P R E S S     R E L E A S E

Dialog Improves SourceOne Patent Document Ordering System
Documents Now Available In Full-Text PDF Format

CARY, NC, USA, February 27, 2002 -- Dialog, a Thomson business and a leading worldwide provider of online-based information services and integrated information solutions, today announced the next step in ongoing improvements to its SourceOne patent document ordering system. The improvements announced today include making retrieved documents available in full-text PDF format and restoring the "order review" feature.

Since re-launching the SourceOne system last September, Dialog has invested in a program of service improvements and enhancements.

Today's SourceOne improvements enable patent attorneys, engineers, new product specialists, competitive intelligence managers, information professionals and others researching intellectual property information to more quickly retrieve and download high-resolution patent documents in full-text PDF format, and to more robustly manage their online research process.

The ability to download patent documents in PDF format is important to online users who research and track patent filings around the world because much of the content of patent documents is presented through diagrams and drawings, which are best transmitted and displayed electronically in PDF format.

Dialog offers the world's most comprehensive electronic portfolio of patent information, aggregating materials from 90 countries. (For a detailed list of the countries from which patent documents are drawn and where on the Dialog system those files may be found, please visit www.dialog.com/products/sourceone/).

"We're proud of our position as the world's premier online provider of intellectual property information," said Paul Colucci, Dialog senior vice president of product development. "With our improvements to the SourceOne system, we're making it easier for our worldwide users in the legal, scientific, pharmaceutical, regulatory and corporate arenas to manage their intellectual property tracking and researching, quickly and reliably."

SourceOne is available through those services on Dialog online platforms that utilize command line searching, such as Dialog®Classic, Dialog®Web and DialogClassic Web™.

The SourceOne service generates a link, sent to the document buyer via e-mail, which when activated opens the retrieved document in full-text PDF format. From there, the document may be downloaded or printed. The link is generated and sent within minutes of order placement. Patent documents can also be ordered for fax, mail or express mail delivery.

SourceOne can deliver both "standard collection" (generally, most recent U.S. and some European filed documents) and "special collection" (most documents in languages other than English, plus U.S. patent documents from 1790-1963). Users pay a US$5 fee for a SourceOne e-mailed link for "standard collection" materials and a US$9 fee for those drawn from the "special collection."

(Please see www.dialog.com/products/sourceone for more information about what is available in the Standard and Special collections).

(Some older or more esoteric patent documents are not deliverable through SourceOne.)

"We are committed to the continual improvement of all of our products and services," added Colucci. "For our constituents in the intellectual property communities, our program of SourceOne system enhancements is good news indeed."

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About Dialog
Founded in 1972 by Dr. Roger K. Summit, a pioneer in developing the technology behind electronic information retrieval, Dialog is the world leader in providing online-based information services to organizations seeking competitive advantages in such fields as business, science, engineering, finance and law.

Today, Dialog's three online platforms -- Dialog®, Profound® and DataStar™ -- offer users the ability to precisely retrieve data from more than 1.2 billion unique records, accessible via the Internet or through delivery to enterprise intranets. The content available ranges from articles and reports published in thousands of publications to in-depth repositories of patents, trademarks and other intellectual property data.

Corporate librarians, knowledge managers and other information professionals at more than 25,000 business, professional and government organizations in more than 100 countries prize Dialog services for their breadth and depth of content, precision searching and speed.

Headquartered in Cary, N.C., USA, with direct operations in 32 countries throughout North America, Latin America, Europe, the Middle East, South Africa, and the Asia Pacific, Dialog is a business of The Thomson Corporation. For more information about Dialog, please visit www.dialog.com. Or, please call (U.S./Canada) 800-3-DIALOG or (U.S.) 919-462-8600. Dialog's London office may be reached at (44) (0) 207-940-6900.

About The Thomson Corporation
The Thomson Corporation (www.thomson.com), with 2000 revenues of approximately US$6 billion, is a leading provider of integrated information solutions to business and professional markets worldwide. The Corporation's common shares are listed on the Toronto (TSE:TOC) and London stock exchanges.

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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 with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. All other marks are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners.

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