P R E S S     R E L E A S E

Dialog Adds Australian Content from Leading Publisher John Fairfax

CARY, N.C., USA, (October 31, 2001) -- The Dialog Corporation, a Thomson business and a leading international provider of online-based information services, today announced that it has further enhanced its strong collection of full-text content available through its online information services with the addition of 10 Australian newspapers and periodicals published by John Fairfax Holdings Limited -- a roster that includes some of Australia's most influential titles.

The deal, executed through Fairfax's f2 Network, strengthens The Dialog Corporation's formidable position as the world's leading provider of electronic access to information and research published in Australia.

"We are delighted to add the prestigious titles published by Fairfax to our products," said Roy M. Martin Jr., Dialog president and CEO. "Australian financial and business news and research is relevant far from its shores. Not only is Australia a dynamic economy in its own right, it is also a major player in Asia, the Pacific Rim region and beyond. Our commitment is to continue adding to the comprehensiveness and depth of our information resources, and our new alliance with Fairfax is a big step for us."

Among the Fairfax titles are some of Australia's most prestigious and influential sources of financial and business news, analysis and opinion. The list includes:

THE AUSTRALIAN FINANCIAL REVIEW (AFR). Published six days a week, AFR is the country's fastest growing newspaper with a current readership in excess of 300,000 senior decision-makers. It covers general business and financial news, as well as international affairs, politics, information technology, property, personal finance and the business of sports.

BUSINESS REVIEW WEEKLY (BRW). Australia's only weekly business magazine, BRW is recognized by many as the country's most respected source of analysis and opinion about the Australian business and finance. Its specialties include coverage of corporate strategy, e-business and management trends, with in-depth reporting on such topics as marketing, emerging companies, tax, innovation, technology and investing.

THE AGE. One of the country's oldest and most respected newspapers, The Age (founded in 1854) is based in Melbourne, Victoria. It has a circulation of about 660,000 readers on weekdays and more than 1.04 million on Saturdays. The paper has a team of experienced journalists, international correspondents and high-profile commentators, and is noted for its commitment to quality journalism.

Also included in the Fairfax content are three other of the country's largest daily newspapers: The Sydney Morning Herald (Sydney, New South Wales); The Sun Herald (Sydney); and The Sunday Age, sister publication of The Age (Melbourne).

Two strong regional newspapers -- The Newcastle Herald and The Illawarra Mercury (both from New South Wales) -- also are included in the Fairfax content.

The new Fairfax content is available immediately through the Profound ® service's NewsLine section and will be available in early 2002 through the Dialog ® and DataStar ™ services. With the addition of the Fairfax editorial content announced today, the Profound service now includes more than 300 Australian publications and information sources and a total of more than 6,000 sources of news available for online searching.

- Ends -

About Dialog
Dialog is the worldwide leader in providing online-based information services to organizations seeking competitive advantages in such fields as business, science, engineering, finance and law. Its products and services, such as Dialog®, Profound® and DataStar™, offer organizations the ability to precisely retrieve data from more than 800 million unique records, accessible via the Internet or through delivery to enterprise Intranets. For almost three decades, Dialog's brands have been known for their breadth and depth of content, precision searching and speed. The Winter Corporation recently recognized Dialog for its breadth and depth of content when they named the company the Grand Prize-winner in the Database Scalability Program 2000.

Headquartered in Cary, N.C., USA, with direct operations in 30 countries, Dialog products are used by more than 20,000 corporate customers in over 100 countries. Dialog is a subsidiary of The Thomson Corporation, a leading global e-information and solutions company in the business and professional marketplace with 2000 revenues of approximately $6 billion. The Corporation's common shares are listed on the Toronto (TSE:TOC) and London stock exchanges.

For more information about Dialog, call 1-800-3-DIALOG or visit www.dialog.com. For more information about Thomson, visit www.thomson.com.

-30-

All designated trademarks used herein are the property of The Dialog Corporation or its subsidiaries. Registered marks are registered by The Dialog Corporation or its subsidiaries, U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. All other marks are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners.

top