B2Lab, and ePublicEye.com launch next generation B2B /B2C Exchange. New global marketplace connects buyers and sellers in 5 languages and Ensures Safer Transactions with Internet's most Rigorous Seller Rating System.

Los Angeles, March, 1 2000 -- ePublicEye.com, the leading guide to reliable boutique e-businesses around the globe, today announced the pre-launch of b2Exchange, an international marketplace that connects buyers and sellers in 5 languages, and features the Internet's most rigorous seller rating system. The joint venture with start-up B2lab combines business to business and business to consumer sourcing from vendors in over 64 different countries around the world. Committed to creating the safest most dependable purchasing resource, b2Exchange is the first on-line site of its kind to require all sellers to be ePublicEye registered vendors. ePublicEye.com is a consumer driven service that monitors participating e-businesses and allows independent buyers to rate them for reliability and customer satisfaction. Buyers can rate key merchant performance features including management accessibility, safety of payment process, reliability of advertising claims, customer support, refund policies, privacy practices, and comparative prices. Seller reliability is monitored 24 hours a day, seven days a week and ratings can be submitted and viewed in English, Spanish, German, French, and Chinese.

How b2Exchange works:
Buyers select the category of the product or service they wish to purchase and key criteria to be met by the seller, i.e. accept Visa, ship internationally, etc. The buyer then fills out a short quote request form, clicks the submit button and the e-concierge at b2Exchange contacts registered merchants who meet the buyers purchase criteria. To protect buyer's privacy, ePublicEye registered merchants submit price quotes to the sellers through an anonymous account automatically set up when the buyer submits a request for a bid. As sellers begin to respond, buyers receive bids that include the order details, price quotes, and the seller's reliability report so buyers can easily review past customer experiences with the seller. Once the buyer has selected the best offer, he or she may contact the seller using the information included in the bid to execute the purchase directly. Most importantly, ePublicEye follows-up with buyers after every transaction to check post-sales reliability, and to ensure that the product or service was delivered as promised. The service is free to buyers and no registration is required to request bids. Other than an email address, no personal information is requested from buyers. Sellers pay an annual fee to join the exchange, eliminating the need for cumbersome transaction fees.

"We are very pleased to extend our trust services into the b2b and b2c exchange space. It is clear to us that this business model is a win-win proposition that offers buyers the safest, fastest way to to find a good deal on-line, while providing sellers with hot sales leads at a minimal cost," said Errol Smith, co-founder of ePublicEye.com. "Generally, all exchanges promise efficient buying and lower prices, but a deal is only a good deal if you ultimately get what you expect, when you expect it. b2Exchange uses the Internet's most extensive vendor monitoring, rating and follow up system to strengthen the business model and ensure a safer purchasing experience. Moreover, by connecting buyers and sellers in 5 languges, b2Exchange creates a truly global marketplace," said Smith.

Two versions of the site will be offered. The b2b version will facilitate trading "within" the ePublicEye.com community of registered merchants and will be offered free to about 10,000 existing members while beta testing is completed. The program will later be offered to ePublicEye's entire network of merchants as an optional service for an annual fee. The b2c version will connect paticpating merchants with consumers shopping on the ePublicEye.com Safer Shopping Network(tm) which currently extends into 64 countries and reaches consumers from France to Singapore.

"B2Exchange allows on-line shoppers to skip those gruelling searches and go straight to the process of anonymously selecting the best deal from the most reliable merchant, " said Wanda San Juan, co-founder of ePublicEye.com. "On the other hand, registered vendors get high quality sales leads delivered to their email boxes at a cost far below what is typically spent on new customer acquisition. I think this is the kind of email any e-business will want to receive,"said San Juan.

About ePublicEye.com:
ePublicEye.com is the only global e-business rating service that allows buyers to rate e-businesses for reliability, privacy and customer satisfaction in 5 languages. Since 1996, ePublicEye.com has maintained a focus on building confidence between consumers and small to mid-sized Internet businesses. Pioneers in the use of consumer feedback to promote safer e-commerce, ePublicEye.com is the largest aggregator of customer satisfaction data in this market segment, trusted by thousands of small to mid-sized merchants to continually survey their customers. As the only company offering e-business ratings in French, German, Spanish, Chinese and English, ePublicEye.com is uniquely positioned as an enabler of small to mid sized e-businesses worldwide.

About b2lab:
b2lab is a new venture started by two of ePublicEye.com's founding members. b2lab was launched to be an idea incubator focused on creative e-business applications and strategy. b2lab hatched the b2exchange concept and collaborated with ePublicEye.com on development.

For more information contact our office at 818/547-0222 or

wms@epubliceye.com or visit http://b2exchange.epubliceye.com and http://www.epubliceye.com

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