CNN Interactive Launches Japanese Web Site, CNN.CO.JP.

Business Editors and High-Tech Writers

ATLANTA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 4, 2000

Makes Asahi.com Content Available on CNN.CO.JP, CNN Interactive's

First Asian-Language Web Site

CNN Interactive today launched CNN.CO.JP, CNN's first Asian-language news Web site. The site combines CNN's global resources with content from Asahi.com to provide Japanese Internet users regionalized and global news, as well as feature content and resources. CNN.CO.JP is written and produced by a CNN Interactive staff in Tokyo and in CNN global headquarters in Atlanta.

"We chose Japan to launch our first Asian-language site because we are confident that Internet users in Japan are keenly interested in having a local-language version of CNN," said Scott Woelfel, CNN senior vice president, general manager and editor in chief of CNN Interactive. "Last year in Japan, there were nearly 22 million online users. That number is projected to more than double by 2003. We believe those users will respond very favorably to a news site from the world's news leader."

"We are very pleased to have a partnership with CNN Interactive," said Tetsuzo Hori, director of electronic media & broadcasting, Asahi Shimbun. "We believe this partnership will allow users to access the most reliable news in both English and Japanese and will enhance both Asahi.com and CNN.CO.JP."

CNN.CO.JP provides daily news stories, combined with multimedia elements. The Web site consists of 15 dedicated sections, including: the world; Japan; the United States; weather; business; technology; sports; health; entertainment; travel; fashion; Specials, devoted to in-depth topics; and Fringe, a section with quirky, often amusing, stories. The site also links to a video section with clips from top stories and provides a section for user feedback.

      CNN.CO.JP Alliances:

 -- CNN.CO.JP will host stories from Asahi.com throughout the site.
    Through a content-sharing alliance announced last month,
      Asahi.com and CNN Interactive share news content on a regular
      basis.

 -- CNN.CO.JP also feature full-length, Japanese-language articles
      from TIME magazine, the most widely circulated English-language
      weekly magazine in Asia.

 -- CNN.CO.JP will be sponsored by @nifty, the largest Internet
    service provider in Japan. @nifty will provide regular highlights
      and links to their service.

   -- Through an agreement with WebMD, the Internet's first
      full-service healthcare portal, CNN.CO.JP has the authority
      to translate health content from WebMD.com into Japanese and
      post it on the site.

 -- CNN.CO.JP will also post IT news and information from the
    Japanese-version of IDG, the largest network of technology-specific
      sites around the world.

CNN.CO.JP is CNN Interactive's seventh non-English language site, with the others being CNNenEspanol.com, CNNemPortugues.com, CNNItalia.it, Svenska CNN (CNN.passagen.se), CNN Denmark (CNN.dk) and CNNNorge (CNN.vg.no).

Asahi Shimbun, founded in 1879, has long been considered Japan's most influential and international daily newspaper. Published in Tokyo with regional headquarters, the newspaper has a daily circulation of 8.3 million for its morning edition and 4.2 million for its evening edition. International satellite editions are printed daily in London, Holland (the Netherlands), New York, Los Angeles, Singapore and Hong Kong. Launched in August 1995, the Internet information service of Asahi Shimbun, "Asahi.com" (http://www.asahi.com/), has grown to be one of Japan's most popular cyberspace sites, receiving on average, over 3 million page views a day.

CNN Interactive is the division of CNN responsible for the production of the award-winning news site CNN.com and the distribution of CNN news content via other platforms such as mobile phones, WAP (Wireless Application Protocol) phones, iMagic's PowerPhones in Hong Kong, PageNet pagers and PointCast. In September 1999, CNN Interactive expanded its English-language Asia Pacific news content by partnering with TIME and Asiaweek magazines to create CNN.COM/ASIANOW.

CNN.CO.JP brings the total number of CNN Web sites to 12. The CNN Web sites - which include CNN.com, CNNfn.com and CNNSI.com - are among the world's leading news and information Web sites, and collectively served more than 613 million page impressions in the first month of 2000 and more than 6.7 billion page impressions in 1999.