Crystal Research Associates, LLC and Lippert/Heilshorn & Associates, Inc. Announce Strategic Relationship.

Business Editors

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 12, 2003

Crystal Research Associates, LLC, an independent research firm, has formed a strategic relationship with Lippert/Heilshorn & Associates, Inc., (LHA), a leading independent investor relations firm serving publicly traded and private companies throughout North America, Asia, Europe, and the Middle East. Crystal Research Associates will offer its independent research services on behalf of appropriate clients of Lippert/Heilshorn & Associates, Inc., in addition to servicing Crystal Research Associates' current and future clients.

Crystal Research Associates provides a new breed of independent stock research, presenting a company's Facts Without Fiction(TM). Its signature product, the Executive Informational Overview(TM) (EIO(TM)), fully details a company's story in an honest, straight-forward, and purely factual manner, within the recently created boundaries of the Securities and Exchange Commission's Regulation Fair Disclosure (FD) and those dictated by the National Investor Relations Institute (NIRI). As such, Crystal Research affords the investment community an opportunity to learn about a company and industry without potential bias to forecasts and projected valuations. Crystal Research brings a consulting/strategic approach to its research using deep industry expertise and relationships to analyze the core components of a company - its management, products, markets, growth strategy, business model, competition, IP, R&D, etc., in order to provide a comprehensive business and market analysis. The company distributes its research product to institutional investors via its proprietary database, and will have its products available electronically on its website, as well as on leading online financial websites.

"The EIO(TM) has become a welcome service to investors, providing them with a tangible, written product that is concise and easy to understand, yet insightful enough to capture their interest. Our team's unparalleled experience enables us to present a company's message to a target audience by clearly communicating its objectives and telling a company's story, all within the parameters dictated by FD," states Jeffrey J. Kraws, Crystal Research Associates' Chief Executive Officer.

"Our business is to provide the financial community with an educational tool with which to make the most informed and unbiased investment decision possible," asserts Karen B. Feinberg, Crystal Research Associates' President.

Keith L. Lippert and John W. Heilshorn, Jr. partners of Lippert/Heilshorn & Associates stated, "Crystal Research Associates' EIO is a superb vehicle to communicate a public company's message to the investment community and joined with proactive investor relations is a winning combination to build investor awareness. Over the past 20 years, LHA has cultivated strong goodwill among an exhaustive network of growth investors. With the EIO, we have the ability to offer a compelling product to any growth company seeking visibility in the investor marketplace. We are in the midst of an aggressive roll-out of the combined services and are excited about the potential results for our clients."

Kraws, ranked as one of the Top 20 Pharmaceutical Analysts on Wall Street by Institutional Investor, has recently received his third 5-Star rating in the last four years from Zacks Investment Research (the highest ranking available from Zacks). He was also recently ranked first among all pharmaceutical analysts in the industry for stock performance in 2001 as tabulated by analyst rankings from Starmine.com. Kraws brings 14-plus years of experience providing competitive analysis and/or research coverage on large-capitalization pharmaceutical, drug delivery, specialty pharmaceutical, biotechnology, generic, and medical technology companies. Feinberg has eight years of experience working side-by-side with Kraws on his healthcare research team, where she was responsible for much of the research and writing.

Lippert/Heilshorn & Associates, founded in 1984, has built a reputation as a knowledgeable and reputable advisor to a quality portfolio of growth companies. The Company's broad-range of expertise has helped both U.S. and foreign companies communicate business objectives and key messages to important decision-makers in the investment community. Lippert/Heilshorn & Associates, Inc. is located in the New York, with over 40 experienced investor relations professionals servicing clients out of offices in the New York, San Francisco, and Los Angeles.

Crystal Research Associates, LLC is an independent research firm that provides institutional-quality research to small and mid-cap companies. Offices are located in New York City, Boca Raton, Montreal, and Toronto. The company focuses on two primary global sectors - healthcare and technology. Within healthcare, the organization has particular expertise in pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, generics, specialty pharmaceuticals, and medical technology and devices. Within technology, expertise lies in wireless, mobile data, security, and software. In total, senior analysts have over 75 years of combined industry and analyst experience. The principals at Crystal Research Associates boast more than 30 years of experience as managing directors and directors of research in leading investment banks and boutiques.