DMA Insert Media Council to Honor Frank C. Hudetz, Jill Eastman Vidal and Bookspan

November 9, 2006 — The Direct Marketing Association (DMA) Insert Media Council announced today that it will honor Frank C. Hudetz, chairman & CEO, Solar Communications, Inc.; Jill Eastman Vidal, director of third party marketing at 1-800-flowers.com, Inc.; and Bookspan. The council’s honors will be presented at its annual “Roast and Toast” Holiday Luncheon on December 13 at the Yale Club of New York.

The event will be your opportunity to meet, roast and toast the 2006 honorees, who are engaged in all facets of insert media. For more information about the luncheon and to register please visit http://www.the-dma.org/councilevents/insertdecluncheon.

Frank C. Hudetz

Solar Communications Chairman & CEO Frank C. Hudetz has led the company in its transformation from a single product and market focus as Solar Press to a cross-functional direct marketing production services company that is grossing $60MM in sales with 500 employees. Among other things, he instituted Internet customer service and developed a US Patent for easy access to URL’s via scanned UPC codes.

Under Frank’s direction, the company expanded beyond publishing to include consumer-packaged goods, direct marketing agencies, and major media/entertainment companies.

Jill Eastman Vidal

As Director of Third Party Marketing at 1-800-flowers.com, Inc., Jill Eastman Vidal is responsible for the list management, package insert, and insert media programs as well as syndication (or third party marketing) relationships for their collection of brands, which includes Plow & Hearth, The Popcorn Factory, Cheryl&Co., Wind & Weather, The Wine Tasting Network, HearthSong and Magic Cabin, as well as the 1-800-flowers.com flagship brand.

Prior to joining 1-800-flowers.com, Jill was the director of customer marketing programs for Newport News where she was responsible for doubling the revenue generated from their “Other Income” programs. Before that, she worked for the multi-title cataloger Hanover Direct. She began her career in the direct marketing field at Muldoon Direct, Inc., working for industry leader Katie Muldoon in New York.

Bookspan: Corporate Award Honoree

Bookspan is the premier direct marketer of general interest and specialty book clubs in the industry today. With more than 7 million members, it serves a national and diverse audience of book lovers. It operates more than 35 separate book clubs, with new launches every year.

For customer acquisition, Bookspan has been using inserts for more than 20 years, including packages, co-op mailings, statements, ride-along programs, and FSIs. It uses several hundred million inserts each year to generate a key portion of its new member intake.

On the management side of the business, Bookspan offers in excess of 300 million insert opportunities in its programs each year. Frequently, samples are included in many of its outgoing packages. These insert programs – currently promoted under the name of Doubleday Entertainment – are growing in number every year. The programs are so diverse in their universe that one can safely conclude that virtually all major insert mailers have used and continue to use one or more of these programs for extended periods of time.

Today, the Bookspan family of companies continues to be recognized as a direct marketing industry leader. CEO Markus Wilhelm in October was elected chairman of the DMA Board of Directors after service last year as its vice chairman.

Moreover, not only has Bookspan been instrumental in the growth and development of insert media, but it has been at the forefront of creating and developing new and innovative channels that have aided other companies to achieve their financial and budgetary objectives. Bookspan has been one of the few mailers that has continuously allowed its key marketing people to speak at insert media functions.

DMA Insert Media Council

The goal of The DMA Insert Media Council is to represent the interests of direct marketing companies engaged in all facets of alternative print and interactive media. The council is intended for those who are concerned with identifying and exploring industry issues and opportunities. For additional information about this and the other 18 DMA special-interest councils, please visit www.the-dma.org/councils.

For more information or to register for Insert Media Council’s annual “Roast and Toast” Holiday Luncheon on December 13 at the Yale Club of New York luncheon, please visit http://www.the-dma.org/councilevents/insertdecluncheon.

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