03 July 2002

Fast Search Bags Another Major Portal

Freeserve has chosen FAST Data Search to provide complete website, directory, and e-commerce searches.


OSLO, Norway, 3 July 2002 - Fast Search & Transfer™ (FAST), a leading developer of search and real-time alert technologies, and Freeserve, the UK's No. 1 for the Internet, today announced that FAST Data Search™ will be the key technology underpinning all of the search and navigation features on Freeserve.com. The FAST Data Search solution for Freeserve combines advanced linguistics support, classification and categorization, real-time filtering and alerting, as well as unique personalization options all within a single comprehensive search solution.


"FAST Data Search was capable of delivering superior results to our users and is flexible and robust enough to search across numerous types of information with sub-second response at the performance level we required," said Jon Gisby, Freeserve managing director, portals. "FAST clearly has the best business solution available. FAST repeatedly demonstrated an ability to handle the most difficult data problems with ease, and helped us clearly define our search strategy for future deployments."


"We are delighted that one of the true pioneers on the Internet, Freeserve, selected our award-winning software for this very prestigious contract," said Dr. Bjørn Olstad, general manager of the Enterprise Business Unit at FAST. "Our alliance with Freeserve continues to demonstrate the exceptional strength of FAST Data Search's flexibility, scalability, and relevance, and we look to future collaborations with Freeserve to fulfill all of their search needs."


With its highly scalable and modular configuration, FAST Data Search delivers solutions for customers who want to increase the speed and performance of searches, successfully complete transactions at a lower cost, and generate additional revenues. From smaller installations to the most demanding cases where frequent real-time updates are made to existing data and large numbers of users need to search common data in real-time, FAST Data Search supplies a complete information retrieval solution. With advanced linguistic technologies, support for over 225 file formats and 49 languages, and categorization and dynamic result clustering, FAST Data Search quickly connects users to the information they seek.

About Freeserve

Freeserve is the leading ISP-portal with an integrated offering of UK-focused content, e-commerce and services and Internet access. Freeserve has 2.478 million active registered accounts and 5.352 million* unique users. In February 2002, Freeserve was named Best National Consumer ISP by the UK's Internet Service Provider Association. Freeserve is part of Wanadoo SA, a leading European online media and services company which has as its major shareholder France Telecom, one of the world's leading telecommunications companies. Wanadoo SA has operations in France, UK, Spain, the Netherlands, Belgium and Morocco. Including Freeserve, Wanadoo S.A has over 6 million active registered users. Freeserve was launched in September 1998 as part of Dixons, Europe's leading consumer electronics retailer. Dixons Group remains a minority shareholder in Wanadoo S.A and Freeserve distributes its access software in the UK through Dixons' network of over 1,000 Dixons, Currys, PC World and The Link stores. *NetValue, April 2002

www.freeserve.com
www.fast.no

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