Phone company invests in LV company

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Friday, June 18, 1999 | 11:03 a.m.

ZoomTown.com, a wholly owned subsidiary of Cincinnati Bell Inc., made a $2 million equity investment in Las Vegas-based PurchasePro.com.

PurchasePro, an Internet-based business procurement company, is owned by Charles "Junior" Johnson, who has several business ties to Southern Ohio.

ZoomTown.com will be the exclusive sales representative in Cincinnati of PurchasePro.com's e-commerce. Beginning next week, ZoomTown will offer PurchasePro contracts for $100 per month to companies in the greater Cincinnati area.

The PurchasePro.com system gives businesses the ability to interact via the Internet to buy and sell products and supplies, reducing labor costs and paperwork and saving time.

Johnson's company, formerly known as Purchase Pro International Inc., was formed in 1997 and grew on the strength of resort properties needing procurement services. Johnson earned a business degree at the University of Cincinnati, where he played college basketball.