Avnet Inc. Announces Partnership With New B2B E-Commerce Venture Viacore.

Business Editors, High-Tech Writers

PHOENIX--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 27, 2000

--Global distributor Avnet joins other global logistics leaders Arrow Electronics, FDX Corporation, Ingram Micro, Softbank, and Tech Data to

form the first e-Business Hub for the IT Industry--

Avnet, Inc. (NYSE:AVT) today announced its strategic alliance and investing partnership with Viacore, Inc., a new transparent e-business hub that will enable rapid and cost-effective communications between trading partners in the information technology (IT) and electronic industry supply chain.

&uot;Viacore's value proposition and core competencies complement Avnet's commitment to our suppliers and customers,&uot; said Roy Vallee, Avnet's chairman and CEO. &uot;We expect a large portion of our customers and suppliers will need the robust services Viacore can provide. In addition, being an investor gives us the opportunity to be part of Viacore's strategic development.&uot;

Avnet joins fellow global supply chain leaders Arrow Electronics, FDX Corporation, Ingram Micro, Softbank and Tech Data in support of Viacore, the first e-business hub for the industry. The Viacore hub will be a global transparent agent able to facilitate pervasive, efficient, cost-effective e-business through standardized language previously developed by RosettaNet.

&uot;Viacore will greatly enhance the speed and flexibility we need to electronically communicate with our trading partners within the electronics industry in the new internet-based economy,&uot; said Vallee. &uot;We are committed to continuing our leadership position in enabling the rapid deployment and cost-effective management of the supply web.&uot;

&uot;We believe Avnet's participation in Viacore is essential to its success, due to their tremendous expertise in handling transaction volume, their industry knowledge, IT resources and leadership in global supply-chain management,&uot; said Fadi Chehade, Viacore chairman and CEO. &uot;We are pleased that Mr. Vallee and others at Avnet have lent their talents and vision to this project that will be the core of an unprecedented agreement on e-business standards.&uot;

&uot;E-business is the future,&uot; Vallee said. &uot;Companies that capitalize on the Internet by making it easy to do business online, efficiently and creatively, will emerge as the highest value providers. Avnet's global information technology expertise and emerging e-business savvy, coupled with our 'brick and mortar' assets give us a strong leadership position in the new economy.&uot;

Participation in the Viacore venture is Avnet's latest move in a series of strategic e-commerce efforts that include:

-- A new strategic alliance and equity partnership with ChinaEcom, a

private venture endorsed by the Chinese government that will

establish a Chinese e-commerce site for electronic components and

information, granting Avnet unprecedented access to the Asian

giant's $71 billion electronics market.

-- The complete and successful integration of Avnet's systems with

those of acquired rival Marshall Industries, culminating in the

launch of avnetmarshall.com, an e-commerce website that applies

the benefits of web enablement to all aspects of the electronic

components sales cycle.

-- Participation in several Web-based joint ventures: ChipCenter,

(chipcenter.com) a comprehensive business-to-business Web site

for electronics engineers and purchasers; QuestLink Technology,

(www.questlink.com) the world's largest online technical

information resource for electronics engineers; an investment in

Agile, a leading infrastructure supplier whose software enables

companies and supply chains to collaborate over the Internet and

exchange information about the manufacture and supply of products

and components; OrderZone, (www.orderzone.com) a one-stop online

business service offering hundreds of thousands of electronic

components and production supplies.

About Avnet Inc.

Phoenix, Arizona-based Avnet, Inc, a Fortune 300 company with annual sales exceeding $6.4 billion, ($9 billion proforma, including recent acquisitions) is one of the world's largest distributors of semiconductors, interconnect, passive and electromechanical components and computer products from the industry's leading manufacturers. Serving customers in 60 countries, Avnet markets, inventories and adds value to these products and provides world-class supply-chain integration services. The company's Web site is located at www.avnet.com.