Partners/ West Goes Live on PubEasy®

Major Wholesaler Streamlines Operations
and Increases Product Line Exposure

New Providence, N.J., USA – January 14, 2005 – PubEasy, the fastest growing book trade electronic commerce service in Europe and North America, announced today that Partners/ West titles are now available through PubEasy. The new wholesaler relationship continues to expand PubEasy's leadership role in book trade e-commerce.

Partners/ West is the largest independent wholesaler in the Western U.S., carrying 85,000 titles, including— bestsellers, midlist, children’s and regional with quickly expanding emphasis on mind-body-spirit titles. Partners/ West sister company in Michigan will follow in joining PubEasy.

“The inclusion of Partners/ West represents another significant stepping stone towards our goal of increasing global efficiency in the industry’s [book publishing] supply chain,” said Gary Aiello, Executive VP and GM of Publisher/ Retail Business at Bowker the parent company of PubEasy. “Adding value to this important channel of the publishing market is essential and this continues our drive to make PubEasy a bookseller’s one-stop-shop for book ordering and enquiry.”

North American members of PubEasy may access Partners/ West large selection of titles by visiting their Affiliate site at http://exchange.pubeasy.com/partners or accessing PubEasy Central Services at www.pubeasycentral.com.

All booksellers may receive free access to Partners/ West titles by registering at www.pubeasy.com. Registered members around the world may now access all North American Affiliates along with Partners/ West (starting in July) via Central Services at www.pubeasycentral.com or from the Partners/ West Affiliate homepage to:

• Search for title and price information from virtually any location around-the-clock with one single password login

• Query across multiple Affiliates at one time with Central Services

• Place electronic orders

• Upload book lists for bulk ordering with Transact

• Search and place orders through customized e-catalogs

As PubEasy progresses forward, it is forging new relationships and strengthening existing ones with booksellers, wholesalers, distributors and publishers worldwide, further improving efficiency for the entire industry.

“Partners/ West is embarking on a mission to create greater efficiency within the organization”, said Gloria Genee, General Manager of Partners/ West. “We [Partners/ West] look forward to the convenience and quick access to information, and ordering capabilities PubEasy is set to provide.”

About PubEasy^®
PubEasy is a division of R.R. Bowker, with over 16,000 booksellers in 110 countries representing thousands of imprints. PubEasy offers publishers, distributors and wholesalers exposure to a large universe of potential clients, while increasing the ease with which booksellers can conduct business with their suppliers. Visit the PubEasy website at www.pubeasy.com.

About Partners/ West
Partners/ West Book Distributing is a full service, independent wholesaler serving the Western U.S. based in Renton, Washington. Partners/ West carries 85,000 titles including, bestsellers, midlist and children’s and regional with quickly expanding emphasis on mind-body-spirit titles. For more information, email ggenee@partnersbook.com.