Hub Site for Musicians Launched

Future Network PLC
21 February 2000




              FUTURE LAUNCHES HUB SITE FOR MUSICIANS
                                 
               intermusic.com set to be UK's largest
                  online community for musicians
                                 
Future Network plc (LSE: FNET), the specialist consumer magazine
and website publisher, today announces the launch of a new portal
for people who make music - intermusic.com, which is projected to
attract 160,000 unique users and to generate two million page
views per month from launch.

intermusic.com will feature seven main content channels, bringing
together all the resources musicians need to make music on or via
the web.  The site will provide music upload facilities, a
gearfinder service, user auctions, interviews, tutorials, forums,
user reviews and webcasts.  Future is currently in discussions
with a number of potential partners to explore possible e-commerce
opportunities for the site, such as the online sale of
instruments, sheet music, CDs and concert tickets.

intermusic.com follows FutureNet's successful network model, and
brings Future's existing music sites together with a selection of
the best independent music sites on the web.  Future will control
the advertising for the complete network.

Greg Ingham Chief Executive of The Future Network, publishers of
intermusic.com, comments:  'We see enormous potential for growth
in web-based services for musicians.  The music community is
extremely net literate.  Many bands now write music together over
the net and rely on the Web to promote themselves.  With our
existing magazines and websites we have already become part of
this community.  We are in an ideal position to provide the
content and technology to create the largest online community of
musicians which we can extend into Europe and elsewhere.'

Future brings to the intermusic network its existing music
websites, including SampleNet, one of Future's most popular sites
which will be relaunched with Real Audio capability and enhanced
database facilities; musicshareware.com, a new site that
distributes music software, shareware and demos with over 1000
programs available for download at launch; Guitar Techniques;
Xfade; and the newly launched sites for its Future Music and The
Mix magazines.

The independent sites that have joined the intermusic network to
date include: analoguesamples.com, which offers free music samples
for download; Factory 42, a popular music site offering software,
downloads and music news and reviews; mixology.co.uk, the leading
independent site for DJs in the UK; and, Sounduser.com, a premier
site offering sample CD reviews online.  Future will invite
further independent sites to join the intermusic.com network over
time.

For further information:

Greg Ingham, Chief Executive      Tel: [phone]
The Future Network plc

James Longfield                   Tel: [phone]
Hogarth Partnership


Background on The Future Network

The Future Network was founded in the UK in 1985.  Today Future
publishes 120 magazines worldwide and has extensive online
activities generating over 68 million ad impressions per month.
It is the world's fastest growing major publisher; is the leading
publisher of video games and home computing magazines in the UK,
France, Italy and the US; and, ranks as the fourth largest
magazine publisher in the UK. Future employs over 1,500 people in
offices in Bath, London, San Francisco, New York, Paris, Milan,
Munich and Rotterdam. Future was floated on the London Stock
Exchange in June 1999 and has a current market capitalisation of
over £1 billion.

Future's internet activities serve the PC, Mac, Games, Music and
Football communities in the US and the UK with fast-growing sites
like maximumpc.com, maximumpc.co.uk, macdaily.com, dailyradar.com,
intermusic.com, and ufn.co.uk. Future's websites and web networks
provide rich, community- and information-based services to people
in these and related markets worldwide.