The company's purchasing departments nationwide for solicitation of bids use the vendor database.

MGM MIRAGE's goal is to have 7,500 companies in its database by year-end.
"In today's fast changing and increasingly diverse global society, corporate diversification has become more than just the right thing to do," said Punam Mathur, vice president of corporate diversity for MGM MIRAGE. "So that no opportunities are lost, we are dedicated to identifying and building ongoing relationships with businesses that can provide our company high quality products, superior services and competitive prices. Our new website will help us to achieve this goal."

According to MGM MIRAGE officials, the website will be instrumental in facilitating its goal of expanding the company's level of expenditures with MBEs, WBEs and DBEs, because it will allow small to medium sized companies to compete for business.

"Many minority businesses are small or medium sized and don't have the capital or capacity to compete with larger firms," said Rick Jones, vice president of purchasing for MGM MIRAGE. "We are now opening the door, via our website, for these smaller companies to have a fair shot at competing for business not usually accessible to them."

MGM MIRAGE is currently conducting extensive training of its entire workforce and every employee will be versed in the new initiatives by year's end. Specifically, buyers are receiving advanced training so they are able to recognize qualified vendors who meet the high standards of MGM MIRAGE.
"When we explored our purchasing history, our statistics revealed that a relatively small percentage was spent with minority and women-owned businesses," Jones added. "We want to increase our total business with these groups. But, we're not going to do business with a small company just because they're a woman or minority-owned business. We will continue to choose businesses that provide high-quality products, are cost-effective and deliver superior service. And, our purchasers will learn to identify these businesses so it is a win-win situation for everyone involved."

Officials are also facilitating joint ventures so that minority vendors can become bigger and better suppliers of goods and services to the gaming industry.

Already, MGM MIRAGE has facilitated some of these joint ventures. For example, MGM MIRAGE was introduced to RSNO, an African American owned provider of restaurant supplies. When it became apparent that RSNO would not have many opportunities to sell their supplies to MGM MIRAGE because of their pricing structure, the company's corporate purchasing department partnered them with Channel Blue, a Los Angeles-based Asian linen manufacturer. The partnership has allowed them to win a linen supply contract with MGM MIRAGE's Beau Rivage property in Biloxi, Miss. and permitted both businesses to broaden their market penetration within and beyond the gaming industry.

Through repeat construction contracts with Alonzo Barber, a Las Vegas- based African American contractor, MGM MIRAGE enabled Barber to raise the limit of his state license from $50,000 to $250,000 which augments his ability to secure and perform jobs in the gaming industry.

As another part of the company's Diversity initiative, MGM MIRAGE revised their procurement protocols involving purchases over $1,000. The company now requires notification of MBEs, WBEs and DBEs registered with them so they have the opportunity to participate in these bids. They also require that general contractor bids for all major construction and renovation work include participation by MBEs, WBEs and DBEs. Through repeat business with small minority contractors, MGM MIRAGE is increasing their licensing limits and their capacity to qualify for larger jobs.

In 2000, MGM MIRAGE voluntarily embraced a formal commitment to diversity as a philosophy and business imperative and began development of a company- wide initiative that imbedded diversity into its core values and all aspects of doing business. The Company in fall 2001 adopted a comprehensive and multi-faceted strategic plan for implementing diversity in all aspects of its operations.

MGM MIRAGE is an entertainment, hotel and gaming company headquartered in Las Vegas, Nevada, which owns and/or operates through subsidiaries 15 casino properties. Its U.S. holdings include: Bellagio, the MGM Grand Hotel and Casino -- The City of Entertainment, The Mirage, Treasure Island, New York -- New York Hotel and Casino, the Boardwalk Hotel and Casino and 50% of Monte Carlo, all located on the Las Vegas Strip; the Golden Nugget in Downtown Las Vegas; Whiskey Pete's, Buffalo Bill's, the Primm Valley Resort and two championship golf courses at the California/Nevada state line; the exclusive Shadow Creek golf course in North Las Vegas; the Golden Nugget in Laughlin, Nevada; the Beau Rivage resort on the Mississippi Gulf Coast; and the MGM Grand Detroit Casino in Detroit, Michigan. The Company is a joint venture partner on Borgata at Renaissance Pointe, a resort under development in Atlantic City, New Jersey and also controls several development sites in the oceanfront resort community.  Internationally, MGM MIRAGE owns and operates the MGM Grand Hotel and Casino in Darwin, Australia.

Statements in this release which are not historical facts are "forward looking" statements and "safe harbor statements" under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 that involve risks and/or uncertainties, including risks and/or uncertainties as described in the company's public filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.