Monster announces strategic marketing decision

Monster(R), the leading global online careers property and flagship brand of Monster Worldwide Inc, today announced that after a lengthy review of its marketing strategy, the company has decided not to renew its online advertising agreements with America Online, Inc. and MSN. The agreements with each company are set to expire on December 1 and December 31, 2003, respectively.

The company''s decision follows months of analysis and a shift in Monster''s strategic marketing roadmap to maximize its brand recognition as the online recruitment leader. As a result, the company will redirect approximately $50 million per year on targeted, national and local marketing initiatives. This will enable Monster to raise its overall advertising mix, including broadcast, to attract more targeted and local traffic to better meet the needs of its customers.

The world has changed a great deal since 1999. While working with AOL and MSN played an integral role in establishing Monster as the online recruitment leader, we are now focused on implementing multiple marketing strategies on the national and local levels to attract a more highly targeted audience, said Jeff Taylor, Founder and Chief Monster.

In the month of June 2003, Monster had 18.1 million unique visitors including AOL and MSN (comScore Media Metrix). Approximately a quarter of Monster''s unduplicated overall traffic came via AOL and MSN. Unduplicated refers to traffic that solely came to Monster via the career channels on AOL and MSN.

Mr. Taylor continued: While we are still committed to online marketing, with the extra marketing dollars freed up, we will redirect our efforts on TV, local, outdoor, radio and keyword buys to better meet the needs of our local and national customer base. This effort, as part of our previously announced $125 million global marketing budget, will include the roll-out of an extensive marketing campaign this September with our new advertising agency of record, Deutsch Inc. This campaign will feature a new super-brand concept designed to help ensure continuous marketing presence on national and local levels.

Michael Sileck, Chief Financial Officer, Monster Worldwide, commented, By redirecting the funds from the AOL and MSN agreements, we can invest approximately $50 million a year to further leverage the Monster brand and strengthen its position as the online recruitment leader. As we continue to execute on our business plan, it is crucial that our marketing dollars yield a return on investment that ensures the expansion of the Monster franchise. By doing so, we can continue to deliver on our commitment to maximize long-term shareholder value while seeking additional revenue-increasing opportunities.

The strength of the Monster brand is exhibited in a recent NFO Brand Study during Q2, 2003. In the study of online careers sites, Monster had a total unaided brand awareness of 74 percent for job seekers, with its nearest competitors at 37 percent and 24 percent. Monster also achieved a total brand awareness of 92 percent, with its nearest competitors at 69 percent and 60 percent. Additionally, 85 percent of online users who have posted a resume online have posted theirs on Monster.