EXHIBIT 99.1
PRESS RELEASE--OCTOBER 19, 2000
CONTACT: Tony Carideo Tom Donnelly
Investor Relations Chief Financial Officer
Net Perceptions, Inc. Net Perceptions, Inc.
952-842-5454 952-842-5400
[email protected] [email protected]
NET PERCEPTIONS RE-GEARS TO BETTER LEVERAGE
KEY MARKET AND TECHNOLOGY STRENGTHS
Company Restructures Workforce
MINNEAPOLIS - Oct. 19, 2000 - Net Perceptions, Inc. (Nasdaq: NETP), a
leader in precision marketing and personalization software, today announced
that the company would consolidate and re-align its workforce to tighten
its focus on its core competencies of retail merchandise analytics,
personalized marketing and knowledge management solutions.
As a result, the company said it would reduce its workforce by about 17
percent or 65 people and that it would take a fourth quarter charge of
approximately $1 million. Of that figure, $500,000 is a cash charge and the
remainder is non-cash charges related to stock compensation expenses.
"We've been eager to apply our proprietary technologies in a number of
different areas," said Steven Snyder, Net Perceptions president and CEO.
"However, for the foreseeable future we've decided to focus exclusively on
the things we do best - retail analytics, merchandising, personalized
marketing and knowledge management."
Snyder added that the company continues to see significant business
opportunities among multi-channel retailers and large Fortune 1000
companies, and that its workforce will be structured to capitalize on those
markets.
"Not only does this leverage our best technological strengths, it
solidly positions us to serve two of businesses' biggest concerns - the
need to improve both customer service and operating efficiencies," said
Snyder.
As part of the re-alignment, the company also announced that it has
combined its Network Solutions and Commerce Solutions business units to
more effectively focus its sales strategy. Snyder said that the company had
originally established the units as separate to make certain that its new
network personalization initiative received the proper emphasis and
resources in its early stages of development.
Net Perceptions also announced that it would transition its successful
industry trade show, the "Personalization Summit," into a separate entity
managed by Steve Larsen, who will move into the role from his current
position as Net Perceptions senior vice president of Marketing and Business
Development.
In related news, Net Perceptions announced that George E. Moser, the
company's chief operating officer recently resigned from the company.
"We're grateful for the contributions George has made," said Snyder. "He's
been extraordinarily dedicated and has made significant contributions to
growing our business.
"We're galvanizing our company around our core goals, and organizing the
company accordingly, concluded Snyder. While it's hard on a personal level
to say 'goodbye' to co-workers who've done so much for the company, the
prudent thing to do at this time is take decisive action, and that is
exactly what we've done.
Additional details for the company's plans will be presented at Net
Perceptions' third quarter earnings conference call, Oct. 24 at 4 p.m.
Central time. The call will be Web cast live. Information on the call can
be found on the company's Web site, http://www.netperceptions.com.
ABOUT NET PERCEPTIONS
Net Perceptions, a leading provider of precision merchandising and
personalization infrastructure software, is the innovator and preeminent
supplier of software solutions that allow companies to translate knowledge
into profitable business action. Its Commerce Solutions and Knowledge
Solutions products enable companies to capitalize on business information
and optimize product assortments, pricing, customer relationships and
intellectual capital. Customers include market leaders such as bestbuy.com,
J.P. Morgan, JC Penney, Kmart, Great Universal Stores and Hudson's Bay. The
company is based in the U.S. and has offices in six other countries. For
more visit http://www.netperceptions.com or call 800-466-0711.
# # #
NET PERCEPTIONS AND THE NET PERCEPTIONS LOGO ARE REGISTERED TRADEMARKS OF
NET PERCEPTIONS, INC. ALL OTHER TRADEMARKS ARE THE PROPERTY OF THEIR
RESPECTIVE OWNERS. THIS NEWS RELEASE CONTAINS FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
THAT INVOLVE A NUMBER OF RISKS AND UNCERTAINTIES. AMONG THE IMPORTANT
FACTORS THAT COULD CAUSE ACTUAL RESULTS TO DIFFER MATERIALLY FROM THOSE
INDICATED BY SUCH FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS ARE THE COMPANY'S LIMITED
OPERATING HISTORY, DELAYS IN PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT, DEVELOPMENT OF THE
INTERNET MARKET, CHANGES IN PRODUCT PRICING POLICIES, COMPETITIVE
PRESSURES, AND THE RISK FACTORS DETAILED FROM TIME TO TIME IN THE COMPANY'S
PERIODIC REPORTS AND REGISTRATION STATEMENTS FILED WITH THE U.S. SECURITIES
AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION.
