Search Made Relevant - TM - -- Finally With Launch of Hotrate.com.

BRUSSELS, Belgium and PHILADELPHIA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 13, 1999--

Today, Hotrate.com officially launched its `second-generation' directory search engine under the same name. With its unique application of state-of-the-art search technologies, hotrate.com aims to become the Web's most relevant search engine. "Our mission is to save you time by displaying relevant results on top of the search results list. We are proud to be the only search engine that can afford to remove the `Next 20' button," says hotrate.com CEO Frank Martens.

Second-Generation, Self-Teaching Search Engine

Searching the Web using a classic web crawler or directory search engine has become a time-consuming and frustrating task. A typical search action on the Web produces an avalanche of search results, rarely with the truly relevant results at the top of the list. "This is why hotrate.com was conceived," Frank Martens insists. "After 2 years of research on how to achieve more relevance, we pioneered a unique search technology with the relevance built in, based on several criteria such as popularity ranking, authority, and user ratings. Hotrate.com retrieves exactly the information surfers are looking for -- in much less time."

Hotrate's advanced search technologies enable it to `learn,' and to get smarter every day, by continually analyzing what people search for on the Web. "During the first weeks after its launch, you will see hotrate.com achieving more relevant results every day," says Frank Martens. "Our goal is to put the 20 most-relevant search results on the first results page. We are very confident that our self-learning technology is able to meet this ambitious goal, which is why we have left out the `Next 20' button. If you receive relevant results, can you think of a reason why 20 results wouldn't be enough?"

Part of hotrate's ability to deliver relevant search results comes from a partnership with Google Inc. -- a web-crawler search engine that also offers highly-relevant search results. "Hotrate.com has entered into several successful partnerships since its inception. One of them is Google. We share a common destination," says Frank Martens. "We both understand that offering relevant search is what the Internet community is craving."

More than a Web Search Engine 

Hotrate.com goes beyond searching the `virtual' world. It has integrated the `real' world into its directories, making it the world's first relevant Yellow Pages guide. It can provide relevant answers to thousands of questions, ranging from "What are the best Italian restaurants in New York City," to "What are the best MP3 sites," or "Who is the best heart surgeon in Paris?" For each question, hotrate.com gives you the best and most relevant results at the top of the results list.

Hotrate acts as an infomediary through which people can advise each other, exchange reviews, opinions, and ratings on web sites, products, companies, craftsmen, investment opportunities, and any other ratable category you can imagine. "We use these ratings to add even more relevance to the search engine's content," says Frank Martens. "In addition to providing the most relevant search results possible, we are building the world's largest collection of relevant opinions and ratings to help people make the best decisions possible."

Editors & Reviewers add Human Intelligence

Hotrate.com employs a vast army of editors and reviewers from all over the world who put their expertise into the directory by organizing categories, adding sites, posting opinions and ratings, and so on. Both editors and reviewers are financially encouraged through hotrate's unique multi-level referral system. "We want to have hundreds of thousands of editors and reviewers. During the 2 weeks of beta-testing, almost 2000 editors and reviewers subscribed. This far exceeds what some of our competitors have been able to achieve over longer periods of time. We have received massive positive feedback on the hotrate.com concepts of Web search," says Frank Martens.

Hotrate's Text Ads: the Future of Web Advertising

As more and more people get used to the traditional means of Web advertising, banners are noticed less and less. This is evidenced by their low click-through ratio; less than 1% and still decreasing. "Hotrate.com has accepted the challenge to increase the efficiency of Web advertising. Our `text ads', which appear as highly-targeted paid search results, give advertisers more value for their money," says Frank Martens. "Text ads catch the surfer's eye, which paves the way for a higher click-through ratio."

Hotrate.com focuses on what really matters in advertising -- delivering the right ad to the right person at the right time. By reserving relevant keywords, advertisers can hook up their text ad campaign on the topics of their choice. They can display their text ads on a global scale, or they can restrict their campaign geographically, to a single country or region.

About Hotrate.com

Hotrate.com was founded by Frank Martens in early 1999. The company has offices in Antwerp, Belgium (Hotrate.com NV.; headquarters), and in Philadelphia, PA (Hotrate.com, Inc.). Real Software Group, a leading European software company, became a shareholder in the company mid-1999. Real Software Group has 50 offices around the world, 20 of which are located in the USA.

Hotrate.com's mission is to build next-generation Search & Trade platforms offering the best search and trading solutions available on the Web. Hotrate.com is committed to build the Web's most-relevant search engine. The company is also building hottrade.comTM, a provider of advanced net market trading technology, which will offer multi-conditional trading facilities to buyers and sellers of commodity goods and services in the B2B and B2C markets.

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