Released on = April 25, 2007, 6:23 am

Press Release Author = ECCE TERRAM Internet Services GmbH

Industry = Media

Press Release Summary =
"Financial Times Deutschland" as the first national newspaper in Germany is
implementing prediction markets as a regular part of its online offering. The
service will be made available in collaboration with "ECCE TERRAM".

Press Release Body = Oldenburg. 26 April 2007 - The FTD-Strategy bourse is a virtual
stock market, where participants express their expectations about future events
through the selling and buying of virtual shares. Several prediction markets
relating to different issues about economic and political developments are being
offered in parallel. The new service starts with topics like the DAX30, Hillary
Clinton as presidential candidate for the Democratic Party in the USA, the local
elections in the city of Bremen in Germany in 2007, the market share of mobile phone
manufacturers, the presidential elections in France as well as the increase in GDP
and the market share of luxury cars in Germany.

The \"Wisdom of Crowds\" is considered to outperform expert knowledge in dimensions
like topicality as well as width, depth and references of knowledge. A principle of
prediction markets, as of any electronic exchange, is that those who buy cheap and
sell at a higher price benefit.

Empirical evidence suggests that prediction markets are at least as accurate in
forecasting events as other instruments used by polling institutes on similar
demographic groups. This concept, part of a field of study called collective
intelligence, is the ideal tool for market and event forecasts. \"The partnership
with \"Financial Times Deutschland\" will give this forecasting method new dynamics.
Our company is honoured to partner with such a highly regarded broadsheet", states
Frank Simon, Managing Director of ECCE TERRAM.

The closer a participants forecast matches the real event, the more rises the value
of the virtual account. This stimulates forward strategies and therefore using
quality information and experience in these virtual investments is paramount. The
FTD-strategy bourse also rewards closely matching expectations when dealing with
rate fluctuation and diligence.

\"Due to the positive experience gained with the prediction market for the German
General Elections in 2005 and the prediction market for the (soccer) FIFA World Cup
2006 we decided to provide our users continuously with the opportunity to
participate with their knowledge and experience in forecasting events of interest\",
says Dr Anton Notz, Head of Electronic Media at the "Financial Times Deutschland".



Electronic Stock Markets (ESM)
The prediction market is based on the "Electronic Stock Market Technology" (ESM)
developed by ECCE TERRAM Internet Services GmbH. It is based on theses by Friedrich
von Hayek, who in 1974 was awarded the Nobel Prize in Economics. From Professor von
Hayek's findings it derives, that more accurate prediction of future events can be
made, if people trade shares about them with the opportunity to derive a profit.
Frank Simon, Managing Director of ECCE TERRAM: "ESMs in the form of prediction
markets provide surprisingly accurate results for opinion research and serve as a
prognostics instrument to generate forecasts". The user's interest in trading shares
and the chance for personal gain as well as the opportunity to create accurate
forecasts bind the user into the online service and increase traffic to the website.
The technology starts from a base different to traditional opinion research.
Interviews, polls and e-votes use questions like "how would you vote?" The
Electronic Stock Markets ask "what do you expect the outcome to be?" Traders
therefore buy and sell based on their expectation of the outcome. These reflect in
the prices, at which shares trade. The system can then, based on the share price,
calculate forecasts.

ECCE TERRAM has used prediction markets already in the run up to the German federal
elections of 1998 with great success, achieving the second best forecast after
Allensbach, one of Germany's leading public opinion poll institutes. In recent years
ECCE TERRAM has organised more than two dozen prediction markets on a great variety
of events.

About ECCE TERRAM
ECCE TERRAM was founded in Oldenburg by Frank Simon in 1996. Its web applications
are used in the photo processing industry and beyond by blue chips like chip maker
Infineon or German publishers like "Die Zeit" or "Gelbe Seiten" (German Yellow
Pages). Since 2001 ECCE TERRAM has been owned by the ECCE TERRAM Holding GmbH, the
In-Venture.Net GmbH, the Pilet International S.A. and the afs Holding GmbH.

Contact
ECCE TERRAM Internet Services GmbH
An der grossen Wisch 36
D-26133 Oldenburg, Germany
Tel: +49 441 500 120
Fax: +49 441 500 1229
http://www.ecce-terram.com/
Email: pr (at) ecce-terram.de
Ex Astris Scientia







Web Site = http://www.ecce-terram.de/index.php?id

Contact Details = International IT Marketing Limited
Catalina Martinez, Head of Communication
Email: pr (at) IITM.info
Tel. +1 202 470 3242