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ABTL News AOL Teams with Autobytel Inc. in Automotive Marketing Agreement

DULLES, Va. & IRVINE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--AOL and Autobytel Inc. (Nasdaq:ABTL) today announced an agreement that will make the Autobytel network the exclusive fulfillment channel for the thousands of consumers who look to AOL Autos every month for assistance in obtaining new vehicle price quotes from their local dealers. The agreement brings together one of the Internet’s most popular automotive consumer destinations with one of the industry’s leading Internet automotive marketing companies that has helped over 27 million car buyers streamline their car purchasing experience by connecting them to a local car dealer trained to serve Internet car buyers.

As part of the agreement, Autobytel will integrate its proprietary lead distribution technology with AOL’s automotive channel to provide consumers with a seamless, AOL-branded price quote process. Autobytel, which pioneered efficient lead distribution for the automotive Internet, currently processes over a quarter of a million leads each month. With this agreement, AOL Autos will be able to tap into Autobytel’s expansive nationwide network of dealers to more rapidly match AOL Autos customers with the local dealer of their choice.

“When it comes to online automotive lead fulfillment, Autobytel has long been one of the industry’s leaders,” said Rudi Thun, Director of the Autos Channel for AOL. “The combination of AOL’s strong consumer experiences and audience with Autobytel’s comprehensive nationwide dealer network and state-of-the-art lead distribution system will help further our mission to empower our users with the best auto consumer experience throughout the research and buy process.”

AOL Autos is one of the most visited automotive sites offering a convenient and intuitive car research experience designed to make it virtually effortless for consumers to find the exact new or used car they want, while helping save both time and money. AOL Autos car shoppers can research the make, model and trim options on new vehicles, read reviews written by leading auto industry critics, compare options from one model to another, read about new dealership incentives, and then submit a price quote request to the local dealer of their choice.

“AOL has a long tradition of providing its audience with outstanding content and user experiences. Autobytel is pleased to be able to leverage both its technology and its dealer network to further enhance the value and experience for AOL Autos consumers,” said Jim Riesenbach, CEO of Autobytel. “We’re looking forward to connecting AOL’s large base of customers with our expansive and growing nationwide dealer network.”

About AOL

AOL is a global Web services company that operates some of the most popular Web destinations, offers a comprehensive suite of free software and services, runs the country's largest Internet access business, and provides a full set of advertising solutions. A majority-owned subsidiary of Time Warner Inc., AOL LLC is based in Dulles, Virginia. AOL and its subsidiaries also have operations in Europe, Canada and Asia. Learn more at AOL.com.

About Autobytel Inc.

Autobytel Inc. (Nasdaq:ABTL) is one of the largest online automotive marketplaces, empowering consumers to make smart vehicle choices using objective automotive data and insightful interactive editorial content. The result is a convenient car-buying process backed by a nationwide network of dealers who are committed to providing a positive consumer experience. Every day consumers choose Autobytel-owned and operated websites — Autobytel.com, Autoweb.com, CarSmart.com, Car.com, AutoSite.com, Autoahorros.com, and CarTV.com – to facilitate their car-shopping decisions. Autobytel’s ability to attract millions of highly qualified, in-market car buyers and connect them with retailers has made it a leader in facilitating the entire customer car-buying lifecycle.

The Company’s innovative marketing, advertising, data and CRM products, including its Web Control® customer management system, Retention Performance Marketing (RPM®) service reminder program, Special Finance Leads^SM, and AIC® data center, are designed to enable dealers to offer a premium consumer experience. Since pioneering pro-consumer online automotive content and purchasing in 1995, Autobytel has helped more than twenty-seven million car buyers, generating billions of dollars in car sales for dealers.