AOL and AutoTrader.com Expand Online Used-Car Alliance
AutoTrader.com, an Internet destination and marketplace for buyers and sellers of used vehicles, and America Online, Inc., a leading interactive services company, have announced an expanded multi-year alliance under which AutoTrader.com will become the exclusive provider of used-car classified listings and search capability across several key America Online brands, including the AOL service. This alliance brings together the country's largest online auto classifieds marketplace with the largest consumer audience in cyberspace.
Under the new three-year agreement, AutoTrader.com will power the Used Car area of the Autos Channel across AOL, AOL.com, CompuServe and Netscape.com and provide used-car listings for AOL Digital City. Users of these America Online brands who are looking for a used car will have direct access to a co-branded AutoTrader.com site, offering the Internet's largest inventory of more than 1.5 million used vehicles, AutoTrader.com's proprietary "Find a Car" and "Sell a Car" search features, as well as Decision Guides and Reviews & Information.
In addition, AutoTrader.com will be promoted in other areas across the America Online brands, bringing AutoTrader.com's selection of inventory, services and tools to AOL and CompuServe's more than 30 million members and the tens of millions of additional users of America Online's Web-based brands. These promotions will also allow private sellers and dealers who have inventory to sell to generate potentially quicker sales. America Online's Autos Channel, announced previously, offers users information, services, and tools for car shopping, buying and maintenance throughout the ownership cycle.
"During the past two years, our alliance with America Online has been hugely successful and we wanted to expand and broaden our commitment," said Chip Perry, president and CEO of AutoTrader.com. "This new agreement signifies the confidence we have in our business model and the power of America Online as a marketing partner. With our strong market leadership position and solid financial backing, we believe this new, far-reaching deal with America Online will be an even greater success."
"AutoTrader is the country's leading online used car destination, and I'm happy to expand our great relationship with them," said Barry Schuler, president of AOL Interactive Services. "Together with AutoTrader, we can streamline the used-car buying process and create an easy and convenient way for online consumers to find the right vehicle. At the same time, our new agreement can help make sellers' lives easier by bringing their extensive auto classifieds to our wide audience of users."
J.D. Power & Associates' 2000 Used Autoshopper.com Study reported that AutoTrader.com is the leading Internet destination for used-vehicle buyers and that 21 percent of buyers who located their vehicle online used AutoTrader.com to do so.
About AutoTrader.com
AutoTrader.com is an Internet destination and marketplace for buyers and sellers of used cars, light trucks, vans and sport utility vehicles and for consumers seeking information regarding automotive products and services, such as insurance, financing and warranties.
AutoTrader.com, through its strategic alliances, aggregates in a single location an extensive network of industry participants and a database of 1.5 million vehicle listings and automotive information to create an open marketplace that is local, regional and national in nature.
AutoTrader.com was formed in 1997 and is a majority-owned subsidiary of Manheim Auctions, Inc. which has been in business since 1945 and is the world's largest operator of wholesale auto auctions. Manheim Auctions, a wholly owned subsidiary of Cox Enterprises, Inc., a leading media conglomerate, is AutoTrader.com's principal stockholder and one of AutoTrader.com's strategic partners. Other investors and strategic partners include Trader Publishing Company, ADP, Inc., eBay, Inc. and the venture capital firm, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers.
About America Online, Inc.
America Online, Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of AOL Time Warner Inc. Based in Dulles, Va., America Online is a world leader in interactive services, Web brands, Internet technologies and e-commerce services.
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