Netscape Netcenter Membership Surges, With Expanded Site Surpassing Seven Million Member Milestone

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. (September 2, 1998) - Netscape Communications Corporation (NASDAQ:NSCP) today announced that membership for Netscape Netcenter has been growing rapidly since the debut of the redesigned and expanded Netscape Netcenter portal site. Demonstrating strong momentum for new Netcenter services and channels, Netcenter registration has now surpassed the seven million member milestone. In the last month alone, more than 750,000 new members registered for Netcenter, which represents a 93 percent increase in registration since the new site launched.

Consumers visiting Netscape's new portal site are not only taking advantage of new content and services, but also downloading software at a rapid rate. Since July, Netscape estimates that more than 12.4 million copies of its market-leading Netscape Communicator and Navigator client software have been downloaded from Netcenter and licensed mirror sites. This number puts the cumulative client downloads since January 1998, when Netscape made its client software free, at more than 26 million downloads.

"The strong demand for Netscape Netcenter services and client software clearly demonstrates Netscape's success in delivering consumers the best combination of exciting content, services and tools on the web," said Mike Homer, executive vice president and general manager of Netscape's Netcenter Division. "We attribute our recent momentum to the compelling new channel content, SmartUpdate, WebMail and My Netscape, and to the new client software offerings, including Communicator 4.06 and the 4.5 preview release designed to make the Net easier to use. This expansion and growth underscores the potential for Netscape Netcenter to become the number one portal site on the Internet."

Consumers around the world are taking advantage of the recently launched preview release of Netscape Communicator 4.5, which features Smart Browsing, high-performance email, flexible roaming access, and increased integration with Netscape Netcenter. Also, as evidence of Netscape client software's popularity, the Netscape SmartUpdate service, a personalized software notification and updating service, has reported 2.2 million Netscape client software downloads since the new Netcenter site went live in July. The newly released Netscape Communicator 4.06 software reached one million downloads in its first week.

In addition to client download momentum, Netscape's client software has consistently received such recognition as this year's CNET Reader's and Editor's Choice Awards, Computer Reseller News' Channel Champions' Reader Survey for best web browser, Computerworld IT Leader' Choice, developer.com Users' Choice, Mobile Insights' Mobility Award, PC Magazine's Readers' Choice for Service & Reliability and ZDNet's
User Survey for Browser of Choice.

Netscape Netcenter is Netscape's leading portal site that provides users with a home base on the Internet. From Netcenter, users can navigate the Internet, access a broad range of consumer and business content and services, and communicate with others online. The site includes 17 content channels and a set of leading-edge services including the new Netscape-branded Search, SmartUpdate, Software Download, Member Directory, My Netscape personalization service and WebMail.

Netscape Communications Corporation is a leading provider of open software and services for linking people and information over enterprise networks and the Internet. The company offers a full line of clients, servers, development tools, commercial applications and professional services to create a complete platform for next-generation, online applications. Traded on NASDAQ under the symbol NSCP, Netscape Communications Corporation is based in Mountain View, California.

Additional information on Netscape Communications Corporation is available on the Internet at http://home.netscape.com, by sending email to info@netscape.com, or by calling 650/ 937-2555 for corporations or 650/ 937-3777 for individuals.

Netscape, Netscape Navigator, Netscape Certificate Server, Netscape ONE, SuiteSpot, and the Netscape N and Ship's Wheel logos are registered trademarks of Netscape Communications Corporation in the United States and other countries. Other Netscape logos, product names, and service names are also trademarks of Netscape Communications Corporation, which may be registered in other countries. Other product and brand names are trademarks of their respective owners.