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Creating a New Brand of Books: Pearson Education and Penguin Putnam Launch New Series

Upper Saddle River, NJ - January 27, 2002 - Pearson Education and Penguin Putnam, both businesses of Pearson plc (NYSE: PSO), have collaborated to create a new educational book series called Penguin Academics. Pearson Education is the world's leading education publisher; Penguin Putnam is one of the leading U.S. adult and children's trade book publishers. The series is being developed by Pearson Education's Longman division, a college market leader in English, history and political science.

Created in the tradition of Penguin Publishers, The Penguin Academic Series offers affordable trade-format books by distinguished scholars. Titles include The American Story (Divine, Breen, Fredrickson, Williams, authors), a 625-page quality paperback integrating social, political, cultural, economic and diplomatic history into a seamless narrative. Other titles include America's New Democracy (Morris Fiorina, Paul Peterson, D. Voss, authors) and Literature: A Pocket Anthology (R. Gwynn, editor).

The series is designed to be flexible for both instructors and students. Accessibly written and elegantly designed, the books can work as stand-alone titles for college courses, or they can be purchased in combination with three or more Penguin trade paperbacks, all at a cost comparable to a typical college textbook. To date, the series has been met with enthusiasm by professors across the country and sales have been brisk, according to Longman's marketing group.

"Some instructors and students believe that textbooks are too long and too pricey," said Roth Wilkofsky, President of Longman. "Penguin Academics addresses this perception, without sacrificing the scholarly integrity that is so important to the college marketplace. The Penguin brand, so appealing to professors, reinforces the message of affordable quality that we hope to convey to the market."

Susan Petersen Kennedy, President, Penguin Putnam, Inc., commented, "This is a unique opportunity to combine the most widely-known brand in trade book publishing with the leading educational publisher. It's exciting to be able to offer higher education a brand new series of quality, affordable educational materials."

About Pearson Education

With offices in 33 countries, Pearson Education is the world's leading education business. Its brands include Addison Wesley, Allyn & Bacon, Benjamin Cummings, Longman, Prentice Hall, Pearson Learning, Scott Foresman, and NCS Pearson. Pearson Education is the global leader in online learning with over 1,800 textbook companion Web sites, NCS Learn, the InformIT portal for technology professionals, and Pearson's Learning Network, the award-winning learning portal for parents, teachers, and children. Pearson is the global education business of Pearson plc (NYSE: PSO), the international media group. For more information, visit http://www.pearsoned.com.

About Penguin Putnam

Penguin Putnam Inc. is the U.S. affiliate of the internationally renowned Penguin Group. Penguin Putnam is one of the leading U.S. adult and children's trade book publishers, owning a wide range of imprints and trademarks including Berkley Books, Dutton, Frederick Warne, G.P. Putnam's Sons, Grosset & Dunlap, New American Library, Penguin, Philomel, Plume, Riverhead Books and Viking, among others. The Penguin Group is owned by Pearson plc, the international media group. For more information, visit www.penguinputnam.com.