Atlas Venture Announces New Investment Partner; Jeff Fagnan to Join Waltham Office.

Business Editors/High-Tech Writers

WALTHAM, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 7, 2004

Atlas Venture, a leading international early-stage venture capital firm investing in communications, information technology, and life sciences companies, announced today that Jeff Fagnan will join the firm in August as a partner based in the firm's Waltham office. Mr. Fagnan will join the communications team and focus on investments in systems, components and infrastructure. He brings four years of early-stage venture capital experience to Atlas Venture, as well as substantial experience in strategic consulting at Booz-Allen & Hamilton, and in mergers and acquisitions and strategic planning at Nortel Networks.

"Bringing Jeff into the firm was an easy decision," said Axel Bichara, senior partner at Atlas Venture. "Technological innovation and entrepreneurship are at record levels and Jeff is an expert at working with visionary entrepreneurs when they are at the earliest stages of building their businesses. He practices an extremely hands-on investment approach and fits nicely into the firm, which is known for building technology leaders like SolidWorks, SpeechWorks, and Phase Forward from the ground up."

"Atlas Venture has clearly built an incredible team and an international franchise with a demonstrated, strong track record over decades in venture capital," said Mr. Fagnan. "But, just as important is the firm's position in the New England technology ecosystem with its focus on entrepreneurs and leading innovating engines. I have interacted with many of the Atlas Venture partners and companies over the last four years and welcome the opportunity to join this team."

Prior to joining Atlas Venture, Mr. Fagnan was the head of Seed Capital Partners' Boston office, and served as a principal at the firm. Mr. Fagnan's focus was on building capital-efficient businesses in the areas of connectivity infrastructure and networking convergence, including optical technologies, infrastructure appliances and software, semiconductors and new computing paradigms. Jeff is the founding and lead investor in DataPower, a pioneer in XML-aware network infrastructure; Way Systems, a leading provider of wireless point-of-sale solutions; and Polychromix, a supplier of channel management solutions for optical networks.

Prior to Seed Capital Partners, Mr. Fagnan was an associate at Booz-Allen & Hamilton, where he built strategic and operational solutions for communications, media and technology clients. At that firm, he also built corporate innovation engines and helped spin technologies out of Fortune 500 businesses. Prior to Booz-Allen & Hamilton, Mr. Fagnan worked in a variety of mergers and acquisitions and strategy roles at Nortel Networks, where he focused on broadband convergence and Internet initiatives. His work included identifying potential partners and acquisitions in the network service, OSS, and IP markets.

"This is a good move for Jeff and Atlas Venture," said Allan Wallack, an experienced serial entrepreneur who has worked extensively with both Jeff and Atlas Venture. "Jeff is a rising star in the New England venture community -- his philosophy of fewer, deeper bets and always being the first call for a CEO/Founder will continue to serve him well in his new endeavors."

Mr. Fagnan is a frequent speaker at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Harvard University, and Boston University, and is deeply involved in the commercialization of technology from the MIT Deshpande Center for Innovation and other labs throughout these universities. He earned his M.B.A., with distinction with concentrations in finance and operations, from the William E. Simon Graduate School of Business Administration at the University of Rochester and he holds a B.S. degree in management and mathematics from the University of Alaska.

About Atlas Venture

Atlas Venture is the leading international early-stage venture capital firm, investing in information technology, communications and life sciences companies. With investing offices in Boston, London, Munich and Paris, Atlas Venture divides its investments between the United States and Europe. Founded in 1980, Atlas Venture has organized six international funds, and currently manages $2.1 billion in committed capital. The Atlas Venture investment team comprises seasoned operating executives and career venture capitalists who have been deeply involved in the formation and development of more than 300 companies worldwide. For more information about Atlas Venture, go to www.atlasventure.com.