FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

ATLANTA (August 13, 2000) -- CheckFree (NASDAQ: CKFR), the leading provider of electronic billing and payment (EBP) services, today named Pitney Bowes, as a Premier Certified Partner through its CheckFree Partner Certification Program. The CheckFree Partner Certification Program is designed to offer partner organizations CheckFree's leading distribution and payment systems as a complement to the partners' products and services. 

Pitney Bowes provides software and services that enable enterprises to custom-tailor and deliver traditional and newer forms of critical customer communications such as electronic bills and statements via the Internet and other electronic channels. By certifying its technology with CheckFree's services, Document Messaging Technology can offer its corporate clients fast-track implementations since its products and connection to CheckFree have been tested and certified. As a result Document Messaging Technology billers have a quick and easy method to present their online bills and statements to more than 3.5 million consumers through CheckFree's distribution network. Document Messaging Technologies corporate clients can also receive payments electronically using CheckFree's payment network. 

"CheckFree's partnership program is designed to simplify and accelerate the process for financial institutions and billers to enter the electronic billing and payment market, thus stimulating consumer adoption," said Michael Sapienza, senior vice president of channel and partner management at CheckFree. "By designating proven partners such as Document Messaging Technologies as a Premier Certified Partner, billers can be confident that Document Messaging Technologies will quickly implement an EBP solution to provide their customers with the leading payment and distribution systems available." 

"Our new designation as a CheckFree Premier Certified Partner will help us to increase our market position and enhance our EBP offering. To receive premier certification from an industry leader in electronic payment is further validation of the depth and breadth of our Digital Document Delivery TM solution," said Karl Schumacher, President of Pitney Bowes Document Messaging Technology. "From sales planning and marketing materials to technical training and ongoing support, CheckFree has established an innovative way to work with us to grow our customer base." 

About CheckFree's Partner Certification Program 
CheckFree's Partner Certification Program offers two levels of certification: CheckFree Certified Partner and CheckFree Premier Certified Partner. The designations are based on the level of electronic billing and payment functionality supported by the partner organization. CheckFree Certified Partners support the essential electronic billing and payment functions. CheckFree Premier Certified Partners offer their customers not only the essential EBP functions, but also advanced marketing, customer care and tracking features available though CheckFree, as well. Certification Partners receive comprehensive training in the areas of sales, marketing/communications and technical solutions as they complete the program. In order to remain certified, partner organizations must participate in a quarterly business review with CheckFree, in which the partner will discuss product direction and sales goals. Certified partners will also receive ongoing training and support as new products are released.

The CheckFree Partner Certification Program entails four steps for successful certification, all of which Pitney Bowes has completed. The four components are as follows:  

• Business Analysis and Sales Planning - This initial component is designed to set accurate expectations and provide partner organizations with an understanding of CheckFree products and business rules. The partner organization receives a customized business plan that includes a sales plan, identifies partnership goals, defines how the objectives will be achieved and determines and measures how results are to be evaluated. 
  
• Marketing Support and Communications Planning - The purpose of this step is to provide the partner organization with materials and programs that will aid in effective marketing/communications efforts. CheckFree provides tools to help partners promote their status as a Certified Partner or Premier Certified Partner, and establishes guidelines for collaboration on marketing and public relations initiatives. Partner organizations receive a marketing toolkit, including a Certified Partner Logo, trade show signage and a listing on the CheckFree corporate Web site (www.checkfree.com). 
  
• Certification Requirements Training/Interface Design - The goal of this component is to educate the partner organization's development staff on the details of interfacing with CheckFree and supporting this new interface. Partners receive Web-based and classroom training on product functions and features, connectivity issues and architecture design guidelines. A CheckFree Partner Certification Manager supports the partner organization as it designs and codes its interface solution. 
  
• Product Validation - This final step ensures that the interface solution is efficiently integrated with CheckFree services and meets CheckFree compliance standards. The testing plan developed during the Technical Development component is implemented during this step. CheckFree executes a series of tests in order to guarantee proper data movement among all parties. 

About Pitney Bowes Inc.
Pitney Bowes Inc. is a $4.4 billion global provider and worldwide leader of integrated mail and messaging management. 

About CheckFree 
CheckFree (www.checkfree.com) is the leading provider of financial electronic commerce services and products. Founded as an electronic payments processor in 1981, CheckFree launched the first fully integrated electronic billing and payment solution in March of 1997. Today, CheckFree services enable 3.5 million consumers to receive and pay bills over the Internet or electronically. The company has multi-year contracts with 157 of the nation's top billers to provide on-line billing and payment through its network of partnerships with nearly 200 consumer service providers (CSPs), including banks, brokerage firms, Internet portals and content sites and personal financial management (PFM) software. CheckFree's Investment Services division provides a range of investment management services to help more than 255 institutions provide portfolio management and reporting services to their clients. CheckFree clients manage over 962,000 portfolios totaling more than $480 billion in assets. Software and services provided by CheckFree's Compliance and Financial Service division are used to process more than two-thirds of the nation's six billion Automated Clearing House payments. In addition, nearly 400 banks and businesses use reconciliation products and services the division provides.

Media Contact:
Scott Gerschwer
Manager, Media Relations
203-739-3163
Scott.Gerschwer@pb.com

Judy Morris
(678) 375-1595
jdmorris@checkfree.com

Tina Moore
Investor Relations
(678) 375-1278
tmoore@checkfree.com