Coinstar Launches $10 Million Advertising Campaign for Its Supermarket Based Coins-to-Cash Service; Spots Raise Awareness of the Power of Loose Change, Along with a Few Eyebrows.

Business Editors, High-Tech/Advertising Writers

BELLEVUE, Wash.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 7, 2000

Coinstar Inc. (Nasdaq:CSTR) today announced the debut of a new television advertising campaign in support of its aggressive brand building goals for 2000.

Recently ranked the 18th fastest-growing technology company in the United States, Coinstar maintains a network of 7,500 self-service, coin counting machines and recently surpassed the U.S. Mint as the largest supplier and processor of coins to the U.S. economy.

Developed by TBWA/Chiat/Day, the two 30-second spots begin airing this week in 12 media markets. Those markets are Baltimore, Chicago, Dallas-Ft. Worth, Denver, Detroit, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Sacramento, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle and Washington D.C. Coinstar will add additional markets during the third quarter of this year and add a third flight in November and December.

The media mix for the spots includes early morning programming on the morning news shows; early fringe talk shows such as Rosie and Oprah; and prime access and late night programming such as Friends, Frasier, Drew Carey, The Tonight Show, and The Late Show with David Letterman. Coinstar is planning to support the television advertisements with radio and outdoor advertising as well. Radio, which launches in June, will consist of three 60-second spots to air on a combination of formats including adult contemporary, classic rock, oldies, and soft rock hit stations.

"Kicking off our new ad campaign brings to fruition our company's commitment to aggressively advertise our service and launch the Coinstar brand in 2000," said Dan Gerrity, president and CEO of Coinstar Inc. "We expect that these sharp, memorable advertisements will communicate the message that treating coins the Coinstar way is fun and makes new things possible."

Shot by the Norwegian director team Roenberg (Espen Sandberg and Yoachin Roenning) the two Coinstar television spots are humorous takes on how coins can be changed into something useful in unusual ways. The two Coinstar television spots -- "Bullies" and "Waitress" -- turn snapshots of common, everyday situations into inspired "what if" scenarios by using loveable characters and surprise endings that engage viewers by appearing to unfold naturally. The ad titled "Waitress," for example, was un-scripted, with the dialogue ad-libbed by one of the featured character actors. "Bullies" on the other hand, tells the story without dialogue, instead using animated facial expressions and body language by the actors, interesting camera angles, varied film speeds, and evocative music.

"The new Coinstar campaign represents a notable evolution, both strategically and creatively, from previous advertising efforts," explains Rich Stillman, vice president of marketing for Coinstar. "In the past, our ads focused on the rational benefits of our service, such as convenience and ease of use. To better connect with consumers, the new ads are designed to strike an emotional chord, conveying a brand personality for Coinstar that is human, empathetic, inspiring and fun."

About TBWA/Chiat/Day

TBWA/Chiat/Day is currently the 12th largest ad agency in the U.S. with estimated billings of $1.8 billion. Clients include Nissan, Apple, Levi's, Taco Bell, Infiniti, Absolut, ABC Television, Pets.com, OnHealth.com, Promus Hotels, Sony PlayStation, Seagram, barnesandnoble.com, and Energizer. TBWA/Chiat/Day is part of TBWA Worldwide, an Omnicom company and the 11th largest worldwide advertising network with billings in excess of $5.7 billion and offices in 65 countries and 106 cities.

About Coinstar Inc.

Recently ranked the country's eighteenth fastest growing technology company, Coinstar Inc. (Nasdaq:CSTR) and its subsidiaries, Meals.com and Coinstar International, use technology to deliver time and money saving services to consumers in their local supermarkets. Coinstar's 7,500 strong network of machines is currently available to 125 million consumers in 40 states and the District of Columbia, as well as worldwide in Canada and the United Kingdom. Consumers can visit www.findcoinstar.com or call 1-800-928-CASH to find the nearest Coinstar(R) machine.