Augusta, Ga. - Morris Communications today announced the purchase of NBC Ltd. (Nippon/Navigator Book Co.), London, a publishing and media company widely known for its "Best of" series of travel magazines, its Best of British Excellence magazine and the highly regarded Britain by BritRail series.

The merged companies will form a new Morris Communications business unit operating as "Morris UK Ltd.," with a combined annual circulation exceeding 2.4* million, making it the largest distribution and circulation in the UK for both pretravel and destination travel guides. In addition, the company has identified strong growth potential in both Europe and New York for 2002.

Of the combined annual total, NBC's "Best of" series, which includes the Best of London, Italy, Paris, Spain, Germany and New York, distributes 1.3 million books in both English and Japanese (75%/25%). Distribution channels include AmEx tours, Miki Travel, Global Refund, the British Tourist Authority, Transport for London, national tourist offices, international airlines and upscale tour operators.

Additional NBC travel publications, including the contracted BritRail series, add nearly one-half million books to the total circulation. Britain by BritRail is sponsored by the British Tourist Authority and provided by BritRail at the rail pass point of purchase.

The publications of NBC will be combined with two complementary Morris publications in London – Londinium and Best Read Guide/London – which in themselves have a distribution in excess of one-half million books.

"With this purchase, we continue to evolve as a company associated with worldwide travel, building on the brand equity and outstanding reputation of our Globe Pequot publishing division," said William S. Morris, chairman and CEO of Morris Communications.

Morris added, "The NBC publications are an ideal match for our current London-based operations. They greatly enhance our service capability for both international and domestic tourists, and for advertisers aiming to reach the prime travel markets of Europe."

Mark Hendriksen, joint founder and former managing director and publisher of NBC Ltd., has been named chief executive officer of Morris UK Ltd. Sean Thompson, former general manager of Londinium and Best Read Guide-London, will become sales director (London) of Morris UK Ltd.

"This new blend of pretravel and destination publications is excellent news for travelers of all demographics," said Hendriksen. "It also allows us to offer superior service to our advertising clients. We can now provide them with an exclusive opportunity to effectively reach targeted audiences at all stages of their itinerary."

Morris UK Ltd. is located at Fulton House, Fulton Road, Wembley, Middlesex, U.K. HA9 0TF. For more information about publications and advertising, contact the company by telephone at +44 (0) 20 8903 7705; by fax at +44 (0) 20 8903 8611; or by e-mail at info@morriseurope.com.

Morris Communications is a privately held media company with diversified holdings that include newspaper and magazine publishing, outdoor advertising, radio broadcasting, book publishing and distribution, and computer services. For more information visit www.morris.com.