Blackboard Announces Annual BbWorld(R) Commerce Conference Devoted to Campus Service Professionals

20% Larger Attendance and Record Exhibitor Participation Mark this Year's Event

WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 7, 2008--Blackboard Inc. (NASDAQ: BBBB), a leading provider of enterprise technology for the education industry, today announces BbWorld(R) Commerce '08, a specialized users conference for Blackboard Commerce Suite(TM) clients. During the four-day conference, March 9th - 12th in Phoenix, AZ, more than 300 campus card and security professionals will gather to share insights and best practices on payment and security management on campus, off campus and online.

This year's conference theme is "Coming Together," and will feature more than 35 client-led sessions, pre-conference workshops and partner-led demos.

"Last year our clients said overwhelmingly that they enjoyed unparalleled opportunities to interact with each other and Blackboard staff," said Russ Carlson, President of Blackboard Commerce. "We guarantee this year's conference will encourage similar networking and the sharing of best practices in addition to providing campus leaders the opportunity to hear about the latest Blackboard developments in payment and security management."

One of the featured services at this year's conference is Blackboard Connect-ED(TM), a mass notification system specifically focused on the needs of educational institutions. In the wake of school and campus incidents, natural disasters and other safety concerns, the ability for institutions to efficiently and effectively communicate with their entire campus has become increasingly important. Blackboard Connect-ED users are able to quickly and easily record and send time-sensitive notifications using either a computer or telephone to thousands of people on a variety of technical devices in minutes.

In addition, Dr. Mark Milliron, President and CEO at Catalyze Learning International and Dr. Adrian Sannier, Chief Information Officer at Arizona State University will deliver separate keynote addresses. Milliron will discuss the ongoing changes and challenges that every campus will face in the coming years, while Sannier will discuss technological innovations that are influencing campus management systems.

The Blackboard Commerce Suite includes three enterprise software applications that support cashless transactions on-campus, off-campus and online, linked to university ID cards. Hundreds of institutions rely on the Blackboard Transaction System(TM), the center of the Blackboard Commerce Suite, to securely process millions of transactions involving payments, data transfer, physical access control and activity authentication, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year.

For more information surrounding BbWorld(R) Commerce '08 please visit: www.bbworldcommerce.com

About Blackboard Inc.

Blackboard Inc. (NASDAQ: BBBB) is a leading provider of enterprise software applications and related services to the education industry. Founded in 1997, Blackboard enables educational innovations everywhere by connecting people and technology. Millions of people use Blackboard everyday at academic institutions around the globe, including colleges, universities, K-12 schools and other education providers, as well as textbook publishers and student-focused merchants that serve education providers and their students. Blackboard is headquartered in Washington, D.C., with offices in North America, Europe, Australia and Asia.

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Any statements in this press release about future expectations, plans and prospects for Blackboard and other statements containing the words "believes," "anticipates," "plans," "expects," "will," and similar expressions, constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Actual results may differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements as a result of various important factors, including the factors discussed in the "Risk Factors" section of our Form 10-K filed on February 20, 2008 with the SEC. In addition, the forward-looking statements included in this press release represent the Company's views as of March 7, 2008. The Company anticipates that subsequent events and developments will cause the Company's views to change. However, while the Company may elect to update these forward-looking statements at some point in the future, the Company specifically disclaims any obligation to do so. These forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as representing the Company's views as of any date subsequent to March 7, 2008.

CONTACT: Public Relations at Blackboard:
Blackboard Inc.
Brian Cooley, 202-463-4860 ext. 2377
or
Media Contact:
Fleishman-Hillard Inc.
Amy Storey, 202-828-8819

SOURCE: Blackboard Inc.