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TravelNow.com Inc. Announces Record Revenues For December Quarter and Nine Months SPRINGFIELD, Mo.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 23, 2000--TravelNow.com Inc. (OTCBB:TNOW - news), one of the largest Internet travel sites, reported operating results today for the three and nine month periods ending December 31, 1999. Revenues for the December quarter of $1.0 million increased 360% over the $218,791 in revenues during the same period of 1998. Revenues of $2.4 million for the nine months ended December 31, 1999 were up by 285% relative to the $626,963 in revenues during the equivalent nine-month period of 1998. TravelNow's net loss for the quarter ended December 31, 1999 was $117, 503, including a $42,468 loss from an unconsolidated subsidiary, compared with a loss of $17,665 in the December quarter of 1998. Operating expenses during the December 1999 quarter include investments in additional personnel and other infrastructure costs to support the requirements of continued revenue growth. For the nine month period ended December 31, 1999, the Company's net loss was $818,267, including a $650,000 non-cash charge for stock-based compensation and the $42,468 loss from an unconsolidated subsidiary. In the comparable nine-month period of 1998, net income was $111,918. Jeff Wasson, Co-CEO of TravelNow, said that the Company's rapid revenue growth continues to reinforce management's commitment to building the travel site of choice on the World Wide Web. ``While the travel industry traditionally experiences a downturn in sales during the 4th calendar quarter each year, TravelNow maintained strong hotel and other bookings through December and actually enjoyed hotel bookings nearly equal with the previous quarter, a phenomenon that is rare for our business,'' said Wasson. He also credited the addition of new lines of business with helping bolster sales. ``Our business in rental cars increased by 60% from September to December 1999, plus the addition of our own proprietary airline booking engine has made it much easier for customers to come to our site for virtually all of their travel needs.'' Co-CEO Chris Noble also added that January and February 2000 bookings are far exceeding bookings for the same period last year. ``We've experienced record days on a regular basis throughout January and the first half of February,' said Noble, ''and we're just now entering the busy part of the year for travel services.`` Noble said that TravelNow has spent the past few months preparing for the wave of business we are now experiencing. ''We are in the final stages of rolling out our new reservations system, which will make it much easier for our customers to navigate through the TravelNow site, plus allow for greatly enhanced features and offerings.`` Noble said that cruises, package tours and more competitive rates will be showing up on the TravelNow site soon as the new system is introduced. ''We have invested heavily in our new reservation system platform and our customers will find our efforts well worthwhile,`` said Noble. Noble added that the recent $4.5 million dollar investment from Tudor Capital of Boston has allowed TravelNow to add needed personnel and upgrade its facilities at an accelerated pace, allowing the company to keep pace with customer demand and expectations.
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