ANN ARBOR, Mich., April 6, 2006 - ProQuest Information and Learning announced an agreement with FP Canadian Newspapers Limited Partnership that will bring the full text of the Winnipeg Free Press to the company's online databases, including ProQuest Canadian Newsstand and eLibrary Canada Curriculum Edition. This agreement allows ProQuest to distribute the newspaper content electronically to educational institutions, libraries, and other markets around the world.

“The Winnipeg Free Press is the oldest newspaper in Western Canada, and respected by many for its independent approach and commitment to public service,” said Rod Gauvin, Senior Vice-President, Marketing and Publishing for ProQuest Information and Learning in Ann Arbor, Michigan.  “The addition of the Winnipeg Free Press to Canadian Newsstand helps fulfill ProQuest’s objective of providing library institutions and patrons with the most complete regional and national online newspaper coverage possible.”

“We’re pleased to have entered into this distribution agreement with ProQuest and look forward to a mutually rewarding long term partnership,” says Dan Koshowski, Vice President of Finance and Administration, Winnipeg Free Press.

The agreement includes the complete electronic backfile, through today’s issue, of the Winnipeg Free Press.   This dominant Western Canadian newspaper will be available by subscription in the Canadian Newsstand product family: as a stand-alone title; within the Major Dailies newspaper package; and as part of the complete Canadian Newsstand collection. Content will be available once the data load is complete.  The Winnipeg Free Press will also be available in eLibrary Canada Curriculum Edition, serving the Canadian K-12 educational market.

Canadian Newsstand and eLibrary Canada Curriculum Edition are available in Canada through Micromedia ProQuest.

Micromedia ProQuest is Canada's leading publisher and distributor of proprietary and third-party bibliographic, financial, and directory database products for the educational, academic, public and corporate library markets. Founded in 1972, products incorporate information from Canadian companies, media sources, regulatory bodies and government agencies. Micromedia ProQuest also offers a variety of Canadian publications and documents in microform format. Many holdings date from as early as 1867 or earlier representing microform copies of original print editions. As well as representing all products of ProQuest Information and Learning (U.S.) the company acts as Canadian distributor for a number of international publishing groups and partner organizations.

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.