Canadian Interhop extends ZipLink's reach in North America; Augments service offering to include web site hosting, web-to-fax and firewalls

LOWELL, MA, January 23, 2000 - ZipLink, Inc. (NASDAQ: ZIPL), a national wholesale Internet connectivity provider, today announced the acquisition of Interhop Network Services Inc. of Toronto, Canada. This acquisition expands ZipLink's geographic reach into Canada, enabling the Company to provide broader Internet access for its US-based customers. In addition, ZipLink expects to offer its customer base many of the value added services now provided by Interhop, including web-site hosting, web-to-fax services and firewall services.

"The momentum of ZipLink's business is strong as evidenced by the rising demand from our wholesale partners for broader North American coverage. Our acquisition of Interhop is the first step toward expanding ZipLink's presence beyond the United States and we expect to capitalize on the growth prospects in this new market. Our objective is to continue increasing Interhop's Canadian footprint and to pursue additional opportunities that will further enhance ZipLink's service offering," noted Christopher Jenkins, ZipLink President.

Interhop, with over 100 points of presence (POPs) across Canada, serves nearly 50 franchisees, who, in turn, provide Internet access to more than 23,000 retail customers.

"Interhop has made substantial investments in coverage across Canada and in our service offering," noted Dave Granic, Interhop President. "Our franchisees have seen significant competitive benefits from their association with Interhop. We strongly believe that ZipLink's ISP customers will see similar benefits in their ability to deliver connectivity in Canada as well as expanded value-added services to their own retail customers."

About ZipLink
Headquartered in Lowell, Massachusetts, ZipLink is a national provider of wholesale Internet connectivity solutions for the Business-to-Business marketplace including Internet Service Providers, Web Appliance Vendors, PC Manufacturers and Distributors, and e-Businesses. Utilizing a state-of-the-art Asynchronous Transfer Mode network, ZipLink is a significant provider of national dial-up and Digital Subscriber Line services for an expanding base of customers. For more information, visit the company's Web site at www.ziplink.com.

About Interhop
Interhop has more than 100 points of presence (POPs) across Canada and serves nearly 50 franchisees. These franchisees can offer a full range of products and services including Internet connections, e-mail, news, web site hosting and firewall services. Beyond TV Access, Direct PC Satellite Service and Internet Telephone Appliances are additional products sold through the franchise distribution Network. A prime focus of Interhop is the small to medium sized business customer. For more information please visit http://www.interhop.net or call (416) 494-1603.