sixdegrees Begins Advertising Agency SelectionProcess; Names Agency Consultant Pile and Company...

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 26, 1999--

sixdegrees(R) (http://www.sixdegrees.com), the premier personal community on the web, has begun its first formal advertising agency review. Agency consultant Pile and Company has been retained to manage the review.

Pile and Company has

worked with sixdegrees to develop agency selection criteria and is in the process of contacting a number of agencies that meet the criteria to determine interest. The review will consist of capabilities presentations and a brand strategy assignment for three finalist agencies. sixdegrees expects to have completed the process and named an agency by mid-October.

The $6-10 million advertising assignment, which will include both online and offline media, will involve the creation and implementation of a brand building and membership acquisition based campaign.

"In selecting an agency consultant, we were looking for a partner with a demonstrated reputation in the industry and an established, proven selection process," says sixdegrees Marketing Director Nicole Berlyn. "We were impressed with Pile and Company's experience in the field and impeccable references, and we are confident that we have a partner who will enable us to select the agency that's right for our business."

"We have built our business over the years by working with first class companies, and sixdegrees certainly falls into that category," says Pile and Company Chairman Skip Pile. "We are pleased to have the opportunity to assist them in making this critical business decision."

Pile and Company, based in Boston, MA, is one of the country's leading consulting firms specializing in agency review management. The firm has successfully managed more than 350 advertising, public relations, direct marketing and interactive agency reviews over its thirteen year history.

sixdegrees is a leading global online community where more than 2.7 million members in over 165 countries come to meet new people through their friends. Inspired by the theory that every person in the world is connected to every other person through a path of no more than six relationships, sixdegrees is able to connect nearly every one of its members to each other through the people they know in real life. Members use unique, proprietary sixdegrees tools, including personalized bulletin boards, special interest groups, live chat rooms, people search tools and a services marketplace, to interact and transact with each other. Launched in January 1997, the privately held company derives its revenue from the sale of advertising throughout the site, as well as through transaction fees.