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Ford Motor Company and iVillage Join Forces

19 May 1999

Ford Motor Company and iVillage Join Forces To Give Women a Voice in Automotive Business

    NEW YORK, May 19 -- Ford Motor Company and iVillage
Inc. today announced an exclusive, multi-year alliance that
will actively involve women in the entire automotive experience -- including
vehicle development, purchasing, leasing, ownership and maintenance.  Through
the partnership, Ford and iVillage will arm women with the knowledge necessary
to become more informed automotive consumers.
    "Our mission at Ford Motor Company is to be the premier consumer company
offering automotive products and services," said David Ropes, Ford Motor
Company's director of Corporate Advertising and Integrated Marketing.  "This
partnership with iVillage allows us to strengthen our bond with car owners who
are women, giving them a strong voice in how we deliver automotive solutions,
and thereby providing Ford with a strategic advantage in a very competitive
marketplace."
    The Ford-iVillage alliance is the first time an online women's network has
teamed with an automaker for the direct benefit of female consumers.  The
partnership will allow Ford to engage in two-way communication with its
customers and incorporate feedback from iVillage members to design and develop
automotive products and services that are directly relevant to women.  Working
together, Ford and iVillage have co-developed interactive programming that
focuses on three key areas identified as most important to women online:
automotive safety; preventative maintenance and road repairs; and financial
guidelines for automotive purchases.
    "Traditionally, women have been overlooked in the automotive industry,"
said Nancy Evans, co-chairman of iVillage.com: The Women's Network.  "But as
we move toward the new millennium, iVillage.com and Ford are committed to
giving women resources that will put them in the driver's seat from
development to purchase to maintenance."
    The Women's Automotive Center invites the participation of iVillage
members in designing a dream car for women.  Members will be asked about the
features they are looking for in a car and can submit their voice in a monthly
poll.  A weekly poll also asks women what they think about car safety,
purchasing and maintenance issues.  In addition, a sub-section of the site,
"The Place for Minivan Moms sponsored by Ford Windstar" offers safety tips
based on the experiences of women with children.
    The Ford Division of Ford Motor Company also will partner with iVillage to
enhance the car manufacturer's participation in the Susan G. Komen Breast
Cancer Foundation's Race for the Cure.  Ford will sponsor an interactive
feature that allows iVillage members to schedule monthly email reminders for
breast self examinations and mammograms.  Ford has been a major national
sponsor of Race for the Cure since 1995.
    iVillage.com: The Women's Network is a leading women's network online that
focuses on issues of greatest importance to women.  iVillage provides
interactive services and online access to experts in 14 channels: AllHealth,
Astrology.net, Book Club, Career, Fitness & Beauty, Food, MoneyLife, Parent
Soup, ParentsPlace, Pets, Relationships, Shopping, Travel, and Work from Home.
Established in 1995 and headquartered in New York City, iVillage is a new
media company with the mission of humanizing cyberspace for women.  The
company is widely recognized as a forerunner in developing innovative
sponsorships and commerce relationships that match the desire of marketers to
reach women with the needs of iVillage members for relevant information and
services.