Connect3 Systems and American Color Establish Working Relationship to Deliver Solutions for Retail Advertising, Marketing, and Promotion Systems.

Business Editors

Retail Systems 2002

Connect3 to Incorporate American Color Publishing Technology

Into Connect3 VELOCITY Performance Series

Connect3 Systems, Inc. (Connect3), the leading provider of Advertising, Merchandising, and Promotion (AMP) planning and production solutions for retailers announced today that it has established a working relationship with American Color Graphics, Inc. (American Color) to incorporate American Color publishing technology into the Connect3 VELOCITY Performance Series software solution. This announcement was made at Retail Systems 2002, in Chicago, IL.

The solution will combine Connect3's industry leading AMP solutions with American Color's advanced PageScript versioning-enabled page production technology to help retailers dramatically increase the productivity and accuracy of their promotion production processes. In addition, this open, standards-based technology will allow retailers to provide a flexible and "plug-compatible" interface between their in-house and outside pre-press operations.

Rod Moake, Vice President of American Color, states, "We have been providing advanced technology to our retail accounts for many years. When we surveyed the market we saw that Connect3 is the leader in providing AMP solutions to large retailers." Moake continues, "This partnership will allow us to concentrate on our core competencies which are to provide high quality, cost effective, and full-service pre-media and publishing capabilities to retailers. Connect3 will provide our advanced technology as part of their VELOCITY Performance Series and we will make use of their technology in our operations as client needs arise."

The first new products resulting from this partnership are VELOCITY PageScript, powered by Connect3's RetailXML, and the VELOCITY-compatible Version Navigator for the Macintosh. They work in tandem to provide an advanced page description language that directly supports Connect3's versioning technology and a Macintosh software program that allows advertising copy, digital image links, and database-linked pricing information to be dynamically transferred to leading page layout programs like QuarkXpress. By adding a VELOCITY-compatible Version Navigator for the Macintosh, Connect3 will provide a seamless link between merchants laying out pages in Connect3 VELOCITY modules and the downstream creative and print production processes.

"Connect3's goal is to offer a complete AMP framework, based on open-standards, which will allow retailers to quickly build systems based on best practices and configured to their unique needs," says Dale Byrne, President and CEO of Connect3. "Our relationship with American Color will extend the reach of our AMP processes and the VELOCITY workflow further downstream into the production pre-media and printing processes through the VELOCITY RetailXML technology. Our organizations are committed to producing seamless processes that enable highly versioned and targeted promotions with dramatic improvements in productivity and effectiveness."

VELOCITY PageScript and Version Navigator for the Macintosh are available immediately from Connect3.

About Connect3 Systems, Inc.

Connect3 Systems, Inc. is a leading provider of software solutions and services that assist retailers in the planning and execution of their Advertising, Merchandising, and Promotion (AMP) processes. The Connect3 VELOCITY Performance Series presents a unified environment in which all participants in the retail enterprise can plan, negotiate, create, manage, execute, reconcile, and analyze promotions through a common enterprise database. Connect3's software and Consulting Services allow merchants across all industry segments to compress the promotions cycle, reuse existing content, and version their item message to increase accuracy, efficiency, and profitability.

Customers include Best Buy, The Home Depot, Ace Hardware, Sports Authority, Ahold USA, and other leading merchants. Resellers and Technology Partners include Retek, IBM, Nurun, AnswerThink, Quark, Xinet, American Color, and others. For more information, visit www.connect3.com, or call 562/741-0380.

About American Color

ACG Holdings is the parent company of American Color Graphics, American Color and Digiscope.

American Color Graphics is one of the nation's largest suppliers of commercial heatset offset and flexographic printing. The Company's nine production facilities print and distribute products such as weekly retail advertising inserts, Sunday comic sections, comic books and other publications for many of the country's leading retailers and major newspapers.

American Color is a leader in the premedia services industry with seven full-service locations nationwide. The Company is also a major supplier of digital photography, multimedia, digital asset management services, facilities management and computer-to-plate (CTP) workflows. The American Color premedia facilities and American Color Graphics printing plants are linked by a state-of-the-art digital communications network to provide instantaneous delivery of premedia materials from coast-to-coast.

Digiscope is a digital visual effects facility in California. Digiscope provides special effects services for the motion picture industry.

Connect3 and Connect3-related marks are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of Connect3 Systems, Inc. and all applicable affiliated companies, Reg. U.S. Pat. & Tm. Off., and in many other countries. All other marks are the properties of their respective owners.