Data Broadcasting Reports Results for First Fiscal Quarter; Subscriber Growth Validates Internet Strategy.

JACKSON, Wyo.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 16, 1998--Data Broadcasting Corp. (Nasdaq:DBCC) Monday reported results for its first fiscal quarter ended Sept. 30, 1998.

For the three-month period, the company reported revenues of $22.5 million, earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) of $4.8 million and income from operations of $0.8 million. Net income from continuing operations was $0.1 million, or $0.00 per share, after giving effect to losses of $1.0 million, or $0.01 per share, from CBS MarketWatch, the company's 50/50 joint venture with CBS Broadcasting Inc., and losses of $1.7 million, or $0.02 per share, from the rollout of the company's InSite products and the continued development of AgCast.

In the corresponding prior-year period, income from continuing operations totaled $1.7 million, or $0.05 per share, and net income was $925,000, or $0.03 per share, on revenues of $23.1 million. The prior year's first quarter included a loss of $767,000, or $0.02 per share, from discontinued operations.

Data Broadcasting continued to generate strong cash flow, finishing the quarter with $19.4 million in cash. During the quarter, the company used $2 million for the continued development of CBS MarketWatch, including expenses associated with the filing of a Registration Statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The company also used $3.9 million to acquire Global Treasury Information Systems (GTIS) and $1.2 million to repurchase Data Broadcasting Corp. common stock.

The company attributes the decrease in revenues and operating income for the first fiscal quarter to declines in net subscribers on its older FM and cable-delivered services, partially offset by the rapid acceleration of Internet subscribers and one month's results from recently acquired Global Treasury Information Services (GTIS).

"This quarter marks an important turning point for our company with Internet subscribers outpacing the transitional decline in our broadcast base," said Alan Hirschfield and Allan Tessler, co-chief executive officers.

"Our Internet subscriber base has grown from under 1,000 at December 1997 to more than 6,200 currently. This more than six-fold increase in less than a year provides encouraging evidence that the company's Internet strategy is succeeding. Without giving effect for the GTIS acquisition, we have seen our core financial information revenues stabilize as the new Internet customer sales have significantly overtaken sales of our traditional broadcast product lines. In addition, we are now experiencing net gains in our subscriber base on a month-to-month basis. As the momentum of new Internet customer sign-ups continues to accelerate, we expect both revenues and profits to increase."

Results at the company's Capital Management Sciences unit were strong during the quarter as revenues for BondEdge returned to double-digit growth, increasing 13 percent to $5.5 million from $4.9 million in the prior-year period. InSite, CMS' Internet-delivered product offering competitive with Bloomberg, Reuters and Bridge, has generated significant market interest and acceptance. InSite's robust content and very advantageous pricing to customers have resulted in sales to several hundred institutional investors and broker-dealers.

In addition, CMS recently announced an alliance with Schwab Institutional, a division of Charles Schwab & Co. Inc., to offer real-time market data, news and research to its network of more than 5,300 investment managers who trade custody client accounts through Schwab. Through this agreement, CMS will provide its Internet-delivered InSite service at a discounted rate to Schwab Institutional clients.

"We continue to expand our affiliations with leading online and other brokers to provide our customers with the benefits of online trading. We have formed alliances with Dreyfus, Charles Schwab, Ameritrade, Lind Waldock, Wall Street Access, First American Discount, Jack Carl, ZapFutures and other leading institutions to enhance our customers' ability to take advantage of the actionable data they receive from our services. These alliances are playing a key role in attracting new DBC subscribers from a vast new customer source -- the 10 to 12 million people now using the Internet to obtain financial information," Hirschfield and Tessler said. "These alliances are already contributing better than 20 percent of our fast-growing Internet customer base, and provide an excellent way for Data Broadcasting to leverage its powerful Internet assets."

Data Broadcasting is a leading provider of real-time market data to the individual trader and investor. The Company delivers real-time stock quotes, financial and news information to 3 million users via PCs, wireless FM, cable, satellite and the Internet (http://www.dbc.com and http://cbs.marketwatch.com). With its Capital Management Sciences division, Data Broadcasting also is the leading provider of fixed-income portfolio analytics used for valuation and risk management purposes.

Matters discussed in this release include forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties, and actual results may be materially different. Factors that could cause actual results to differ include the response of competitors to the company's new services, acceptance of the Internet as a valid real-time distribution platform by institutional customers, activity levels in the securities markets and other risk factors listed in the company's 10-K and 10-Q reports to the Securities and Exchange Commission. -0-

               DATA BROADCASTING CORP. AND SUBSIDIARIES
                 CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF OPERATIONS
                (In thousands, except per-share data)


                                              Three Months Ended
                                                   Sept. 30,
                                             1998            1997

REVENUES                                     $22,491        $23,143

COSTS AND EXPENSES
  Cost of services                             9,351          8,974
  Selling, general and administrative          8,336          7,626
  Depreciation and amortization                4,041          3,723
  Total costs and expenses                    21,728         20,323

INCOME FROM OPERATIONS                           763          2,820
  Losses from joint ventures                    (923)            --
  Interest and other income (expense), net       343            122
INCOME FROM CONTINUING OPERATIONS
 BEFORE INCOME TAXES                             183          2,942
Provision for income taxes                       112          1,250
INCOME FROM CONTINUING OPERATIONS                 71          1,692
  Loss from discontinued operations, net of tax   --           (767)
NET INCOME                                       $71           $925


PROFORMA NET INCOME (a)                         $429         $1,692

(a) Excluding losses from joint ventures and discontinued operations.


Basic and Diluted EPS:
   Income from continuing operations           $0.00          $0.05
   Loss from discontinued operations              --          (0.02)
                                               $0.00          $0.03

Proforma Basic and Diluted EPS:                $0.01          $0.05

Weighted Average Common Shares Outstanding
   Basic                                      32,967         32,700
   Diluted                                    33,586         33,271

-0-

                        DATA BROADCASTING CORP.
                   ADDITIONAL FINANCIAL INFORMATION
                        (dollars in thousands)


                                            Three Months Ended
                                                  Sept. 30,
                                             1998     1997   % Change
REVENUES:
DBC -- market data and news                $16,969   $18,243    -7%
CMS -- fixed-income data and analytics       5,522     4,900   +13%
    Total                                  $22,491   $23,143    -3%


OPERATING INCOME
DBC -- market data and news                  $(372)   $2,396  -116%
CMS -- fixed-income data and analytics       2,055     1,293   +59%
Corporate and unallocated                     (920)     (869)   -6%
   Total                                      $763    $2,820   -73%

EBITDA
DBC -- market data and news                 $3,663    $6,110   -40%
CMS -- fixed-income data and analytics       2,055     1,293   +59%
Corporate and unallocated                     (914)     (860)   -6%
   Total                                    $4,804    $6,543   -27%

CAPITAL EXPENDITURES:
Property and equipment                      $3,273    $1,948   +68%
Software development                           306       452   -32%


                                     Sept. 30,        June 30,
                                       1998             1998

BALANCE SHEET DATA:
Cash                                  $19,443         $26,256
Total current assets                   31,189          36,960
Total assets                          123,510         126,464
Total current liabilities              20,794          22,076
Long-term debt                            250             500
Total stockholders' equity            101,477         102,525