SOHU/NEC EXPAND MOBILE PHONE VALUE-ADDED SERVICES IN CHINA.

SOHU.COM Inc. (NASDAQ:SOHU), China's leading online media, communications, commerce and mobile value-added services company, and NEC (China) Co., Ltd, one of the world's leading solutions providers for broadband networking and mobile Internet, have signed an exclusive agreement to bring copyrighted wireless ringtones on the Chinese market and pledged further cooperation in the Internet broadband content and wireless content business.

SOHU.COM and NEC have joined forces to expand the new business of building mobile phone value-added services in China based on NEC's experience with wireless Internet in other markets and SOHU's brand strength and reach within the fast-expanding Internet and wireless consumer market. Under the terms of the agreement, NEC has introduced unique copyrighted ringtones in China that mobile phone users can download from the SOHU SMS and MMS channels, and transmit to their mobile phones by the wireless carriers China Mobile and China Unicom. These ringtones include renowned Japanese pop songs, J-POP and J-WAVE that already have a strong fan base among Chinese youth. The two companies plan to expand into additional wireless value-added services areas as well as online broadband content in the future.

With over 250 million mobile phone users, China has already become the biggest cell phone market in the world. China's discerning consumers demand the highest quality wireless value-added content and services to enhance the entertainment value of their mobile devices. SOHU SMS is a top value-added services provider in China working closely with the mobile carriers and cell phone manufacturers to bring the best-of- breed entertainment services, comprising of over 300 products, to Chinese consumers. In MMS services, SOHU has emerged as a market leader, continuously developing products and services for MMS as well as for other 2.5G applications, such as Interactive Voice Response (IVR), WAP and K-Java, including exclusively branded content from the Walt Disney Internet Group.

Demand for quality interactive online content is rising as more Internet users in China are connecting via broadband services. By the end of 2003, 10.7 million out of 80 million Internet users had subscribed to online broadband services offered by China's fixed line telecom operators (China Telecom, China Netcom and China Railcom). The current growth trend of broadband services is expected to continue in coming years. Catering to this growing user base of broadband services, SOHU is expanding content offerings for broadband use, including the launch of a new Music Channel for broadband in January of 2004.

"SOHU is pleased to cooperate with NEC, a leading global content partner. The expression "Content is King" applies in particular to MMS and other 2.5G applications. Exclusive branded and copyrighted products will help differentiate SOHU from the competition in wireless value-added services. By bringing the exciting Japanese music world into people's handsets we believe SOHU and NEC will further promote Chinese wireless value added business among consumers," Victor Koo, COO of SOHU.COM, said.

"China is the focal point of our corporate strategy because of the tremendous opportunities the largest mobile communications market in the world and second largest Internet population in the word is offering companies like NEC. Chinese consumers are quick adopters of new technology, so we hope these unique ringtones will be well received by them. We trust we have embarked on a win-win strategic partnership with SOHU's capable management team to achieve our goals in the promising China market," Norihiko Kunishima, associate senior vice president of NEC Corporation, said.

About SOHU

SOHU.COM (NASDAQ:SOHU) is China's premier online brand and indispensable to the daily life of millions of Chinese who use the portal network for their news, search, e-mail, SMS messaging, instant messaging, browsing, games and shopping. SOHU has built the most comprehensive matrix of web properties in China, consisting of the mass portal and leading online media destination http://www.sohu.com; the #1 online alumni club http://www.chinaren.com; #1 games portal http://www.17173.com and top real estate website http://www.focus.cn. This network of web properties offers the vast SOHU user community the broadest possible choices regarding information, entertainment, communication and commerce. SOHU.COM, established by Dr. Charles Zhang, one of China's Internet pioneers, is in its eighth year of operation.

About NEC Corporation

NEC is one of the world's leading providers of Internet, broadband network and enterprise business solutions dedicated to meeting the specialized needs of its diverse and global base of customers. Ranked as one of the world's top patent-producing companies, NEC delivers tailored solutions in the key fields of computer, networking and electron devices, by integrating its technical strengths in IT and Networks, and by providing advanced semiconductor solutions through NEC Electronics Corporation. The NEC Group employs more than 140,000 people worldwide and had net sales of approximately $40 billion in the fiscal year ended March 2003.

For more information, visit http://www.nec.com or http://www.sohu.com/about/English.