and Sony (NYSE: SNE).

"The slow downs and errors that some computer hardware sites displayed during peak periods should be distressing to the industry as the holiday season approaches," said Ben Rushlo, manager of professional services with Keynote. "As holiday ad campaigns gear up and aim to drive customers online, there is serious question whether some computer hardware retail sites can handle the influx."

Keynote reported that the online computer hardware industry as a whole lags behind the online retail industry in terms of ability to handle customer capacity. Although the leading sites in the industry demonstrate excellent site reliability, with 99.5% availability, there is a large gap between the best performing and worst performing sites. In fact, the sites of two major brands that were tested in the study demonstrated just 92% reliability, which translates into 1 in 12 customers having problems reaching their site or performing a shopping transaction. During peak periods, reliability issues could frustrate an even greater number of customers. One well-known manufacturer had a 32% slowdown at its site during peak periods, and another retailer had a 30% slowdown in page loading during peak periods.

In terms of site reliability and responsiveness, as measured in the Keynote Service Level Rankings for Computer Hardware Web Sites, the Apple, Best Buy and Dell sites performed best.

Keynote Service Level Rankings - Site Responsiveness

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 1  Apple
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 2  Best Buy
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 3  Dell
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    Keynote Service Level Rankings - Site Reliability

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 1  Apple
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 2  Sony
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 3  Best Buy
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In an examination of the competitive landscape and online competition for customers in the computer hardware industry, the Keynote Customer Experience Rankings for Computer Hardware Web Sites study found Amazon.com and Dell to be the leading sites in the industry. The rankings are an overall measure of online customer experience based on evaluation of more than 250 metrics.

Keynote Customer Experience Rankings
        Computer Hardware Web Sites

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 1  Amazon.com
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 2  Dell
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 3  CompUSA
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Amazon.com, the nation's largest e-tailer, consistently leads the industry in terms of the online experience the site provides customers, and performs well across the board in all customer experience categories including site design and the ease of its purchase process. However, competitor sites that focus more heavily on sales of computer and peripheral products, such as Dell and CompUSA, are strongly competitive with Amazon.com in driving customer intent to purchase on their sites.

The top predictor of success in driving customer purchase intent is success in satisfying customers during the product search and comparison process. This process can also generate the most customer frustration, driving down likelihood to purchase.

"Customers really demand a smooth search and comparison process for computer hardware and peripheral products," said Dr. Bonny Brown, director of research at Keynote. "In fact, a lack of perceived guidance in choosing and comparing computer products is the customer's top frustration."

One in four (25%) prospective customers say they would turn to a competitor site because they did not receive enough guidance in comparing and selecting a computer product. One in five customers (20%) would turn to a competitor site because they want a broader selection of products, and one in five (26%) would do so to find a better price.

"In general, customers like the selection they find at reseller sites such as CompUSA and PC Connection, but like the guidance and comparison tools they find on manufacturer sites such as Dell," said Brown. According to the study, computer hardware manufacturers Gateway and Dell perform best in the computer search and comparison process.

The Keynote Customer Experience Rankings for Computer Hardware Web Sites and Keynote Service Level Rankings for Computer Hardware Web sites, which may be purchased together or separately, provide in-depth competitive analysis of the computer hardware industry online and contain hundreds of additional data points and a detailed analysis of study findings.

For an abstract about the Customer Experience study of Computer Hardware Web sites: http://www.keynote.com/downloads/cem/Keynote_ComputerHardwareCE05.pdf

For an abstract about the Service Level study of Computer Hardware Web sites: http://www.keynote.com/downloads/slm/Keynote_ComputerHardwareSL05.pdf

For more general information about both studies: http://www.keynote.com/solutions/ci_computerHardware.html

Customer Experience Management

Keynote's customer experience management (CEM) services offer both competitive intelligence studies and custom engagement services examining consumer attitudes and behavior on the Web. To learn more about Keynote's CEM solutions, visit: http://www.keynote.com/solutions/cem_syndicated_research.html

Service Level Management

Keynote's service level management (SLM) solutions provide enterprises with the tools to align IT and e-business goals. To learn more about Keynote's SLM solutions, visit: http://www.keynote.com/solutions/service_level_management.html.

About Keynote

Founded in 1995, Keynote Systems (Nasdaq "KEYN"), The Internet Performance Authority(R), is the worldwide leader in e-business performance management services. Over 2,100 corporate IT and marketing departments and 14,000 individual subscribers rely on Keynote's growing range of measurement and monitoring, service level and customer experience management services to improve e-business performance by reducing costs, improving customer satisfaction and increasing profitability.

Keynote Systems, Inc. is headquartered in San Mateo, California and can be reached at www.keynote.com and in the U.S. at 650-403-2400.

Keynote, The Internet Performance Authority and Perspective are registered trademarks of Keynote Systems, Inc. Other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. (C) 2005 Keynote Systems, Inc.