Dear Industry Colleagues,

As you may know, Reed Elsevier today announced its 2009 Interim Results which includes news that the controlled circulation magazines of Reed Business Information U.S. (RBI US) are being divested.

First, I’d like to state that Reed Elsevier is retaining Reed Construction Data (RCD), in its entirety, as an integral and important part of the U.S. information strategy for RBI. The divestment will not affect RCD’s day-to-day operations, focus or commitment to our customers.

RCD delivered strong results in the first half of 2009 and has shown a strategy, product portfolio and business model in recent years that closely aligns with the rest of the Reed Elsevier group. RCD has added to that a level of performance which has enabled us to both deliver growth and instill confidence in our future potential.

With this news, I’d like to reaffirm RCD’s unwavering commitment to providing industry-leading tools, resources and support to our customers, and to the industry as a whole.

Whether in times of uncertainty or prosperity, RCD will continue to focus on its core competencies and align its resources to maintain and strengthen several key areas:

• Quality – Over the last year and a half, Reed Construction Data has made a major investment in our products and services and in particular, our construction data offerings. Thus far, we have seen promising results and will continue working to set the industry standard for all of our offerings.
• Customer Focus – With a dedicated, in-house customer support team, RCD understands the importance of helping our customers realize the full potential value of our products and services. From here, we can continue building partnerships to further understand the needs of the industry and enhance our communication to open the door to customer feedback.
• Innovation – By challenging conventional thinking, we have been able to deliver the innovative solutions necessary to support this rapidly changing marketplace and give customers an edge over the competition. With the development of our BIM solutions, new online lead services and more, we are continually pursuing ways to deliver superior resources and tools.

RCD is entering an exciting phase with a clear direction for the future, and one which I am confident will bring us many opportunities. I am personally looking forward to staying the course on our vision and commitments, and ultimately, continuing to create value for our customers and our industry.

Regards,

Iain Melville
Chief Executive Officer