Influx of Capital Creating a Surge in New Media Jobs Area is Champion in Creative Content Production

Los Angeles (July 30, 1999) - Hot on the heels of the Milken Institute study, ranking Los Angeles as third in high tech contribution to the U.S. economy, comes new evidence of significant regional job growth and capital sinvestment in new media. In the first three months of 1999 alone, $142 million of venture capital poured into the region's new media companies, according to research firm Venture One.

The Digital Coast Roundtable, a membership consortium of local new media business leaders formed to promote Southern California as the digital epicenter of the new media industry, reports that the region is overwhelmingly experiencing an employment boom in new media jobs.

"We're seeing an extraordinary growth within existing companies as well as start-ups. Using Digital Coast Roundtable members as a gauge, we can say that over a thousand new media jobs have been created in the past year in this region," said Mathew Miller, secretary of the Digital Coast Roundtable.

The employment growth has also led to rapid expansion in the use of office space. Thirteen of 15 Digital Coast Roundtable members surveyed, including such startups as Cooking.com and Animalhouse.com, and established leaders like eToys, CitySearch and iXL, all reported significant expansion. eToys, for example, moved from a 6,000 square to a more than 60,000 square foot space within the last 9 months.

The diversity of new media companies thriving in the area's burgeoning digital culture is reflected in recent notable initial public offerings among Digital Coast member companies. ·

- eToys, a leading Web-based retailer exclusively focused on children's products, went public May 20 and has a current market capitalization of $4.124 billion. ·

- Online music and entertainment site Launch Media successfully IPOed on April 23 and has a current market capitalization of $145.4 million. ·

- In April, Santa Monica-based e-commerce solutions consultant Internet Outfitters merged with AppNet of Bethesda, Maryland, which went public June 19 of this year.

"The Digital Coast region has become an extremely favorable climate for venture capitalists looking to invest in new media start-ups," said William Woodward, managing partner of venture capital firm Avalon Investments. "A highly-skilled work force derived from historical dominance in aerospace, world renowned higher education institutions and the world's center of entertainment and content creation all make this area the epicenter for the new media industry. We're positioned to lead the broadband revolution and the convergence of digital technologies and media," he added.

"In the last two years, Los Angeles has experienced more financial successes in technology than almost any other North American city," said Robert Kotick, CEO of Activision, Inc., who moved his company from Menlo Park in Silicon Valley to Santa Monica. "As a result, the area has developed a sizeable talent pool that will ensure continued growth and success in emerging industries," he added. Activision is one of the world's largest publishers of interactive entertainment.

"Southern California has always had a history of welcoming entrepreneurs, whether they work in entertainment, aerospace or fashion. And now we're welcoming new media ventures with open arms. This culture has been key to fostering the growth and continuing success of the regional economy," said Jeffrey Cole, director of the UCLA Center for Communication Policy.

The Digital Coast Roundtable has commissioned a long-term study to assess the continuous growth of new media in this region. "All preliminary estimates of growth indicate at least 30% annual growth, " added Woodward. Results of the study are expected by early first quarter 2000.

About Digital Coast Roundtable

The Digital Coast Roundtable is a consortium of local new media business leaders, directed by president David Hankin, CEO of Hyundai Internet Technologies, and Honorary Chairman, Mayor Richard Riordan - under the auspices of the non-profit organization, Digital Coast, Inc. It was formed to define, map and brand Southern California's new media industry, upgrade the infrastructure and connectivity of the new media industry in the region and promote the area as the digital epicenter of the new media industry.

Additional missions include helping to focus and support efforts to improve Southern California's educational infrastructure in order to develop a first class technical and creative workforce and supporting a favorable tax and zoning environment for the new media industry in the region. The organization also plans to address the availability of capital and financial resources to support the growth of the new media industry in the area.