Blackstone Group Teams with TravelCLICK; Partnership Demonstrates Stronger Focus of Ownership Groups on Managing Electronic Channels.

Business/Technology Editors

CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 17, 2002

Richard W. Gray, chairman and co-CEO of TravelCLICK, today announced a new partnership through which Blackstone Real Estate Advisors, an affiliate of The Blackstone Group ("Blackstone"), will be extending the use of TravelCLICK's electronic marketing products and competitive intelligence tools across all of its owned hotel properties.

This represents TravelCLICK's first partnership with a hotel ownership group. As a result of the proliferation of options and choices within the past year for electronically distributing hotel rooms, ownership groups have of late become more actively involved in managing net revenue from electronic channels.

Blackstone owns The Savoy Group, five luxury hotels located in the UK; Homestead Studio Suites, 112 extended stay hotels located throughout the US; the Westin St. Francis in San Francisco; the Hyatt Maui Resort in Hawaii; the Hyatt Regency in Bethesda, MD; and The Watergate Hotel in Washington D.C. Blackstone also has part ownership of Libertel Hotels and several Sofitel properties in Europe.

The Savoy Group, already a TravelCLICK client, was recognized as an "e-Marketer of the Year" finalist at the HSMAI Annual Conference in January 2002. Their hotels more than doubled GDS bookings in the past two years, thereby significantly increasing their revenues from electronic channels and their operating profits.

"Blackstone has realized that proactively managing business from the electronic marketplace significantly enhances the bottom line and the value of its hotel assets. TravelCLICK's unique electronic marketing tools, combined with the expertise of its field people, invariably translate into improved performance in the rapidly growing electronic channels," said Gray.

Within this partnership, each Blackstone-owned property will be able to utilize TravelCLICK for electronic distribution advice, personalized business reviews, e-marketing strategies and tactics, and preferred pricing on TravelCLICK's competitive intelligence and media products.

"Blackstone is committed to extending the example set by The Savoy Group to all of our owned hotel properties," said John Ceriale, Blackstone's Hotel Advisor. "We work closely with our hotel managers to ensure the best net revenue performance of our properties, and TravelCLICK's products and people are essential in that regard. The results have been impressive."

"We are delighted to provide our electronic marketing tools and on-site consultative support to such a leading ownership group as Blackstone," said Ray Cohen co-CEO of TravelCLICK. "Industry leaders are leaders because they embrace and adopt proven best practices early on. That is certainly the case here with Blackstone."

About TravelCLICK

TravelCLICK (www.travelclick.net) is the leading provider of solutions that help hotels and other travel industry suppliers improve revenue from electronic distribution channels. TravelCLICK's exclusive electronic marketing networks allow hotels and other travel related suppliers to target promotional messages to specific travel agents, consumers, and group meeting planners when they are booking travel. The company's competitive benchmarking reports provide hotels with price and booking performance information unavailable through any other source. Established in 1996 and headquartered in the Chicago area, TravelCLICK operates in more than 140 countries around the world. The company has over 6,000 clients, including national and international companies such as Accor, Air France, Avis, Best Western International, British Airways, Choice Hotels, Fairmont Hotels & Resorts, Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts, Grupo Posadas, Hilton Hotels Corporation, Hyatt Hotels & Resorts, Kempinski Hotels & Resorts, Leading Hotels of the World, Loews Hotels, Lufthansa, Marriott International, The Peninsula Group, Radisson, The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, SAS, The Savoy Group, Shangri-La Hotels, Sol Melia, Starwood Hotels & Resorts, Thistle Hotels, USAirways, Virgin Atlantic and Wyndham Hotels & Resorts.

About The Blackstone Group

The Blackstone Group, a private investment bank with offices in New York and London, was founded in 1985. Blackstone's Real Estate Group has raised four funds representing approximately $4 billion in total equity, and has made more than 110 separate investments in hotels, offices and other commercial properties with a total transaction value exceeding $13 billion. In addition to real estate, The Blackstone Group's core businesses include Mergers and Acquisitions Advisory, Restructuring and Reorganization Advisory, Private Equity Investing, Corporate Debt Investing, and Liquid Alternative Asset Management. Additional information about The Blackstone Group is available at www.blackstone.com.