Compaq Sponsors Musician Sting's Brand New Day World Tour And Named Exclusive IT Partner.

HOUSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 9, 1999--

First URL-Logo for Major Tour -- Sting.compaq.com

Compaq Computer Corporation (NYSE:CPQ) and musician Sting today announced that Compaq will serve as the presenting sponsor and exclusive IT partner for Sting's highly-anticipated worldwide Brand New Day Tour, beginning in October 1999. Compaq will provide Sting and his crew of musicians and technicians with the latest Compaq hardware and software solutions for both live and studio implementation, including Armada(R) notebooks, Deskpro(R) desktop PCs, and Professional Workstations(R) equipped with sophisticated sequencing and sampling software.

Compaq also plans to launch a Web site devoted to the Brand New Day Tour, located at sting.compaq.com. The logo for the tour also incorporates the URL. The site will be a rich, multimedia experience that will constantly evolve and grow over the duration of the tour. It will feature a Sting electronic multimedia scrapbook, live chat sessions between Sting and his fans, webcasts of select concerts and an e-commerce Sting store featuring exclusive items. While a summer site is live now, the official tour site will be launched this fall to coincide with the tour's kickoff on Oct. 14, 1999, at The Hard Rock Hotel in Las Vegas.

As part of its sponsorship and to build brand awareness, Compaq anticipates creating a number of branding, advertising and promotional tie-ins with the tour which will run in multiple media. Compaq is also developing music hardware and software solutions for sequencing, digital sampling, stage lighting design and programming, and business and production management.

"The brand association and sponsorship makes sense from many angles," said Doug Wheeler, vice president of marketing communications at Compaq Computer Corporation. "It aligns tightly with our core brand values -- human, gutsy, pace-setter and agile. The IT sponsorship provides Compaq with a great opportunity to showcase our breadth of technology solutions along with demonstrating how technology is revolutionizing the way a global tour of this nature is marketed, managed and experienced by the fans. The use of Sting.compaq.com as both the URL and as part of the tour logo shows how tightly all these aspects are integrated."

The global presenting sponsorship, which extends through December of 2000, will encompass tour appearances in 40 North American locations, as well as 40 additional cities around the world. As a result, Compaq plans consumer and trade advertising showcasing how Compaq technology affects Sting's professional and personal life. Spanning 15 months, the tour follows the release of Sting's first album in three years, entitled Brand New Day, scheduled for release on A&M Records on Sept. 28, 1999.

"I am pleased," said Sting, "to be involved with a company of Compaq's stature and look forward to a long and fruitful association."

While on tour, Sting and his band will primarily use the Compaq equipment for the composition, arrangement, and playback of music, in addition to digital sampling, the process by which sounds are recorded and applied to notes via a keyboard or computer. The crew will also utilize Compaq Professional Workstations to aid in the lighting design and programming of each stage using advanced software tools. Laptop equipment will be used by the road management team to oversee the tour in key areas such as travel schedules, budgets, crew assignments, expenses, Internet access, and other important business management functions.

About Sting

In his 20-year career, Sting has garnered a dozen Grammys and four Brit Awards and recorded 10 solo albums as well as eight legendary records with the Police. In addition, Sting has acted in 15 films and made countless contributions to various recordings. His support for human rights, Amnesty International, and The Rainforest Foundation mirrors his art in its universal outreach.

About Compaq

Compaq Computer Corporation, a Fortune Global 100 company, is the second largest computer company in the world and the largest global supplier of computer systems. Compaq develops and markets hardware, software, solutions and services, including industry-leading enterprise computing solutions, fault-tolerant business-critical solutions, enterprise and network storage solutions, commercial desktop and portable products and consumer PCs. The company is an industry leader in environmentally friendly programs and business practices.

Compaq products are sold and supported in more than 100 countries through a network of authorized Compaq marketing partners. Customer support and information about Compaq and its products are available at http://www.compaq.com.

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