Released on = February 25, 2007, 4:49 pm

Press Release Author = Karen Tarica/SmallTownPapers, Inc.

Industry = Internet & Online

Press Release Summary = Publishers turn to SmallTownPapers to provide online access
to archives

Press Release Body = As many newspaper publishers struggle with how to provide
access to their printed archives without the content being exploited, small-market
publishers are lining up to have their archives digitized and made online-accessible
by SmallTownPapers, Inc. The Seattle-based company is working with more than 300
publishers from across the US to create high-quality digital images of their
newspaper pages which are searchable and distributed online through defined
partnerships. To date, the company has scanned more than two million newspaper pages
of its 20 million page archive and its digital database is expanding daily.

"While large newspapers have long had their archives electronically available, the
small town newspapers were generally unable to do that because of the costs
involved," explained Paul Jeffko, president and founder of SmallTownPapers, Inc.
"With this program, millions of newspaper pages are being viewed and searched online
for the first time."

SmallTownPapers' growing collection of newly-digitized historical content is a boon
to the search engine community which is seeking to deliver more relevant search
results by providing access to digitized printed materials like newspapers. Just as
Google, Microsoft and others are beginning to scan books; SmallTownPapers is
digitizing the complete archives of newspapers from small towns across America,
including the current printed weekly editions.

Newspaper publishers, seeing the world pull away from paper and ink, understand the
public's desire for immediate access and delivery of the unique information their
archives hold. "Our archives were previously only available to customers coming to
the office, thumbing through our faded and fragile large bound volumes and placing
them on a copier," said Cara Young from Charles Town, West Virginia's Spirit of
Jefferson Farmer's Advocate. "We're thrilled customers can now find what they're
looking for online and print out the information in their own home without having to
handle the aging books."

Small market newspaper archives are of intense interest to millions of people -
authors conducting research, journalists needing background information, those
tracking business, environmental and cultural trends, and historians and
genealogists looking for vital records. "The SmallTownPapers collection is
extremely valuable for family history researchers and has been one of the most
accessed and favorite databases on our website," said Walter Fuller, President of
Everton's Genealogical Helper.

The SmallTownPapers archive, which includes current editions and those printed back
to the 1800s, is available for online search through a distribution partnership with
World Vital Records, Inc., which operates a genealogy-based research website. More
than one million pages of the archive are available today with 100,000 pages added
to the World Vital Records website each month.


Web Site = http://www.smalltownpapers.com

Contact Details = Contact:
Karen Tarica - 206-369-0855 - karent@smalltownpapers.com
5026 California Ave. SW
Seattle, WA 98136

About SmallTownPapers®
SmallTownPapers is an online gateway to newspapers from small-town America - past
and present. Working with publishers from across the country, the company digitally
scans current and archived newspapers and then provides online access. Through the
SmallTownPapers website, the newspaper archives can be searched by keyword or phrase
and viewed as originally printed. SmallTownPapers, Inc. is based in Seattle, WA.
For more information visit www.smalltownpapers.com.