ANN ARBOR, Mich., June 15, 2004 - ProQuest Information and Learning has acquired the assets of Axiom Press, Inc. (Lindon, Utah), publisher and distributor of the CultureGrams family of reference materials. CultureGrams offer concise, reliable, and up-to-date reports on the countries and cultures of the world. Axiom Press is a wholly owned subsidiary of Geolux Communications, Inc. ProQuest Information and Learning, a unit of ProQuest Company, creates and publishes databases for libraries and educational institutions worldwide.

CultureGrams is a widely used cultural reference product for education, government, and non-profit users.  It is available in print and electronically via the World Wide Web.  The product line was originally developed at Brigham  Young  Universitybeginning in 1974. 

“CultureGrams content is unique by virtue of its editorial process, which brings together a network of authors and researchers around the world,” said Al De Seta, president of K-12, ProQuest Information and Learning.  “Data is compiled locally and organized centrally.  This powerful combination allows for in-depth information that is gathered first-hand and presented in a consistent, easy-to-use format.

“The information in CultureGrams is not easily replicated.  It is of particular value to students who rely on its high quality and easy accessibility.  The nature of this information is highly complementary to our SIRS® and eLibrary® databases because of the local coverage and context CultureGrams brings. And it supports our vision of creating integrated products that support student research.”

“We are excited and delighted to have ProQuest as our buyer of choice. We had many suitors, but chose ProQuest because of the complement and fit of both organizations," said Kristine Widtfeldt, president, Axiom Press, Inc.

In addition to 181 country profiles, CultureGrams offers profiles of each state in the United Statesand 65 “Kids’ Editions” of country profiles.  A sample country report is available at:  http://www.culturegrams.com/demo/world/worldpdfs/Bulgaria.pdf.

More information about the product line is available at www.culturegrams.com.

About ProQuest Information and Learning

ProQuest Information and Learning is a world leader in collecting, organizing, and publishing information worldwide for researchers, faculty, and students in libraries and schools. Known widely for its strength in business and economics, general reference, humanities, social sciences, and STM content, the company develops premium databases comprising periodicals, newspapers, dissertations, out-of-print books, and other scholarly information from more than 8,500 publishers worldwide.  Users access the information through the ProQuest® Web-based online information system, Chadwyck-Healey^TM electronic and microform resources, UMI® microform and print reference products, eLibrary® and SIRS® educational resources, and XanEdu® online faculty and student resources.  For more information about ProQuest Information and Learning, visit www.proquest.com.

ProQuest Information and Learning is a business unit of ProQuest Company (www.proquestcompany.com), which was recently named one of the top 100 fastest growing technology companies in the United Statesby Business 2.0.

About ProQuest
ProQuest creates specialized information resources and technologies that propel successful research, discovery, and lifelong learning. A global leader in serving libraries of all types, ProQuest offers the expertise of such respected brands as Chadwyck-Healey™, UMI®, SIRS®, and eLibrary®. With Serials Solutions®, Ulrich's™, RefWorks®, COS™, Dialog® and now Bowker® part of the ProQuest brand family, the company supports the breadth of the information community with innovative discovery solutions that power the business of books and the best in research experience.

More than a content provider or aggregator, ProQuest is an information partner, creating indispensable research solutions that connect people and information. Through innovative, user-centered discovery technology, ProQuest offers billions of pages of global content that includes historical newspapers, dissertations, and uniquely relevant resources for researchers of any age and sophistication—including content not likely to be digitized by others. Inspired by its customers and their end users, ProQuest is working toward a future that blends information accessibility with community to further enhance learning and encourage lifelong enrichment.

For more information, visit www.proquest.com or the ProQuest parent company website, www.cig.com.