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PremierGuide Combines Yellow Pages and Newspaper Content to Power Pioneering Local Search Site at Sacramento.com

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 24, 2004--PremierGuide, the leading provider of local search software and solutions, today announced the launch of Sacramento.com, a pioneering local search destination developed for The Sacramento Bee, part of The McClatchy Company (NASDAQ:MNI), and SureWest Directories, a subsidiary of SureWest Communications (NASDAQ:SURW). The new web site, which can be viewed at www.sacramento.com, is the first time a newspaper and a Yellow Pages publisher have collaborated to create a local search destination for consumers. Targeting communities in the Greater Sacramento Area, Sacramento.com enables consumers to easily find over 60,000 local businesses, stores and restaurants online in seconds--even if those businesses do not have a web site.
Shop Locally, Search Locally

Consumers increasingly turn to the web to find information that has traditionally been found in print Yellow Page directories and newspapers. Recognizing this trend, search engine companies like Google and Yahoo have started to provide basic information about local businesses. However, most local businesses still do not have web sites, making them invisible to search engines.

"Sacramento.com offers Sacramento residents and visitors easy access to the most complete and accurate source of local information available in one place," said Ed Canale, vice president of New Media for The Sacramento Bee. "If you need something in the Sacramento area, you'll find it on Sacramento.com."

"Content is king when it comes to local search," said Malcolm Lewis, President and CEO of PremierGuide. "Consumers want it, the newspaper and Yellow Page publishers have it, and PremierGuide's local search platform brings it all together."

Consumers looking to make informed comparisons and selections about where to buy local products or services need complete, accurate information about all of their options. This includes business hours, credit card options, specific product and service details, brands carried, business credentials and much more--exactly the kind of information that generations of consumers have turned to their local Yellow Pages and newspapers to find.

Sacramento.com solves the local search problem by combining familiar Yellow Page listings with rich information about local businesses automatically extracted from the display ads and coupons published in SureWest phone books and the Sacramento Bee newspaper. At Sacramento.com, consumers can perform searches like "24 hour plumber with free estimates" and immediately get a complete list of matching businesses. A similar search on popular web search engines often generates incomplete and irrelevant results, leaving the consumer to search through the search results to find what they are looking for.

Sacramento area residents and visitors can now easily access more than 145,000 local merchants at Sacramento.com.

About PremierGuide

PremierGuide is the leading provider of search-based local search software solutions for directory and newspaper publishers. PremierGuide's mission is to help publishers capitalize on the emerging market for local search and expand their business as consumers increasingly turn to the web for local information. PremierGuide has developed a local search solution that combines the ease-of-use of popular search engines with the rich local information - including display ads and coupons - published in Yellow Page directories and newspapers. This unique combination enables online consumers to find local businesses, stores and restaurants in seconds, and offers compelling new ways for publishers to drive online revenues.

Founded in January 2003, PremierGuide is a privately held corporation based in Mountain View, California. Premier Guide is a member of the Association of Directory Publishers (ADP) and the Yellow Pages Integrated Media Association (YPIMA). For more information, visit the PremierGuide web site at www.premierguide.com.

About The Sacramento Bee

The Sacramento Bee is the flagship newspaper of the McClatchy Company and currently the second-largest newspaper in Northern California. The Sacramento Bee has an average daily circulation of 303,841* and is ranked among the nation's top 21 U.S. newspapers by the Columbia School of Journalism. Winner of three Pulitzer Prizes and recognized by the Associated Press for award-winning photography, The Bee has served Northern California since 1857.

*March 2004 ABC Fas-Fax - Publishers Statement

About SureWest

With 90 years in Northern California, SureWest and its family of companies represent an integrated network of highly reliable advanced communications products and services. SureWest provides digital TV, fiber optics, PCS wireless, DSL, high-speed Internet access, data transport, local and long distance telephone service, and directories with the highest standards of customer care. For more information, visit the SureWest web site at www.surewest.com.

PremierGuide Business Contact
Malcolm Lewis
President & CEO
PremierGuide
650-960-2906
malcolm@premierguide.com


Contacts


Big Mouth Communications
Amy Bonetti, 415-384-0900
amy@bigmouthpr.com
or
The Sacramento Bee
Becky Repka, 916-321-1795 (direct)
BRepka@sacbee.com
or
SureWest
Dave Kamp, 916-746-3123
d.kamp@surewest.com

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