Canada NewsWire, Wednesday, May 24th, 2006.

J.L. Albright Venture Partners completes their second closing for Fund IV

J.L. Albright IV Venture Fund

TORONTO, On., May 24, 2006 --J.L. Albright Venture Partners said it has raised $108.5 million to date; in two closings, for J.L. Albright IV Venture Fund, with a final closing scheduled for September 2006.

Investors from previous funds, the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec, CIBC, OMERS, RBC Capital Partners and The Bank of Nova Scotia, made up the majority of the commitments to Fund IV. The Toronto and Montreal based venture firm also attracted as new investors BDC Capital, Export Development Canada, National Bank Financial and TD Capital/CFOF Private Equity Investors, Teachers’ Private Capital, the private equity arm of the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan.

With offices in Toronto, Ontario and Montreal, Quebec the ten-year-old firm primarily focuses on Communications and Systems, Internet and Media, and Software and Services companies in Canada. The firm typically invests a total of $5 million to $15 million in each portfolio company, and invests in all stages of growth, from seed to expansion.

J.L. Albright Venture Partner’s recent deals include: MusicIP, a software company that provides track identification and music discovery, spanning from consumer-electronic devices to large-scale label and commerce applications; QuickPlay Media, a mobile media company focused on delivering interactive, rich multimedia to your mobile device; and Planeteye, a ‘geo-tagged’ photographic community and landing zone where people can share photography.

“J.L. Albright Venture Partners is one of the leading venture capital firms in Canada” said Sylvain Gareau, Senior Vice-President, Investments, Funds at the Caisse de dépôt et placement de placement, a returning investor from Fund II and Fund III. “The firm is composed of serial entrepreneurs and operators that offer start-up companies intellectual capital as well as financial capital.”

J.L. Albright III Venture Fund ranks in the top quartile of all venture capital funds with a 2000 vintage year. Exits, to date, from the fund include the sale of a majority of Fun Technologies Inc. to Liberty Media Corporation, the sale of Basis 100 Inc to First American Corporation and the sale of common shares of Bioscrypt Inc. in the stock market.


About J.L. Albright Venture Partners

J.L. Albright Venture Partners “JLA Ventures”, a private venture capital firm, is a leading investor in technology companies at all stages of growth. The firm has offices in Toronto, Ontario and Montreal, Quebec. JLA Ventures’ past and current portfolio companies include: Triple G Systems (acquired by General Electric), Pixstream (acquired by Cisco), Basis100 (acquired by First American Corporation), Fun Technologies (acquired by Liberty Media Corporation), Servicesoft Technologies (acquired by Broadbase), Isolation Systems (acquired by Shiva), Descartes Systems Group (NASDAQ:DSGX), Bioscrypt (TSX:BYT), Q9 Networks (TSX:Q), Quickplay Media, MusicIP, HealthUnity, and Planeteye. For more information please visit www.jlaventures.com.

About the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec

The Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec is a financial institution that manages funds primarily for public and private pension and insurance plans. As at December 31, 2005, it held $122.2 billion of net assets. The Caisse invests in the main financial markets as well as in private equity and real estate. Its private equity team focuses on companies with the potential for strong growth and returns. The institution partners with dynamic companies in various sectors, offering them a full range of debt and equity financing products. As at December 31, 2005, the private equity portfolios held $10.9 billion of net assets. For more information: www.lacaisse.com.