Cygnus Business Media Acquires Building & Construction Tradeshows; Leading Business-to-Business Media Company Continues to Expand Major Market Segments.

Business Editors

WESTPORT, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 1, 2004

Cygnus Business Media, one of the nation's leading business-to-business media companies, announced today that it has acquired The CONEX series of eight regional building and construction tradeshows and the New England Snow & Ice Removal Show from Cornerstone Expositions. The CONEX shows were originally owned by Hartford-based Key Productions.

"We've been in the market for a strong portfolio of regional, building and construction tradeshows to complement our matching publishing portfolio that serves this multi-billion dollar industry," says Cygnus Business Media President and CEO Paul Mackler. "These shows fit our desired profile of regional, targeted tradeshows with a strong track record of success."

Cygnus Business Media reaches nearly 500,000 building and construction professionals every month through publications and web portals within the company's Building & Home Products and Construction Equipment segments including Construction Distribution, Construction Site News, Qualified Remodeler, Pavement, Equipment Today, Heavy Equipment News and Design/Build Business. The strategic purchase is the company's first tradeshow acquisition in this particular market segment enabling it to provide expanded reach to its building and construction market advertisers and exhibitors.

The acquired shows include MASCON (serving the Massachusetts market), CONEX Carolina, CONEX Wisconsin, CONEX Connecticut, CONEX Metro (serving the NY & NJ markets), CONEX Minnesota, CONEX Illinois, the Contractors & Building Supply Show located in Chantilly, Virginia and the New England Snow & Ice Removal Show. Several of these well established regional tradeshows consistently sell out each year, and have a waiting list of interested exhibitors.

"The CONEX staff has been successfully producing building and construction tradeshows for more than 20 years," says Jeff Price, president of Cygnus Expositions, the tradeshow division of Cygnus Business Media which oversees all of the company's shows and conferences. "They also have a strong launch culture which is important to our strategic vision. We look forward to continued expansion of these types of tradeshows into new geographies and market segments, leveraging Cygnus' strong publishing properties."

Over the past two years, Cygnus Business Media has expanded its tradeshow division's portfolio from 17 shows to over 50 annual events. Cygnus Expositions is now one of the largest producers of business-to-business tradeshows in the U.S. This acquisition is the latest in Cygnus' effort to present customers with business-to-business integrated marketing opportunities in each of its 15 major markets.

"Cygnus Business Media brings strong, industry-specific publications to these nine shows, and they will serve to drive the continued growth and expansion of the events," says Joe McInerney, president of Cardinal Growth, Inc., the holding company of Cornerstone Expositions.

The CONEX staff will remain based out of their Hartford, Connecticut office.

Cygnus Business Media is a leading, diversified business-to-business media company with a portfolio of over 200 media products reaching five million professionals annually within 15 major markets. Its four distinct divisions - Cygnus Publishing, Cygnus Expositions, Cygnus Interactive and Cygnus Custom Marketing - provide comprehensive, integrated advertising and marketing programs for Cygnus' valued customers and clients. The company's leading business publications, tradeshows, conferences, Web sites, online products and custom marketing capabilities enhance brand identity, generate sales leads, and build product awareness as they strengthen customer/client relationships.

For more information on how Cygnus Business Media can help you achieve your advertising and marketing objectives, visit www.cygnusb2b.com.