Fender Musical Instruments Corporation Implements Benefitfocus HR InTouch

**Charleston, S.C. -- **February 19, 2013 -- Benefitfocus, the nation's largest provider of healthcare and benefits technology, today announced that Fender Musical Instruments Corporation has selected BENEFITFOCUS HR INTOUCH(r) to simplify benefit administration and enrollment in addition to improving employee communication. The world's leading guitar manufacturer is headquartered in Scottsdale, AZ and has manufacturing headquarters in Corona, Calif., along with 16 locations throughout North America and several European countries.

The 1,700 Fender employees logged into the HR InTouch cloud-based portal to elect their benefits during the company's open enrollment this past November. With the portal's multi-language capabilities and educational videos available in both English and Spanish, Fender was able to provide all of their employees with a better understanding of their benefits. Administrators were able to effectively analyze employee enrollment data and activity through the ad hoc reporting features within HR InTouch, giving them quick and easy access to meaningful data.

Through seamless integration and data exchange connections, HR InTouch allows Fender to manage all benefits in one place and instantly transmit data with their payroll system for automated payroll deductions. Employees have the ability to conveniently access the portal's powerful decision support tools and resources on any mobile platform, using any web-enabled device such as a tablet, smartphone or personal computer.

"Benefitfocus was the best choice for Fender because of their innovative decision support tools that create an intuitive enrollment process and enjoyable experience for our employees," commented Heather Vertrees, Fender Musical Instruments Corporation Benefits Manager. "HR InTouch is the perfect combination of user-friendly technology and polished design to meet the needs of our complex benefit administration. It's refreshing to now have an incredibly organized way for our employees to enroll in their benefits."

"Fender's vision to continue championing the spirit of rock and roll and their mission to exceed the expectations of music enthusiasts worldwide is one of many reasons we are excited to have them join the Benefitfocus Cloud," stated Benefitfocus President and CEO Shawn Jenkins. "We are proud that our technology was chosen to create a better way to manage benefits and deliver a more personalized enrollment experience for their employees."

Benefitfocus is showcasing its technology to leading companies like Fender across the nation by hosting several events throughout 2013, including six City Tours in the first quarter. Companies will also have the opportunity to get hands on experience with the latest benefits technology during the Benefitfocus One Place event in April.

About Fender Musical Instruments Corporation Fender Musical Instruments Corporation (FMIC) is a leading, global musical instruments company whose comprehensive portfolio of brands includes Fender(r), Squier(r), Guild(r), Tacoma(r), Gretsch(r), Jackson(r), Charvel(r), EVH(r), SWR(r) and Groove Tubes(r), among others. Fender(r) instruments include the Telecaster(r), Stratocaster(r), Precision Bass(r) and Jazz Bass(r) guitars. For more information, visit www.fender.com.

In 2007, FMIC acquired KMC Music, one of the largest independent U.S. distributors of musical instruments and accessories. In 2011, KMC Music and Musicorp united their sales and catalog divisions as KMCMusicorp, creating a leading wholesaler of musical instruments, accessories and lighting equipment. KMCMusicorp produces and/or distributes Ovation(r), Takamine(r) and Hamer(r) guitars; Latin Percussion(r), Gretsch(r) Drums, Gibraltar(r) Hardware, Toca(r) Percussion, Sabian(r) cymbals and Genz Benz(r) amplifiers and more. For more information, visit www.kmcmusicorp.com.

About Benefitfocus Benefitfocus is the largest benefits technology provider in the U.S. More than 18 million members, 300,000 employers and 60,000 brokers use our cloud-based platform to shop, enroll, manage and exchange all their benefits in one place. From consumer engagement and education to enrollment, communication and billing, Benefitfocus is helping companies find a better way to manage their benefits. For more information, visit www.benefitfocus.com. Benefitfocus -- All Your Benefits. One Place.