CarsDirect.com's Scott Painter Named to BridgeGate 20, Recognized as `Difference Maker' in Internet Industry; First-of-Its-Kind Program Honors Leaders of Next Economy.

CULVER CITY, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 9, 1999--

Painter Lauded as `Founder' Behind idealab!-backed

Online Auto E-tailer

CarsDirect.com, the leading automotive e-tailer, Tuesday announced that Chief Executive Officer Scott Painter has been named to The BridgeGate 20, a first-of-its-kind program to recognize leaders of the next economy who demonstrate the clear correlation between investing in talent and successful company-building.

The inaugural BridgeGate 20 awards gala will be held this evening in Costa Mesa, Calif., as a benefit for Orange County Works. Orange County Works serves as a vehicle to link the high-technology community with at-risk youth who receive job-readiness training as a means of pursuing high-skill jobs in technology and other sectors.

BridgeGate 20 "difference makers" are executives whose success is a direct outgrowth of their ability to leverage human capital and ideas as strategic assets. Painter was recognized in the BridgeGate 20's "founders" category. According to the terms of the program, a "founder" is "the individual who initially guided and continues to shape the company." The BridgeGate 20 also showcased "visionaries," "builders" and "facilitators" within the organizations recognized.

CarsDirect.com is the first nationwide online service that provides consumers a complete car-buying experience -- from research, pricing, customization and financing to flatbed delivery of the car to a home or office.

Under Painter's leadership, CarsDirect.com has experienced accelerated growth. At the same time, Painter has instituted a series of innovative customer-focused programs and fostered an esprit de corps within the company.

"Scott's success as a founder epitomizes the spirit of the BridgeGate 20," said Dudley Brown, managing director, BridgeGate LLC, the Irvine-based executive search firm that sponsored the program.

"The BridgeGate 20 isn't about growth for its own sake, but growth achieved with an eye to what makes for enduring companies," he said. "In less than a year, Scott has brought major innovation to the nation's largest industry while identifying completely with customers and, internally, with employees. From securing initial investors to proving the model in the real world, CarsDirect.com's growth reflects his touch at every turn."

With more than a decade of entrepreneurial experience, Painter has been an innovator behind several well-known successes that include 1-800-DENTIST(R) and 1-800-CAR-SEARCH(R). Painter was founder and CEO of INFOAccess(TM) Inc., an electronic classified service; AutoAccess(sm), an electronic database of used cars for sale; Dental Advantage(TM), a full-service consulting, publishing and financial services company for dentists; and Vision Incorporated, a strategic consulting firm focused on transforming traditional businesses for e-commerce.

Members of the BridgeGate 20 were selected by a high-level board of advisors who were looking for people-centric, peak performers whose individual success has been integral to the success of their organization and/or community. The board of advisors balanced such factors as the individual's ability to drive performance and growth rates against his or her commitment to investing in people, and to his or her track record in attracting and retaining top talent.

The BridgeGate 20 is to recognize gifted leaders in the information technology and new media industries in Southern California, from San Clemente to Santa Barbara. The BridgeGate 20 was open to founders, CEOs, CTOs, VPs and COOs, as well as CFOs and CIOs, primarily from pre-IPO and recent post-IPO companies.

About CarsDirect.com

CarsDirect.com (http://www.carsdirect.com) is a revolutionary new Internet company that lets consumers complete the vehicle purchase transaction. With CarsDirect.com, shoppers can research, price, customize, order and finance a new car or truck over the Web -- selecting from among 2,500 makes and models by every major manufacturer. Unlike referral services, which point people to a dealer to accomplish the transaction, CarsDirect.com takes the customer from inquiry through financing right up to delivery. CarsDirect.com was recently named the top car-buying site on the Internet by Gomez Advisors of Lincoln, Mass.

Based in Los Angeles, CarsDirect.com is an idealab! company. Its investors include Goldman Sachs, Foundation Capital, idealab! Capital Partners, MSD Capital L.P., and Primedia Ventures, among others.