Patricof & Co. Invests in Katalyst's $30M Venture Capital Fund; Joins Other Significant Investors in Katalyst Venture Partners I.

Business Editors

PHILADELPHIA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 17, 2000

Katalyst today revealed the identity of another major investor in its $30 million venture capital fund that closed last week: Patricof & Co. Ventures, Inc. Patricof & Co. Ventures, the U.S member of Apax Partners, is a leading global private equity firm with $7 billion under management through 13 offices worldwide. The investment by Patricof & Co. is an endorsement of Katalyst's unique approach of providing venture capital, operational expertise and merchant banking to businesses in the New Economy. The fund, known as Katalyst Venture Partners I, LP (KVP I), will be invested solely in portfolio companies benefiting from Katalyst's proprietary Net Acceleration Methodology(TM).

"Our relationship with Katalyst is very strong," said Greg Case, General Partner, Patricof & Co. Ventures, Inc. "We have previously worked together on deals, and our investment in the fund is a further endorsement of their unique model, talented people and track record of success."

"We are thrilled to have Patricof & Co., one of the premier private equity investors, as an investor in our fund," said Neil Heller, Katalyst Co-Chairman and General Managing Partner of KVP I. "We are looking forward to continuing to work closely with our friends at Patricof & Co."

Patricof & Co. joins a host of significant investors announced last week, including Mellon Ventures; the Lenfest Family; Comcast Interactive Capital, LP; Pacific Capital Group; Liberty Digital (NASDAQ: LDIG); General Electric Capital Corporation; Cox Consumer Information Network, Inc.; Harron Capital, LP; and Pennsylvania Early Stage Partners. The fund is also supported by a loan from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, and by Katalyst's own employees. Total investment from Katalyst employees exceeded $1.7 million with 100% of those eligible participating.

About Patricof & Co. Ventures, Inc.

Patricof & Co. Ventures, Inc., the U.S. member of Apax Partners, is a global private investment firm with offices in New York, Philadelphia, Palo Alto, London, Leeds, Dublin, Paris, Madrid, Milan, Munich, Tel-Aviv, Tokyo, and Zurich. Its team of over 130 investment professionals manages over $7 billion worldwide for leading institutional investors. With over 30 years of direct investing experience, Patricof & Co. Ventures provides long-term, equity financing to build growth companies in a wide range of industries including B2B eCommerce, business services, information technology, telecommunications, healthcare, consumer and retail.

About Katalyst

As the first Full Service Accelerator(TM) (FSA), Katalyst drives rapid growth and sustainable value for New Economy businesses through a unique combination of venture capital, operational execution, and merchant banking expertise. Working side-by-side with the entrepreneur, Katalyst uses its proprietary Net Acceleration(TM) methodology to propel its portfolio companies through all aspects of building businesses. Headquartered in Philadelphia, Katalyst is a privately held firm of more than 50 experienced professionals with operations in New York, Washington, D.C., Boston and London. For more information about Katalyst, please visit www.katalyst.com or call 484-530-1750.