Electronic Retailing Association Celebrates ``The Renaissance of Retailing'' at ERA Annual Conference & Exposition.

WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 30, 1999--

Annual Meeting Set for October 16-19 at The Venetian Hotel, Las Vegas 

Celebrating the present and exploring the future of Internet retailing (e-business) and direct response television (DRTV) will be the order of the day when the world's leading e-commerce and DRTV companies gather for the 1999 Annual Conference & Exhibition of the Electronic Retailing Association (ERA) set for Oct. 16-19 at the Venetian Hotel in Las Vegas.

Under the theme "Renaissance of Retailing," the 1999 Annual ERA Meeting will focus on the pulse of electronic retailing, as well as provide attendees with a glimpse into the future of the fast-changing world of e-business. At the same time, the top companies in all key areas of electronic retailing will be showcased on the main exhibition floor, along with special displays unveiling the next era in electronic consumerism.

Seminars, symposiums and workshops featuring high-level industry executives and opinion-makers will underscore the sea change in consumerism: Across the 20th Century retailing in the 20th Century has been built around the convenience of the retailer -- retailers have chosen what to offer, when to offer it and where and how the product will be delivered.

In the next millennium, the Renaissance of Retailing will be consumer-centric, built around the consumer. Retailers will succeed only when they discover how to deliver what the customer wants, where the customer wants it and when the customer wants it. Technology -- reflected by the exhibitors at this year's ERA Conference -- will make obsolete such notions as "hours of operation" and "places of business."

The four-day conference begins Sunday, Oct. 17 at 8:30 a.m. with an all-day symposium entitled "E-Commerce University -- Retailing on the Web," co-sponsored by the ERA, Interactive Marketing Inc., Digitrends Magazine, Macromedia, Geo Interactive, Nielsen, Yahoo!, Century Direct and DoubleClick.

The complete hands-on day-long session demonstrating the latest e-commerce tools from the leaders in the industry will feature a panel that includes high-ranking executives from leading Web-based businesses, as well as renowned industry consultants and expert authorities.

The marathon seminar will feature Web Design (Macromedia); Rich Media (Geo Interactive); E-commerce Trends (Nielsen research); The Electronic Store (Yahoo!); and E-Marketing (DoubleClick).

On Monday, the convention officially gets underway with the Opening General Session. Part One of the session presents the presidents of the major 24-hour shopping channels and Internet Portals as they set the tone for the convention with a detailed dialogue on multiplatform marketing.

On tap for the opening panel are Mark Bozek, president and CEO of Home Shopping Network; Wendy Brown, vice president, Interactive Marketing for America OnLine; Steven M. Kaplan, CEO of Bounty SCA Worldwide; Hal Krisberg, chairman and CEO of Worldgate; Gene McCaffery, chairman and CEO of Value Vision International; Fred Siegel, senior vice president, Marketing for Excite@Home; and Kevin Wueste, General Manager Commerce Services Team for Microsoft.

Moderator of the session is Steve Lehman, chairman and CEO of e4L; and Session Host is Linda McMaster, president and CEO of Strategic Partners Group.

Under the banner "How Did They Get To Market: Following the Fortune 500 vs. Entrepreneur," Part Two of the Opening General Session dissects the electronic retailing campaigns of both major corporations and entrepreneurial companies.

With the participation of panelists Bob Duffner, Time Life; Mark Amuso, NCP Marketing (Tae-Bo); Linda L. Watson, Fantom Vacuum Products; Jim Caldwell, Future Thunder Productions; Jason Kopras, Roto Zip Tool Corporation; and Howard Lelchuk, McCann Relationship Marketing, the session will examine the similarities and differences in objectives between Fortune 500 companies and entrepreneurs, and offer marketing insights from both worlds.

Moderator for Part Two of the Opening General Session is Timothy R. Hawthorne, founder, chairman and executive creative director of Hawthorne Direct Inc.

Following the Opening General Session, the ERA Web Council, together with ERA members Century Direct and Microsoft, presents "The e-commerce Lecture Series," a five-hour exploration into e-retailing featuring an impressive array of noted leaders in Internet marketing.

The wide-ranging symposium features Microsoft Shopping's Kevin Wueste as Keynote Speaker; Jaclyn Easton of Easton & Associates reviewing "What Works and What Doesn't"; a panel exploring the fundamentals of e-commerce including Gerald Bagg of Century Direct, Jaclyn Easton, Kay Dangaard of Amazon.com, Larry Langs of Mp3.com and Michael Terpin of The Terpin Group; a lecture on the future of e-commerce by Michael Tchong of Iconocast; and a panel exploring the industry's future, featuring Ben Mendelson of Century Direct, Michael Tchong, Dee Cravens of AdForce, Alan Weiner of Nielsen NetRatings and Jeannine Parker of Magnitude.

The afternoon is also rich with a range of educational sessions, including "After the Order -- Delivering on the Promise," "Music Licensing: Partnership with the Screen Actors Guild" and "Venturing Outside the Box with Your DRTV Media Campaign," all sponsored by the ERA Operations Council; and "Short Form: What the Gadget Guys and the Big Boys Can learn From Each Other," sponsored by the ERA Short Form Council.

At 5 p.m., the ERA debuts a forum designed especially for the nation's television stations and cable operators. Entitled "The Station Break," the session will introduce the ERA as the primary resource for local television stations and cable operators who want to take advantage of the burgeoning opportunities presented by all forms of electronic retailing, including direct response television and e-commerce viewer marketing.

Television stations will now be able to turn to the ERA as a television programming and viewer marketing resource, providing the full range of information and direct vendor services relating to transactional programming and e-commerce, including product-sourcing, DRTV program development and production, Web design, credit card processing and product fulfillment.

Tuesday begins with a salute to "The `Divas' of Electronic Retailing," a power forum featuring several of the top women in e-commerce and DRTV. From 11:45 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., the convention turns its attention to the inventors and manufacturers and entrepreneurial individuals of tomorrow with the "Product Showcase."

Co-sponsored by the ERA and Entrepreneur Magazine, the session provides a unique opportunity for the winning individual to `put their product to the test' in a multiplatform direct marketing campaign.

The judges will select one winner, with the prize comprising approximately $50,000 value, including:

-- The creation of a short form direct response TV spot, compliments

of Concepts Productions

-- A complimentary media test, courtesy of Mercury Media

-- An introduction to a home shopping channel, compliments of

Transactional Media Consultants

-- A legal review of the direct response spot, compliments of the law

firm of Venable, Baetjer, Howard & Civiletti

-- A print test, compliments of Media Syndication Global

-- A press release, compliments of SSA Public Relations 

-- Press coverage and announcements by SSA/ERA

-- One year membership in ERA

Moderating the "Product Showcase" is Paul Moriarty, consumer reporter for CBS Philadelphia affiliate KYW-TV.

At 7 p.m., the curtain rises on the Annual Awards presentation, celebrating the most outstanding achievements in direct response television. This year, the event, which is sponsored by Future Thunder Productions Inc., introduces a new category honoring the best in Internet online marketing.

The awards presentation is followed at 8:30 p.m. by a Gala Celebration, where attendees, award winners and celebrity presenters will share in an evening of wining, dining, mixing and mingling.

The 1999 ERA Convention will also see the official launch of the association's own bi-monthly trade magazine, Retailing.org: The Magazine of the Electronic Retailing Association and SavvyShopper.org.

Devoted exclusively to the emerging new world of electronic direct marketing, Retailing.org goes beyond the headlines to explore and explain the many facets of electronic retailing through case studies, executive and company profiles and opinion pieces. Named after the ERA's web site URL, Retailing.org is a solution and opportunity-oriented trade magazine for marketers of all types and all industries, delving deeply into the most critical issues before the e-commerce industry.

"The Renaissance was an awakening from the dark ages of Western Civilization. It was the merchant class that ushered in the Renaissance, who commissioned and funded the arts and scientific innovation of the time," said Elissa M. Myers, CAE, president and CEO of the Electronic Retailing Association.

"The Renaissance of Retailing is fueled by the electronic merchants who are changing the rules in favor of the consumer, with a world of new opportunities to buy -- and a convenient and secure way to make their purchases. The 1999 ERA Meeting is dedicated to today's e-merchants, who are pioneering the next millennium in global retailing," Myers concluded.

ERA is the trade association for major companies who use the power of electronics to sell goods and services to the public. The purpose of ERA is to foster the growth, development and acceptance of the rapidly growing electronic retailing industry worldwide. Its membership -- electronic retailers and direct response television (DRTV) companies and their suppliers -- is involved in infomercial and short-form commercials, television shopping channels, Internet and multimedia marketing.