Barnes & Noble, World's Largest Bookseller, Invests in iUniverse.com, Poised to be One of the World's Largest Publishers.

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 2, 1999--

Partnership Sets Plans To Liberate Publishing

Writers Published Instantly, Earn Higher Royalties, and

Books Never Out-of-Print

Barnes & Noble, Inc. today announced it has acquired a 49 percent ownership interest in iUniverse.com, the world's largest publishing portal. It is the company's first major investment in a book publishing venture. The relationship will open a new era of opportunity for new writers who can now have their books published within 30 days and earn higher royalties, and for out-of-print authors who will see their books returned to print forever.

"This investment is about giving authors with small voices the loudspeakers they need to get their works published and distributed throughout the world," said Steve Riggio, vice chairman of Barnes & Noble Inc. "Just as Barnes & Noble has put books in the hands of more readers, iUniverse.com will allow more authors to publish and distribute their work and make the phrase 'out-of-print' obsolete. We're providing iUniverse.com with the marketing power to become one of the largest publishers in the world - overnight."

"We're serving notice that the rules in publishing have changed. The current way of publishing ignores millions of talented new writers and the millions of books that are out-of-print," said Richard Tam, founder and chief executive officer of iUniverse.com. "We now have the capacity to publish 2,000 titles a month, and by next year, we'll publish tens of thousands of titles, making us one of the world's largest publishers. We have not only developed the world's most efficient publishing process, but we give authors control over their own destiny."

Mr. Tam went on to say, "The saddest secret in publishing today is that for every manuscript published as many as 20 get rejected and go unread solely due to economic reasons, reducing the diversity and selection of books available in the marketplace. In the information age, our ability to manage more titles, give voice to more authors, and provide a wider choice for more readers will finally break down the limitations of traditional publishing."

iUniverse.com has created an Internet publishing portal. This unique portal offers recognized authors and first-time writers editorial services, marketing, distribution and print-on-demand technology. It also provides distribution into every single bookselling channel available, both retail and online, insuring an author's books are always available. iUniverse.com authors also have the option to make their books available for free viewing online and for sale via multiple electronic download formats. For eBooks, authors will earn an extraordinary 50 percent royalty. "This relationship is exciting because Barnes & Noble stores are home to the largest community of readers and writers in America," said Mr. Tam.

iUniverse.com titles will also be available through barnesandnoble.com., and prominently featured throughout the site.

iUniverse.com has also cemented relationships with such other leading industry players as the Authors Guild, Writer's Digest, Ingram Books and Kinko's. Beginning November 22, more than 500 Barnes & Noble stores will feature in-store displays, books and other materials about the wealth of services provided by iUniverse.com, "The World's Largest Publishing Portal(TM)"

Publishing with iUniverse.com is easy, fast and affordable. Authors simply send two copies of their out-of-print book, or a diskette in a standard word-processing format of their new manuscript, to iUniverse.com. New manuscripts can also be submitted online. Publishing fees range from free for out-of-print books to as little as $99 for new manuscripts. Within a few weeks, the complete book is viewable online at the company's Web site, www.iUniverse.com and can be printed into an actual book on demand.

iUniverse.com titles are also listed in Books in Print, which makes them available for order through any retail bookstore or online bookseller. Orders for single or multiple copies are fulfilled quickly through Lightning Print, the Ingram Book Group's print-on-demand publishing service.

Authors on iUniverse.com

First-time author Natasha Munson approached iUniverse.com in September with her manuscript for Life Lessons for My Black Girls: How To Make Wise Choices and Live a Life You Love. She had previously submitted her book to several New York publishers about a year ago. "I still haven't even received the courtesy of a rejection letter," she said. "But iUniverse.com is making my dream a reality by publishing my book and partnering with Barnes & Noble to get it into stores nationwide this month. This has been an unbelievable experience and a breakthrough for my writing career."

iUniverse.com is now publishing Brotherhood of Murder, a book about America's extremist hate groups, by Tom Martinez. Though the book went out of print, it still remains timely, relevant and of interest to readers. Followers of these hate groups have been linked in recent months to the firebombing of Sacramento synagogues, a killing spree targeting blacks, Jews and Asians in Illinois and Indiana, and the shooting at a Jewish school in Los Angeles. The author lives in hiding for fear of his life.

"As an insider who blew the whistle on the violent nature of America's far-right fringe, Tom Martinez offers a compelling and chilling reminder of the potentially explosive nature of hate," said Abraham H. Foxman, national director of the Anti-Defamation League. "He convincingly demonstrates how racial and religious prejudice can be exploited by hate-filled extremists to serve a criminal cause. His story has a new immediacy in light of recent tragedies."

Brotherhood of Murder is being made into a Showtime Original Picture starring William Baldwin and is sold at Barnes & Noble stores.

About Barnes & Noble

Barnes & Noble, Inc. (NYSE: BKS) operates 521 Barnes & Noble and 448 B. Dalton bookstores. Barnes & Noble stores stock an authoritative selection of book titles and provide access to more than one million titles. They offer books from more than 50,000 publisher imprints with an emphasis on small, independent publishers and university presses. Barnes & Noble is one of the world's largest booksellers on the World Wide Web (http://www.bn.com), and the exclusive bookseller on America Online (Keyword: bn). barnesandnoble.com has the largest standing inventory of any online bookseller. Barnes & Noble also publishes books under its own imprint for exclusive sale through its retail stores, mail-order catalogs, and Web site.

General financial information on Barnes & Noble, Inc. can be obtained via the Internet by visiting the company's investor relations Web site: http://www.shareholder.com/bks/.

iUniverse.com

iUniverse.com, the Internet's largest publishing portal, is completely transforming the way books are published, marketed and sold. The company is the first to harness the power of the Internet and the latest on-demand publishing technology for the benefit of writers and readers. The company provides writers the opportunity to submit manuscripts online, browse books, learn about writing, participate in writers' chat rooms, and have their books marketed, distributed and sold worldwide.

iUniverse.com currently has operations in Campbell, California; Lincoln, Nebraska; New York, New York; Rochester, New York; Falls Church, Virginia; and Shanghai, China. The company employs nearly 300 people worldwide.