Young & Rubicam Acquires KnowledgeBase Marketing

Ad giant Young & Rubicam Inc. has acquired privately held
KnowledgeBase Marketing Inc. in a stock and cash deal valued at approximately
$175 million.

Chapel Hill, NC-based KnowledgeBase Marketing is a
provider of customer relationship marketing (CRM) services, and creates
integrated information marketing solutions for companies doing consumer and
business-to-business direct marketing.

KnowledgeBase Marketing develops and manages both e-commerce and marketing
database programs for more than 200 clients online and off in the energy,
financial services, healthcare, retail and technology industries.

“KnowledgeBase Marketing is the premier company in the fast-growing database
marketing sector, a segment of our industry which will play a huge role in
defining the future of marketing and communications,” said Ed Vick, chief
operating officer of Young & Rubicam Inc.

“KnowledgeBase Marketing’s unique blend of data warehousing, data mining,
information services, and analytic capabilities have made it a formidable
force in just a few years. By combining their expertise in this emerging
area with that of other Young & Rubicam Inc. companies, we believe we can set
the standard for both Web-based and media-based customer relationship
management solutions.”

Tim Toben, chief officer of KnowledgeBase Marketing, said the company will
retain its stand-alone identity and operations. The management team will
remain intact and will report to Jay Bingle, chief executive officer of
Wunderman Cato Johnson.

Young & Rubicam is comprised of Young & Rubicam Advertising, Dentsu Young &
Rubicam, The Bravo Group/Kang & Lee, Wunderman Cato Johnson, Brand Dialogue,
The Media Edge, Burson-Marstellar, Cohn & Wolfe, Landor Associates, Sudler &
Hennessey and other related companies.