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16th Annual Freddie Awards Press Release

BEST FREQUENT FLYER AND FREQUENT GUEST PROGRAMS CHOSEN IN THE 16TH ANNUAL FREDDIE AWARDS -- ALASKA AIRLINES AND STARWOOD HOTELS ARE BIG WINNERS ... AGAIN

COLORADO SPRINGS, COLO (April 30, 2004) -- It was a year of repeat performances at the 16th Annual Freddie Awards, as Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan was voted frequent flyer Program of the Year among American-based programs for the second year in a row, and for the fifth consecutive year Starwood Preferred Guest took top honors in the frequent guest category. Diners Club Club Rewards was named top Americas credit card for the seventh consecutive year, and the America West FlightFund program made it two in a row in the Best Elite-Level Program-Americas category. The awards were announced yesterday by InsideFlyer Editor and Publisher Randy Petersen during a ceremony at the Embassy Suites Hotel, New York City. Over 200 airline, hotel and credit card representatives attended the ceremony, along with several members of the voting public.

Mr. Petersen also presented two special awards during the ceremony. The Air Canada Aeroplan program was presented with an "Industry Impact Award" to honor its introduction of personalized elite-level benefits. And a "Distinguished Achievement Award" was given to Congressman C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger in recognition for his efforts in developing and growing the Operation Hero Miles program, which has provided transport home for thousands of U.S. military personnel stationed in the Middle East through the use of donated frequent flyer miles.

For the fourth consecutive year, Starwood Preferred Guest swept the top awards in both the Americas and International categories. Among internationally based airlines, the various awards were split between several programs. Swiss TravelClub and Virgin Atlantic flying club both won two awards apiece, while TAP Portugal Navigator, KLM Flying Dutchman, Emirates Skywards and SAS EuroBonus each walked away with one.

A total of 277,756 ballots were cast this year by frequent travelers from around the world. The awards represent excellence in frequent travel programs and rate the best frequent flyer and frequent guest programs in eight different categories: Program of the Year, Best Award, Best Bonus Promotion, Best Web Site, Best Elite-Level Program, Best Newsletter, Best Award Redemption and Best Customer Service. The Best Affinity Credit Card was also chosen.

The Freddie Awards honor quality, not quantity. Winners are determined based on the overall merits of each program as reflected in "Value Voting." Value Voting asks the voter to assign a number between one and 10 to the program for which he or she votes. To be eligible to win a Freddie Award, however, a program must receive at least one percent of the popular vote.

This year, InsideFlyer magazine partnered with Nextel, Executive Traveler/SkyGuide, USAToday.com, SmarterLiving.com and Points.com to bring travelers the 16th Annual Freddie Awards. The event was webcast live and a recap of the event can be viewed online at www.freddieawards.com.

16th Annual Freddie Awards Press Release

INSIDEFLYER, USATODAY.COM, NEXTEL, POINTS.COM, SMARTER LIVING AND EXECUTIVE TRAVEL SKYGUIDE ASK FREQUENT TRAVELERS TO SPEAK THEIR MINDS

Freddie Awards Allow Travelers to Cast Votes For Best Frequent Travel Programs

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (Feb. 19, 2004) -- Frequent travelers from around the world are invited to cast a vote in the 16th Annual Freddie Awards, which are designed to award excellence among frequent travel programs in the airline, hotel and credit card industries.

Since 1989, InsideFlyer magazine has served as the primary sponsor of the Freddie Awards, and has partnered this year with USATODAY.com, Nextel, Points.com, Smarter Living and Executive Travel SkyGuide to present the event for the 16th consecutive year.

"The Freddies are the most recognized awards for frequent travel programs because they give frequent travelers a chance to pick the best programs," said InsideFlyer Editor and Publisher Randy Petersen. "The Freddies continue to grow in popularity. Last year, over 232,000 frequent flyers cast ballots. This year, we expect over a quarter of a million frequent travelers will vote."

Voters rate hotel, airline and credit card programs in nine categories: Program of the Year, Best Award, Best Bonus Promotion, Best Affinity Credit Card, Best Newsletter, Best Award Redemption, Best Elite-Level Program, Best Customer Service and Best Web Site.

The Freddie Awards are determined by value voting, a system in which voters rate the value of their program choices on a scale of one to 10. Programs with the highest average score and at least one percent of the popular vote in each category are awarded Freddies. In essence, Freddies are awarded for quality, not quantity.

The awards are named after Sir Freddie Laker who attracted fame (and a knighthood in the United Kingdom) for his pioneering marketing ideas within the travel industry in the 1970s.

Freddie Award balloting is conducted entirely online at www.freddieawards.com. Voting concludes on March 15, 2004 at 11:59 p.m. MT. Winners will be announced in the May issue of InsideFlyer magazine and online at www.freddieawards.com.

SPONSOR INFORMATION:

InsideFlyer, a monthly magazine dedicated to the coverage of frequent travel programs around the world, helps its readers optimize their mileage and point earning potential by providing in-depth news on the programs, their partners and special bonuses and promotions. A one-year subscription is available for $45 by calling (800) 767-8896. For more information go to InsideFlyer.com.

USATODAY.com is an award-winning news and information site on the Internet. More than 35 million monthly visitors experience comprehensive, convenient USA TODAY news and information through interactive features, information graphics and multimedia functions including audio, video and live Webcasts. USATODAY.com has more than 200,000 pages of breaking stories in News, Money, Sports, Life, Travel, Technology and Weather - updated 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Nextel Communications, a FORTUNE 300 company based in Reston, Va., is a leading provider of fully integrated wireless communications services and has built the largest guaranteed all-digital wireless network in the country covering thousands of communities across the United States. Today 95 percent of FORTUNE 500(R) companies are Nextel customers. Nextel and Nextel Partners, Inc. currently serve 293 of the top 300 U.S. markets where approximately 248 million people live or work.

Points International Ltd. (TSXV: PTS), operates The Points Exchange, the only independent loyalty program currency exchange - at www.points.com. The online exchange allows customers to instantly combine points and miles from their favorite loyalty programs. Points.com has partnered with industry leaders like The AAdvantage Program(R), eBay Anything Points, Aeroplan and Priority Club Rewards to bring consumers over 3,600 Exchange Options.

Smarter Living is an online travel publisher that serves more than 1 million subscribers each week, through SmarterLiving.com and its free e-mail newsletters, with objective information on travel deals. Its sister sites are BookingBuddy.com, a free service that helps consumers compare fares and rates with fewer clicks, and SmarterLivingTravelClassifieds.com, an online marketplace for travel deals.

Executive Travel SkyGuide, from American Express Publishing, is the only resource of its kind - making business travel more productive, more efficient and more rewarding for the affluent executive traveler. Executive Travel SkyGuide products are available in several formats: SkyGuide monthly flight schedule directory, Executive Travel quarterly lifestyle magazine, and ExecutiveTravelOnline.com including PDA downloadable flight schedules. For more information call (800) 295-5527.