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SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 10-K

Commission File Number 333-57201

Advanstar Communications Inc.
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

Registrant's telephone number, including area code: (617) 267-6500

        Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act: None

        Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act: None

        Indicate by check mark whether the registrant: (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes ý        No o.

        Indicate by check mark if disclosure of delinquent filers pursuant to Item 405 of Regulation S-K is not contained herein, and will not be contained, to the best of registrant's knowledge, in definitive proxy or information statements incorporated by reference in Part III of this Form 10-K or any amendment to this Form 10-K. ý

        Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is an accelerated filer (as defined in Exchange Act Rule 12b-2). Yes o        No ý.

        As of June 30, 2002, none of the registrant's common stock was held by non-affiliates of the registrant.

        As of March 28, 2003, the registrant had 1,000,000 shares of common stock issued and outstanding.

DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE
None.

PART I

Item I—BUSINESS

Forward Looking Statements

        THIS ANNUAL REPORT, OTHER REPORTS, AND COMMUNICATIONS TO SECURITYHOLDERS, AS WELL AS ORAL STATEMENTS MADE BY THE DIRECTORS, OFFICERS OR EMPLOYEES OF ADVANSTAR COMMUNICATIONS INC. ("ADVANSTAR" OR THE "COMPANY") MAY CONTAIN FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS WITHIN THE MEANING OF SECTION 27A OF THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933, AS AMENDED, AND SECTION 21E OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934, AS AMENDED, MADE PURSUANT TO THE SAFE HARBOR PROVISIONS OF THE PRIVATE SECURITIES LITIGATION REFORM ACT OF 1995. THESE STATEMENTS MAY RELATE TO, AMONG OTHER THINGS, ADVANSTAR'S FUTURE REVENUES, OPERATING INCOME, EBITDA AND THE PLANS AND OBJECTIVES OF MANAGEMENT. ALL FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS INCLUDED HEREIN ARE MADE AS OF THE DATE HEREOF, BASED ON INFORMATION AVAILABLE TO ADVANSTAR AS OF THE DATE THEREOF, AND ADVANSTAR ASSUMES NO OBLIGATION TO UPDATE ANY FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENT OR TO CONFORM ANY FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENT TO ACTUAL RESULTS. THESE FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS ARE NEITHER PROMISES NOR GUARANTEES AND INVOLVE RISKS AND UNCERTAINTIES, AND ACTUAL RESULTS COULD DIFFER MATERIALLY FROM THOSE DISCUSSED IN THE FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS. FACTORS THAT MAY CAUSE SUCH VARIATION ARE DISCUSSED IN THIS ANNUAL REPORT AND IN ADVANSTAR'S OTHER REPORTS AND REGISTRATION STATEMENTS FILED WITH THE SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION.

NOTE ON INDUSTRY AND MARKET DATA

        Industry and market data for the business-to-business ("B-to-B") media industry and our market share and relative industry positions used throughout this annual report were obtained through company research, internal company surveys and studies conducted by third parties, independent industry publications and other publicly available information. We have not independently verified market and industry data from third-party sources. In addition, while we believe internal company surveys are reliable and we believe that we define markets appropriately, none of such surveys nor such market definitions have been verified by any independent sources.

        In particular:

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Industry overview: Except where otherwise specifically referenced, we have based our discussion of the business-to-business communications industry on publications by Veronis Suhler Stevenson and reports and studies by the business-to-business trade association, American Business Media.



•

Trade Shows: We rank our trade shows against the trade shows of our competitors based on an internally conducted analysis of net square footage of exhibition space. This data is typically reported by trade show organizers and published in the Tradeshow Week Data Book 2002, a publication that lists trade shows grouped by industrial classification codes. We include both direct and indirect competitors in such comparisons. Direct competitors are the trade shows within the same industrial classification code and geographic region as our trade shows, although we only include trade shows within the same industrial classification code that are within the same subcategory, as defined by us, as our trade shows. Direct competitors are also determined in some cases by the time of the year during which a trade show is held. Indirect competitors are subjectively determined by us on a case-by-case basis. These indirect competitors include: (1) broad-based trade shows we know from prior experience that display, among other products, products displayed at our trade shows and (2) trade shows identified by our current exhibitors as other trade shows in which they participate. In determining our market position in comparison

to these broad-based shows, we compare the square footage of our show against the estimated square footage of that broad-based show allocated to the products that are of the same type as those displayed in our trade show.

•

Trade Publications: We utilize an independent third party, Inquiry Management Systems, Ltd., to rank our publications against competitors' publications based on the industry-standard method of counting the number of comparable advertising pages. For purposes of these rankings, we have defined our markets narrowly as the niche of businesses or professionals at which a publication is specifically targeted.

General

        We are a leading worldwide provider of integrated, B-to-B, marketing communications products and services for targeted industry sectors, principally through trade shows and conferences and through controlled circulation trade, business and professional magazines. We also provide a broad range of other marketing services products, including classified advertising, direct mail services, reprints, database marketing, directories, guides and reference books.

        We are one of the largest U.S. trade show operators based upon total square footage and number of shows in 2002 and one of the largest U.S. B-to-B trade publishers as measured by advertising pages in 2002. In 2002, most of our trade shows and stand-alone conferences were among the leading events in their respective markets based on square footage. For the year ended December 31, 2002, 74% of our 61 magazines and journals for which competitive data is available ranked either #1 or #2 in their respective markets, based on number of advertising pages.

        We have approximately 1,200 employees as of December 31, 2002 in 18 U.S. offices and 6 international locations in Europe, Latin America and Asia. Our revenue, operating loss, cash flow provided by operating activities and EBITDA for the year ended December 31, 2002, totaled $307.2 million, $(24.2) million, $24.3 million and $44.1 million, respectively. Reflected in our EBITDA for the year ended December 31, 2002 is a non-cash charge of $37.2 million related to a provision for notes and advances to Advanstar.com, Inc., our affiliated dot.com company (see "Item 6—Selected Financial Data—Selected Historical Consolidated Financial Data, Note 4" below for our reconciliation of EBITDA to cash flows provided by operating activities). If we were to add back to EBITDA this non-cash provision, our EBITDA would have been $81.3 million.

        Our senior management team has an average of over 19 years of industry experience, and is led by Robert L. Krakoff, our Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, who joined Advanstar in July 1996, and Joseph Loggia, our President and Chief Operating Officer, who joined Advanstar in April 1998. Our senior management team has significant industry experience and an established track record in:

•

Delivering revenue and profit growth;



•

Developing new products;



•

Penetrating new markets;



•

Managing tradeshows and publications in difficult economic conditions; and



•

Integrating 35 acquisitions and joint ventures since 1996.

Industry Overview

        B-to-B communications companies provide marketing solutions for specific industry sectors through trade shows and conferences, trade publications, ancillary marketing services and through Internet applications. According to the July 2002 Veronis Suhler Stevenson Communications Industry Forecast, the communications industry was the third fastest growing sector of the U.S. economy from

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1996 to 2001, expanding at a compound annual growth rate, or CAGR, of 6.5%. Total spending on B-to-B communications increased from $17.6 billion to $21.0 billion from 1996 to 2001, which represents a CAGR of 3.6% during that period. According to the Veronis Suhler Stevenson report, total spending on U.S. trade shows and conferences amounted to $8.1 billion in 2001, a decline of 3.2% from 2000 and a CAGR of 3.7% over the period from 1996 to 2001. The U.S. B-to-B publishing industry generated revenue of $13.0 billion in 2001 according to Veronis Suhler Stevenson, and grew at a CAGR of 3.5% from 1996 to 2001.

        In 2001, the B-to-B marketing and advertising market experienced its most significant downturn since 1990-1991 according to Veronis Suhler Stevenson. This downturn continued into 2002. Media advertising spending declined significantly as companies reduced their marketing expenditures in response to the economic slowdown. Industry-wide advertising pages, as measured by the Business Information Network, declined 20% in 2001 from 2000 levels and 15.0% in 2002 from 2001 levels. Trade show exhibition space and attendance were less severely impacted by the downturn in the B-to-B marketing and advertising market in the first half of 2001. After the events of September, 11, however, trade show exhibition space and attendance suffered dramatically. As measured by Tradeshow Week, fourth quarter 2001 trade show attendance and number of exhibitors declined approximately 20% and 7%, respectively, from the fourth quarter of 2000. The decline has continued in 2002, with 2002 net square footage dropping 5.3% from 2001 figures. Attendance was down 2.2% over the same period.

        The persistence of the general economic slowdown in the U.S. may result in continued weakness in overall marketing and advertising expenditure by our customers throughout most of 2003. As a result, we expect our operating results to reflect this overall weakness. However, we believe that our balanced portfolio between trade shows and publications and our diversification across many industry sectors may mitigate the overall impact from continued weakness in general economic conditions and reduce our exposure to the potential volatility of any one sector.

Trade Shows

        Trade shows have emerged as an important B-to-B sales, marketing and educational medium in the global economy, paralleling its rise in profile among corporate marketers as a highly cost-effective marketing tool. Trade shows provide an opportunity for industry participants to conduct face-to-face selling efforts, transact business and receive product information from exhibits, conferences, workshops and other forums. Trade show attendees include executives, manufacturers and operating management, sales and marketing personnel, industry analysts, middle-level managers and other industry professionals. The economic slowdown in 2001 and 2002 and the events of September 11, 2001 have had a significant short term impact on trade show attendance and exhibitor participation. Concern over travel and future economic uncertainty have impacted our customers' marketing and travel decisions. We believe that trade show participation and attendance will be driven primarily by the economic recovery of that event's particular industry and our customers' view of general economic developments in the months ahead.

Trade Publications

        Trade publications are generally published monthly and provide information about a specific industry or market segment within an industry. Advertisers are attracted to B-to-B print media by the highly targeted and controlled circulation of publications. By focusing on targeted audiences, publishers aim to connect advertisers with key purchasing decision-makers. Controlled distribution assists advertisers in reaching very specific target groups and provides for more efficient use of advertising dollars. The cost efficiency of controlled circulation advertising versus general business advertising or consumer advertising enhances the stability of B-to-B advertising spending during difficult economic conditions. The historical growth in B-to-B publishing has been driven primarily by rising levels of advertising spending as opposed to growth in subscription revenues.

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        According to data from American Business Media, the current downturn in marketing and advertising spending has had the most significant impact on the telecommunications, horticulture and farming, finance business and advertising, and manufacturing sectors. Advertising pages in these sectors declined 48%, 28%, 24% and 22%, respectively, in 2002 from 2001 levels. The events of September 11, 2001 and the economic downturn in 2001 and 2002 have also severely impacted publications serving the travel sector resulting in an 8% decline in advertising pages for this sector in 2002 from 2001 levels.

Product Segments

        Our business is grouped in three broad segments reflecting products and services we provide to our customers to serve their marketing needs. We offer our customers a comprehensive array of B-to-B communications products and services to reach their existing and prospective buyers on a cost-effective basis. Our product and service offerings are trade shows and conferences, trade publications, and marketing services.

Trade Shows and Conferences

        We are one of the largest trade show operators in the United States based on total square footage and number of shows in 2002. As of December 31, 2002, we owned and managed 69 trade shows and 11 standalone conferences for business, professional and consumer audiences worldwide, most of which were among the leading events in their respective markets based on square footage. Six of our largest trade shows are listed in the April, 2002 issue of Tradeshow Week 200's list of the top 200 trade shows as measured by total square footage—MAGIC Spring, MAGIC Fall, Dealer News International Powersports Dealer Expo, AIIM Conference and Expo Licensing International and Artexpo New York. Additionally, we own Telexpo, the largest telecommunications trade show in Latin America. Collectively, these seven trade shows represented 2.6 million of the 4.8 million total square footage of all our trade shows for the year ended December 31, 2002.

        Our trade show revenue is derived primarily from the sale of trade show floor space to exhibitors, show-specific advertising, sponsorships and conferences. Trade show revenue accounted for approximately 53%, 54% and 52% of our revenue in 2000, 2001 and 2002.

        Trade shows are a long-established means of community building, bringing buyers and sellers in one particular industry or business face-to-face, in a single forum. In addition, as new products and services proliferate, both suppliers and their customers need efficient forums to interact and transact business with one another. Events often include an extensive conference program, which provides a forum for the exchange and dissemination of information relevant to the particular event's focus. A conference linked to a trade show plays a strategic role in trade show development because it represents the unique editorial content for an event, and it can be used to build new segments, raise the profile of particular segments or technologies and drive attendance at the underlying trade show. In addition, each event typically has one or more keynote speakers drawn from notable industry leaders.

        The advantages of trade shows to exhibitors and attendees are summarized below:

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Trade Publications

        We are the fourth largest B-to-B trade publisher in the United States as measured by advertising pages in 2002. As of December 31, 2002, we published 71 specialized business magazines and professional journals and 36 directories and other publications. Of our 61 magazines and journals for which competitive data is available, 74% ranked either #1 or #2 in their respective markets, based on the number of advertising pages in the twelve months ended December 31, 2002.

        Trade publications revenue accounted for approximately 42%, 41% and 43% of our total revenue in 2000, 2001 and 2002. Our largest publications include Travel Agent, Pharmaceutical Technology, American Salon, Video Store, Premier, Dealernews and Pharmaceutical Executive which collectively represented 35% of total advertising pages of all our publications for the year ended December 31, 2002.

        By offering our advertisers access to a targeted and industry-specific customer base, we believe that we are able to sell advertising space in our publications at a rate per customer that is higher than the average rate charged by publications aimed at more general audiences. We believe that our targeted circulation lists for our U.S. and international publications provide our advertising customers with a cost-effective method of reaching their target market's decision-makers. Our publications are generally distributed free-of-charge to qualified professional recipients and generate revenues predominantly from the sale of advertising. We seek to increase advertising revenues by introducing existing advertisers to new titles, by attracting new advertisers who target our readership and by developing new reader and advertising categories.

        The advantages of trade publications to advertisers and readers are summarized below:

Marketing Services

        Within each industry cluster, we provide a comprehensive set of marketing communications products, services and support geared to the particular industry's marketing and customer needs. These services include direct mail and database marketing programs, reprint services, reference books and other services to facilitate our clients' B-to-B marketing and communications programs. These services are incremental to trade shows and publications and allow our customers to fill in their marketing plans.

        Marketing services are centrally managed, rather than being organized by cluster. Thus, our cluster executives are able to dedicate their activities to high value sales. In addition, our central telesales and product management provides professional skills to these specialized product offerings. Marketing services revenue accounted for approximately 5% of our total revenue in 2000, 2001 and 2002.

Internet

        We work with our affiliate, Advanstar.com, Inc., a subsidiary of our parent, to use Internet based products and services to complement our delivery of trade show, publishing and marketing services products to our customers. We also use the Internet as a cost-effective method of developing qualifying

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magazine circulation and to register trade show and conference attendees. See "Item 13.—Certain Relationships and Related Party Transactions—Relationship with Advanstar.com."

Industry Clusters

        We also operate our business by targeting a number of industry sectors in North America, Latin America, Europe and Asia through certain niche markets grouped together in five core clusters. In addition to our five core clusters, we have grouped the industry sectors in which we provide products and services but do not have a significant industry presence into a "Portfolio" cluster. We believe that by focusing on industries, we better identify the broad array of our customers' B-to-B marketing communications needs which our products and services can meet. In addition, we believe our industry focus allows us to cross-sell our products and services effectively and to capture a larger share of our customers' marketing budgets. In each of our niche markets, many of the same customers advertise in our publications, exhibit at our trade shows and use our marketing services to reach their buyers. We have expanded our trade show, conference and publication offerings within each cluster through new product introductions and strategic acquisitions, which we believe maximizes our existing marketing and customer service infrastructure and industry expertise. We believe that our total cluster participants, including readers, attendees, conferees, exhibitors, advertisers, and other customers, number approximately three million.

        We previously had a sixth cluster; manufacturing and processing. In 2002 we reorganized our clusters to better match our operating strategy which resulted in the transfer of the trade shows and publications in the manufacturing and processing cluster into our other existing clusters.

Business Strategy

        Our objective is to increase profitability by solidifying our position as a leading provider of comprehensive one stop B-to-B marketing communications products and services. In order to achieve this objective, we operate our business based on the following strategies:

Operate Leading Trade Shows and Publish Leading Magazines in Attractive Niche Markets

        We focus on owning and managing businesses that are the leading sources of information for businesses and professionals in specific niches. We believe that our trade shows and trade publications serve as unique forums for B-to-B communications and provide substantial value to industry participants. Niche markets are often attractive publishing and trade show opportunities because of the difficulty in reaching industry leaders through general interest publications or broad based expositions. Of our 61 magazines and journals for which competitive data is available, 74% ranked either #1 or #2 in their respective niche markets in the twelve months ended December 31, 2002. Most of our trade shows and conferences also were among the leading events in their respective markets based upon total square footage.

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Utilize Industry Cluster Strategy to Drive Growth

        We organize our business based on the markets served which allows us to provide expertise across all media products within a market. It also allows us to respond effectively to the market needs of buyers and sellers however they may choose to go to market to reach their customers. We are able to address evolving market needs through multiple means, including:

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adaptation of existing trade shows and magazines to reflect industry trends and attract new categories of buyers and sellers;



•

development of new product extensions based on interaction with key members of the buying and selling community;



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identification and introduction of international extensions of successful U.S.-based products; and



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identification of fill-in acquisition and joint venture opportunities based on continuing interaction within the market.

Maximize Share of Customers' Total Marketing Expenditures

        We seek to create cross-selling opportunities across existing products and services and, as a result of such efforts, seek to maximize our share of each customer's total marketing budget. We offer customers a range of communications methods to attain their specific B-to-B marketing goals. For example, customers can choose to benefit from face-to-face meetings at trade shows and conferences, achieve cost effective advertising through controlled circulation trade publications and diversify and expand revenues through customized marketing services, including Internet advertising and education based programs through web sites owned and operated by our affiliate, Advanstar.com.

Launch New Products and Services Within Existing Clusters

        We have successfully developed new products within existing industry clusters and will continue to make strategic new product introductions. We launched 3 magazines and 3 trade shows in existing industry sectors to fill-in our product portfolio during the year ended December 31, 2002. Our launches are generally line extensions or regional expansions of existing product concepts, and, as a result, such project launches generally require less capital investment and are less risky than major new product introductions.

Identify and Consummate Strategic Acquisitions

        As we expand further into our existing industry sectors, we explore strategic acquisitions and joint ventures designed to maintain and achieve market leading positions in particular niche markets. In addition, we also build on our existing international infrastructure to make strategic international acquisitions and enter into joint ventures with local operating partners. We believe we enhance the value of acquired businesses by (1) integrating acquisitions and joint ventures into our efficient infrastructure, (2) applying our industry experience and (3) cross-selling new products and services to increase our visibility in a given market. From May 31, 1996 to December 31, 2002, we completed 35 acquisitions and joint ventures. In 2002 we completed four acquisitions in the automotive, imaging, healthcare, and beauty markets. Consistent with our strategy since 1996, we are engaged in ongoing evaluations of potential acquisitions of complementary businesses.

Industry Clusters

        The following is a summary of our products and services by industry cluster.

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Fashion & Apparel

        Our Fashion & Apparel cluster serves the men's, women's, children's, and fabrics industries. In 2002, we operated in these industry sectors through 15 trade shows. Four trade shows held concurrently in Las Vegas twice annually constitute the foundation of our apparel market position:

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MAGIC, the world's largest and most widely recognized trade show for the men's apparel industry;



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WWDMAGIC, the largest women's apparel trade show in the United States;



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MAGICKids, the second largest children's apparel show in the United States; and



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The Edge, a showcase for cutting edge trends in men's, women's and unisex fashions.

        The following table sets forth information relating to trade shows in our Fashion & Apparel cluster in the twelve months ended December 31, 2002. We currently have no publications in this cluster:

Fashion & Apparel Events

(1)

Excludes conferences.

Information Technology & Communications

        Our Information Technology & Communications cluster serves the information technology, telecommunications and call center industries. In 2002, we operated in these industry sectors through 18 trade shows and 13 publications. We are a very specialized niche company in the information technology market with focused events in data storage, digital printing and digital media. We maintain a significant presence in the telecommunications sector which, while currently depressed, remains an important targeted market. We have a strong worldwide presence in trade shows and magazines serving the telecommunications industry. We also serve markets for teleconferencing, web-based collaboration and e-learning. Finally, our Call Center properties are the leading events serving operations managers for call centers in the U.S., Canada and Europe:

        Key trade shows, conferences and publications include:

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AIIM, the largest U.S. trade show focused on document management and enterprise content management;



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On Demand Digital Printing & Publishing Conference and Expo, the second largest trade show and conference for the digital print and publishing market;



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The Collaborate and e-Learning shows, trade shows in the United States for the video conferencing and long distance e-learning markets, and the related e-Learning magazines.



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Incoming Call Center Management Conference & Exhibition, the #1 U.S. trade show and conference for call center managers, and Call Center Conference & Exhibition, a large U.S. trade show and conference for technology in the call center market;

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•

Telexpo, the #1 telecom trade show and conference in Latin America, held in Sao Paulo with over 50,000 attendees and 500 exhibitors;



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Frontline Solutions, the #1 U.S. magazine and trade show in the United States for the automatic data capture, identification, tracking systems and supply chain integration market;



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Sensors, the #1 U.S. magazine for engineers focused on the expanding use of sensors in industrial and consumer products, and Sensors Expos, the leading trade show serving the sensors market; and



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a global grouping of leading telecom magazines, including America's Network, Telecom Asia, Wireless Asia, RNT (Brazil) and TPLA (Latin America).

        The following table sets forth information relating to trade shows and magazines in our Information Technology & Communications cluster in the year ended December 31, 2002:

Information Technology & Communications Events and Magazines

(1)

Excludes conferences.

(2)

Ranking based only on measured magazines for the year ended December 31, 2002.

Specialty Retail

        We served the Specialty Retail sector through 26 trade shows and 16 publications in 2002. This cluster includes the art, beauty, entertainment/marketing and motor vehicles sectors.

        Key trade shows and publications include:

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Artexpo New York, the largest mid-market art trade show in the United States, and Art Business News, the #2 publication for gallery and framing professionals;



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IBS New York, the largest trade show and educational event on the East Coast for the beauty salon market, and American Salon, the #1 publication for the professional beauty and hair care industry;



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Licensing International, the largest trade show worldwide for the merchandise licensing industry, and License!, the #1 publication for the licensing industry; and



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Dealernews International Powersports Dealer Expo, the largest aftermarket accessories trade show in the United States targeted at powersports dealers, the 12 city tour of consumer International Motorcycle shows and Dealernews, the #1 magazine targeted at retailers in the powersports market—motorcycles, snowmobiles and personal watercraft.

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        The following table sets forth information relating to trade shows and magazines in our Specialty Retail cluster in the year ended December 31, 2002:

Specialty Retail Events and Magazines

(1)

Excludes conferences.

(2)

Ranking based only on measured magazines for the year ended December 31, 2002.

Healthcare, Science & Pharmaceuticals

        Our Healthcare, Science & Pharmaceuticals cluster provided marketing products and services to these three related sectors with 8 trade shows and 22 publications in 2002. We serve the healthcare sector in both primary and specialized care areas, such as geriatrics, dermatology, ophthalmology and veterinary medicine; the science sector in areas such as spectroscopy and liquid and gas chromatography; and the pharmaceutical sector in areas such as research and development, manufacturing, testing and marketing.

        Key trade shows, conferences and publications include:

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Pharmaceutical Technology, the #1 publication targeted at pharmaceutical scientists, engineers and operation managers, and Pharmaceutical Executive, the #1 magazine for pharmaceutical company product managers and marketing professionals;



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LCGC and LCGC Europe, the #1 magazines in the United States and Europe in liquid and gas chromatography;



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Healthcare Traveller, the #2 publication dedicated to traveling nurses and traveling allied healthcare professionals;



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Geriatrics, the #2 magazine for the geriatrics segment of the primary care market, Formulary, the #1 magazine for the drug selection market and DVM, The News Magazine of Veterinary Medicine, the #1 magazine for veterinarians; and



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Abilities Expos, the largest consumer-oriented events targeting individuals with disabilities.

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        The following table sets forth information relating to trade shows and magazines in our Healthcare, Science & Pharmaceuticals cluster in the year ended December 31, 2002:

Healthcare, Science & Pharmaceuticals Events and Magazines

(1)

Excludes conferences.

(2)

Ranking based only on measured magazines for the year ended December 31, 2002.

Travel & Hospitality

        We served the travel and hospitality sector through one trade show and five publications in 2002. Our publications for the travel and hospitality sector provide a strong foundation to launch related trade shows and services as well as to develop custom-publishing products.

        Selected publications include:

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Travel Agent, the second largest non-computer U.S. trade magazine and #1 trade periodical for the travel industry;



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Hotel & Motel Management, the #2 publication for the hospitality management market; and



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Premier Hotels and Resorts, the #1 directory of 4 and 5 star hotel and resort properties.

        The following table sets forth information relating to trade shows and magazines in our Travel & Hospitality cluster in the year ended December 31, 2002:

Travel & Hospitality Events and Magazines

(1)

Excludes conferences.

(2)

Ranking based only on measured magazines for the year ended December 31, 2002.

Portfolio

        We group the balance of our products and services into a Portfolio cluster. The Portfolio cluster addresses large and attractive market sectors in which we provide selected products and services but do not have a significant presence. Markets currently served include energy, geospatial, finance, landscaping/pest control, mining, paper and roofing sectors. In 2002, we delivered our B-to-B marketing

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communications products and services to our customers in these industry sectors through 1 trade show and 11 publications.

        The following table sets forth information relating to trade shows and magazines in our Portfolio cluster in the year ended December 31, 2002:

Portfolio Events and Magazines

(1)

Excludes conferences.

(2)

Ranking based only on measured magazines for the year ended December 31, 2002.

Company Operations

Trade Shows

        The sales cycle for a future trade show typically begins shortly before the current show. Pricing information, preliminary floor plans and exhibitor promotion for the future show are mailed in advance of the current show so that selling for the future show can begin at the current show. Typically, this "upfront" selling includes floor space reservations with exhibitors executing a contract and making deposits for the future show. At many of our trade shows, a commitment for a large portion of exhibit space for the next event is reserved by the end of the current event. The sales cycle continues with selling to new exhibitors and collecting the balance of payments due. In general, we require exhibitor payments in full prior to a trade show as a condition to participation.

        In addition to the sale of exhibit space, we market to exhibitors a wide range of promotional opportunities to raise their visibility at an event. These opportunities include directory and preview advertising, banners, sponsorships of various functions and a wide variety of other products or services. We also produce related conferences and workshops, which represent the editorial content for an event and play a crucial strategic role in trade show development. Conferences, workshops and other ancillary forums all stimulate interest in the industry and drive attendance at the trade show. While show attendance is typically free for qualified attendees, participation in conferences at these shows can be a significant revenue source.

        Event promotion is undertaken through direct mail, using both in-house, exhibitor-provided and rented lists of pre-qualified industry participants. In those industry sectors for which we also have complementary publications, our publications play a key role in event promotion by providing lists from circulation files and editorial coverage for the upcoming show. Other industry magazines may also be involved, as the goal of any event is to represent the entire industry or market. The "show issue" of an industry magazine for a related event is often the biggest issue of the year, as the advertisers want to reinforce their show presence.

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        In operating trade shows and conferences, we function in a capacity similar to a general contractor. Through our central trade show and conference operations, we select and manage venues, hotels, and vendors for decorating, registration, travel and housing, audio-visual services and other services. In many cases, venue and hotel reservations are made several years in advance, particularly for primary markets such as New York, Chicago, Las Vegas, Los Angeles and San Francisco. While the production of a show may involve hundreds of workers, most workers are employees of our subcontractor vendors. We employ very few of the workers on-site.

Trade Publications

        We operate an efficient publishing infrastructure in the United States and Europe. Our publications generally follow the controlled circulation model and are distributed free-of-charge to qualified recipients. We build readership and maintain the quality and quantity of our circulation based on delivering high quality, professional coverage of relevant industry information. Because we offer our advertisers access to a highly- targeted, industry-specific subscriber base with potential buying influence, our advertisers place their ads in our publications to reach their customers. Most of our magazines are published monthly, although some titles are published weekly or semi-monthly.

        We attract readership and improve the effectiveness of our advertising by maintaining and continuously improving the quality of the editorial content of our publications. Recipients of our publications are targeted through market research designed to determine the market coverage and purchasing authority desired by prospective advertisers. Based on existing and acquired mail lists, the targeted recipient is then solicited through promotions offering free subscriptions to the relevant publications. High-quality circulation is achieved when a high percentage of the circulation list is recently qualified, within one or two years, and the publication is delivered at the direct request of the recipient. Recipients are qualified and requalified on a regular basis through qualification cards included in the publication, various direct mail methods and the Internet.

        Our advertising sales and editorial functions are dispersed throughout North America, Asia, Europe and Brazil. Advertising sales are predominantly conducted by our dedicated sales force. Editorial content for our publications is primarily staff-written, with some editorial contribution by freelance writers and industry or professional participants in selected markets.

        Our advertising materials and editorial content are integrated in our Duluth, Minnesota and Chester, England production facilities, where layout, ad insertion and output to film is completed. All printing is outsourced to vendors in various regions, but printing contracts are negotiated and managed centrally. We purchase paper centrally through a relationship with one of the industry's largest paper brokers. Paper is shipped directly from the mills to the printers at our request. We maintain our own central U.S. fulfillment operation in Duluth to generate mailing labels and mailing instructions for the printers. Our production workforce is highly experienced and is based in relatively low-cost locations in Duluth and Chester.

Internet

        Our affiliate, Advanstar.com, uses Internet based products and services to complement our delivery of trade show, publishing and marketing services products to our customers. We also use the Internet as a cost-effective method of developing qualifying magazine circulation and to register trade show and conference attendees.

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Diverse Customer Base

        Our customer base has provided us with stable and diverse sources of revenue and cash flow as well as an established foundation from which to further penetrate existing markets and to develop new markets. We benefit from:

•

A high level of revenue diversification, primarily as a result of our business presence in 18 different industry sectors consisting of over 25,300 advertisers and exhibitors, none of which represented more than 1% of our revenues in 2002. This industry diversity helps to mitigate our exposure to economic volatility in particular industries or geographic markets;



•

A strong balance of revenue, with 52% of our revenues coming from trade shows, 43% from publishing and 5% from marketing services in 2002; and



•

Modest exposure to currency fluctuations with approximately 10% of our revenues generated from international markets in 2002.

Competition

        The markets for our products and services are intensely competitive. The competition is highly fragmented by product and/or service offering and by geography. On a global level, larger international firms operate in many geographic markets and have broad product offerings in trade shows, conferences, publications and marketing services. In several industries, such as information technology and healthcare, we compete with large firms with a single-industry focus. Many of these large international and single-industry firms are better capitalized than we are and have substantially greater financial and other resources than we have.

        Within each particular industry sector, we also compete with a large number of small to medium-sized firms. While most small to medium-sized firms operate in a single geographic market, in some cases, our competitors operate in several geographic markets. In the trade show and conference segment, we compete with trade associations and, in several international markets, with exposition hall owners and operators. Trade show and conference competition in each market and country occurs on many levels. The venues and dates of trade shows drive competition. Historically, successful shows have been held at desirable locations and on desirable dates. Given the availability of alternative venues and the ability to define events for particular market segments, the range of competition for exhibitor dollars, sponsorships, attendees and conferees is extensive. In the publications segment, we typically have between two and five direct competitors which target the same industry sector and many indirect competitors which define industries differently than we do and thus may be alternatives for either readers or advertisers.

Intellectual Property

        We have developed strong brand awareness for our principal products and services. Accordingly, we consider our trademarks, service marks, copyrights, trade secrets and similar intellectual property important to our success, and we rely on trademark, service mark, copyright and trade secret laws, as well as licensing and confidentiality agreements, to protect our intellectual property rights. We generally register our material trademarks and service marks in the United States and in certain other key countries in which these trademarks and service marks are used. Trademarks and service marks registered in the United States typically require periodic renewals, and we typically obtain these renewals as a routine matter so long as the applicable trademark and service marks are in use. Effective trademark, service mark and trade secret protection may not be available in every country in which our products and services are available.

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Environmental Matters

        We are subject to various foreign, federal, state and local environmental protection and health and safety laws and regulations. Accordingly, we incur some costs to comply with these laws. We own or lease real property, and some environmental laws hold current or previous owners or operators of businesses and real property liable for contamination on that property, even if they did not know of and were not responsible for the contamination. Although we do not currently anticipate that the costs of complying with environmental laws will materially adversely affect us, we cannot ensure that we will not incur material costs or liabilities in the future, due to the discovery of new facts or conditions, releases of hazardous materials, or a change in environmental laws.

Employees

        As of December 31, 2002, we had approximately 1,200 full-time equivalent employees. Of these, approximately 160 employees were located in Europe, Brazil and Asia with the balance based in the United States. None of our U.S. employees are represented by a labor union. We consider our relationships with our employees to be good.

Financial Information about Geographic Areas

        Financial information relating to our operations by geographic area is set forth in Note 11 to our consolidated financial statements included in this annual report on Form 10-K.

Item 2.—PROPERTIES

Properties

        We have executive, marketing, sales and editorial offices in several cities in the United States, including Boston, Massachusetts; Chicago, Illinois; Cleveland, Ohio; Edison, New Jersey; Eugene, Oregon; Milford, Connecticut; New York City, New York; Santa Ana, California; and Woodland Hills, California. In addition, we have offices in Sao Paulo, Brazil; Hong Kong, China; Paris, France; Essen, Germany; and Chester and London, United Kingdom. Our finance, trade show registration, call center, circulation, fulfillment, production and other necessary operational support facilities in the United States are located in Duluth, Minnesota.

        We generally lease our offices from third parties. However, we own our offices in Duluth and Cleveland, although we have granted mortgages on these properties to the lenders under our credit facility. We believe that our properties are in good operating condition and that suitable additional or alternative space will be available on commercially reasonable terms for future expansion.

Item 3.—LEGAL PROCEEDINGS

        We are not a party to any legal proceedings other than ordinary course, routine litigation which is not material to our business, financial condition or results of operations.

Item 4.—SUBMISSION OF MATTERS TO A VOTE OF SECURITY HOLDERS

        No matters were submitted to a vote of security holders during the fourth quarter of the fiscal year ended December 31, 2002.

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PART II

Item 5.—MARKET FOR REGISTRANT'S COMMON EQUITY AND RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS

        There is no established public trading market for the registrant's common equity.

Item 6.—SELECTED FINANCIAL DATA

        The following table presents selected consolidated financial data for Advanstar Communications Inc. and its predecessor for each of the periods indicated. The selected historical financial data for Advanstar's predecessor for the years ended December 31, 1998 and 1999 have been derived from the audited consolidated financial statements and notes thereto of the predecessors for those periods, which are not included nor incorporated herein. The selected historical financial data for Advanstar's predecessor for the period January 1, 2000 through October 11, 2000 have been derived from the audited consolidated financial statements and notes thereto of the predecessor for those periods included herein. The selected historical financial data for Advanstar for the period October 12, 2000 through December 31, 2000 and for the years ended December 31, 2001 and 2002 have been derived from Advanstar's audited financial statements, included herein. The selected historical consolidated financial data should be read in conjunction with "Item 7—Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations" and the consolidated financial statements and notes thereto included elsewhere in this annual report.

        Our parent company, Advanstar, Inc., was acquired (the "Acquisition") by Advanstar Holdings Corp. ("Holdings"), a newly created corporation formed by DLJ Merchant Banking Partners III, L.P. and related funds (the "DLJ Merchant Banking Funds"), in October 2000. When we refer to "combined" financial results, we mean the consolidated financial data for the period January 1, 2000 to October 11, 2000 (the "Predecesor") combined with the consolidated financial data for the period October 12, 2000 through December 31, 2000. The combined consolidated financial data for the year ended December 31, 2000 has been derived from the audited consolidated financial statements of the Predecessor and Advanstar and has not been audited and does not comply with generally accepted accounting principles. The Acquisition, and the resulting change in basis of accounting had no impact on revenues or EBITDA, and therefore management believes that the presentation of combined information is important because it provides a comparable basis to analyze operating data, including operating income, operating revenue and EBITDA for 2002, 2001, 2000, 1999 and 1998.

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(1)

We account for stock-based compensation using the intrinsic value method. As a result, for options that do not have fixed terms, we measure compensation cost as the difference between the exercise price of the options and the fair value of the shares underlying the options at the end of the period. Our results for the period January 1, 2000 through October 11, 2000 were favorably impacted by compensation benefits due to a decrease in the fair value of the shares underlying the options. Because we no longer maintain the variable plan that resulted in compensation cost(benefit) and we intend to issue options with fixed terms, we will no longer expect to recognize compensation expense or benefit in future periods.

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(2)

Upon adoption of Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 142, "Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets", we discontinued the amortization of goodwill. The following table represents a reconciliation of loss from continuing operations adjusted for the exclusion of goodwill amortization, net of tax:

(3)

Working capital is defined as current assets, excluding cash of $18.9 million, $44.6 million, $17.7 million, $11.2 million and $14.0 million in each period ending December 31, 2002, 2001, 2000, 1999 and 1998, less current liabilities, excluding the current portion of long term debt.

(4)

We define "EBITDA" as operating income (loss) plus depreciation and amortization less amounts attributable to minority interest. EBITDA is a key liquidity measure but should not be construed as an alternative to cash flows from operating activities or operating income (as determined in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles) or as a measure of our profitability or performance. We believe that EBITDA is a useful supplement to cash flows from operations and operating income because we believe that investors use EBITDA to help them understand our ability, and the ability of other companies in our industry, to service and/or incur indebtedness and to pay taxes. Our definition of EBITDA does not take into account our working capital requirements, debt service requirements or other commitments. Accordingly, EBITDA is not necessarily indicative of amounts that may be available to us for discretionary purposes. Our method of computation may not be comparable to other similarly titled measures of other companies. We use EBITDA to determine our compliance with key financial covenants under our existing credit facility, which impact the amount of indebtedness we are permitted to incur. The definition of EBITDA in our existing credit facility is based, in part, on our EBITDA and includes adjustments described in our credit agreement (a copy of our credit agreement, as amended, has been filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission). See "Item 7—Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Liquidity and Capital Resources".

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        The following table reconciles our EBITDA to cash flows provided by operating activities for each period presented (in thousands):

(5)

For purposes of determining the ratio of earnings to fixed charges, earnings are defined as pretax income from continuing operations plus fixed charges, and fixed charges consist of interest expense and one-third of rental expense, which is considered representative of the interest component of rental expense. Earnings were insufficient to cover fixed charges in the years ended December 31, 2002, 2001, 2000, 1999 and 1998 by $73.0 million, $57.8 million, $12.1 million, $12.0 million and $27.2 million, respectively.

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Item 7—MANAGEMENT'S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

        The following discussion should be read in conjunction with our consolidated financial statements, including the notes to those statements, included elsewhere in this annual report.

        This discussion contains forward-looking statements which are neither promises nor guarantees and involve risks and uncertainties. Our actual results may differ significantly from the results discussed in the forward-looking statements. Factors that might cause those differences include, but are not limited to, those discussed in "Certain Factors Which May Affect Future Results."

Overview

        We are a worldwide provider of integrated, B-to-B marketing communications products and services for targeted industry sectors, principally through trade shows and conferences and through controlled circulation trade, business and professional magazines. We also provide a broad range of other marketing services products, including classified advertising, direct mail services, reprints, database marketing, guides, and reference books.

        We report our business in three segments:

•

trade shows and conferences, which consists primarily of the management of trade shows and seminars held in convention and conference centers;



•

trade publications, which consists primarily of the creation and distribution of controlled circulation trade, business and professional magazines; and



•

marketing services, which consists primarily of sales of a variety of direct mail and database products, magazine editorial reprints, and classified advertising.

        Trade shows and conferences accounted for approximately 52%, 54% and 53% of total revenue in 2002, 2001 and 2000, respectively. Trade publications accounted for approximately 43%, 41% and 42% of total revenue in 2002, 2001 and 2000, respectively, while marketing services accounted for approximately 5%, 5% and 5% of total revenue in 2002, 2001 and 2000, respectively. Our revenue reaches its highest levels during the first and third quarters of the year due to the timing of the MAGIC trade shows and our other large trade shows and conferences. Because trade shows and conferences revenue is recognized when a particular event is held, we may experience fluctuations in quarterly revenue based on the movement of annual trade show dates from one quarter to another.

Recent Developments

        Our business and results of operations in 2002 have been significantly impacted by the recession in the U.S. economy, particularly in our Information Technology & Communications trade shows and publications and our Travel & Hospitality publications. The events of September 11, 2001 also impacted our results in 2002 particularly our trade shows, including cancellations and reductions in attendance at certain of our events.

        We are seeing early indications of stabilization in advertising in many of our markets, except for continuing downward pressure in our technology and travel markets. Advertising pages declined approximately 2.2% and revenue per page declined approximately 6.4% across our portfolio in 2002. The page decline was concentrated in our technology and travel sectors. Pages increased 4.4% in 2002 across all sectors other than technology and travel, due in part to market share gains resulting in a 1.6% revenue increase in these other sectors. While we see this positive trend continuing in the early stages of 2003, the economic outlook in the publishing sector continues to be challenging, and forward visibility on our advertising revenue and pages is limited, due to the concerns of our customers related to the overall business environment. Our travel publications remain highly sensitive to cutbacks in

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destination and vacation travel advertising in response to concern over terrorism and possible further conflict in the Middle East and in other regions in the world.

        Our trade show segment continues to be negatively impacted by the economic recession. Our trade shows directed to the technology sector continues to suffer from the overall curtailment of spending in technology markets, which impacts marketing spending by our customers. Our trade shows directed to the fashion sector were impacted by a difficult apparel retail business environment and the impact of the terrorist attack of September 11, 2001 on exhibiting companies and attendance at our February MAGIC events. Attendance at our August MAGIC events increased significantly over the spring events and MAGIC remains the major fashion and apparel event in the industry with over 850,000 square feet of exhibit space. We expect any improvement in the performance of our trade show segment to lag behind any general economic recovery, just as it lagged the downturn in the economy going into recession beginning in late 2000. Our trade shows remain sensitive to cutbacks in travel in response to concern over terrorism and possible further conflict in the Middle East and in other regions of the world.

        In response to the decline in revenues throughout 2001 and 2002, we implemented cost management actions, including the layoff of staff, reductions in travel and other operating costs, and reorganization of certain support functions and processes. Between January 2001 and December 2002 we reduced our overall headcount by 240 or 16.3% across all functions in our company. Through these cost reduction initiatives, we were able to mitigate the effect of the decline in revenue on our operating results in 2002.

        The persistence of the general economic slowdown in the U.S. will likely result in continued weakness in overall marketing and advertising expenditures by our customers into 2003. As a result, we expect our revenues, operating income and EBITDA to reflect this overall weakness. However, we believe that our balanced portfolio between trade shows and publications and our diversification of these products across many industry sectors may mitigate the overall impact from continued weakness in general economic conditions and reduce the potential impact from the volatility of any one sector.

        Our Term Loans (Term loan A and Term loan B) contain restrictive covenants which require us to, among other things, maintain a maximum quarterly leverage ratio (as defined) that declines quarterly through the first quarter of 2004. In March 2002, we sought and obtained an amendment to the Credit Facility which provided eight quarters of covenant relief by increasing the existing maximum quarterly leverage ratios in 2002 and 2003. In the fourth quarter of 2002, we met our maximum leverage ratio requirement of 6.75:1 with a ratio of 6.36:1. We believe that we will comply with all covenants during 2003. In the event that we do not achieve our operating plan, we may need to adjust certain planned operating expenses and/or delay capital expenditures in order to meet the leverage ratio requirement throughout 2003.

        In 2004, the covenant relief provided in the amendment expires resulting in step-down in the maximum leverage ratio from 5.75:1 in the fourth quarter 2003 to 4.50:1 in the first quarter of 2004 and then declines on a quarterly basis over the next two quarters to 4.00:1 in the third quarter of 2004, where it remains for the term of the loan agreement. We believe that the economic slowdown will continue into 2003, and, as a result, we do not anticipate that we will meet the leverage ratio requirement as of the first quarter of 2004. Accordingly, we are evaluating several alternatives for seeking a modification to the terms of our Credit Facility. However, there can be no assurance that we and our lenders will be able on agree to revised terms acceptable to both parties.

Funding of Advanstar.com

        We provide our affiliate Advanstar.com with administrative support services in accounting, finance, legal, human resource management, information technology and business development. We also provide Advanstar.com with marketing and promotional support through advertising pages in our trade

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publications and exhibit space in our trade shows. In return, Advanstar.com provides promotional support on its web sites for our trade publications and trade shows.

        In 2001, our parent, Advanstar, Inc., more tightly focused the activities of Advanstar.com. These plans had the effect of more closely integrating many of the sales, marketing, technology and operating functions of Advanstar.com with our core activities in publishing, trade shows, and marketing services. As a result of the reorganization and redirection of the activities of Advanstar.com during 2001, there has been a significant reduction in the levels of funding by us to Advanstar.com during 2002. We funded approximately $2.4 million in support of those operations in 2002 compared to approximately $16.6 million in 2001. This level of support represents a significant reduction in the operating costs of Advanstar.com from those in 2001.

        In the third quarter of 2001, certain events, including the slowdown in the economy, the changing business environment and continuing operating losses of Advanstar.com, caused management of Advanstar, Inc. to consider certain options between us and our sister subsidiary, Advanstar.com, to satisfy the outstanding advances and notes due to us from Advanstar.com. Accordingly, through December 31, 2001 we accounted for these advances and notes to Advanstar.com as a charge to capital in excess of par value in the accompanying consolidated balance sheet, pending final determination of the disposition of these advances and notes.

        In the first quarter of 2002, management of Advanstar, Inc. began to consider the further consolidation of the activities of Advanstar.com with us, or a merger of Advanstar.com into us. Consequently, we recorded a first quarter non-cash charge of $37.2 million related to a provision against the outstanding advances and notes due to us from Advanstar.com as of December 31, 2001.

        In the first quarter of 2002 we began recording the current advances and notes issued for funds advanced to Advanstar.com as an operating expense in our consolidated statement of operations, as a reflection of the ongoing nature of the operations of Advanstar.com in support of our operations as a result of the restructuring of the activities of Advanstar.com in 2001. Net advances and notes included in operating expenses in 2002 were approximately $2.4 million.

Presentation of Financial Information

Acquisitions and Joint Ventures

        Since May 31, 1996, we have completed 35 acquisitions and joint ventures, three of which were completed in 2000, four in 2001 and four in 2002.

•

From January 1, 2000 through December 31, 2000 we completed the acquisitions of the Documents, Messaging and Security "DMS" tradeshow, Info 21 magazine, Brand Licensing London tradeshow and we purchased the outstanding minority interest in SeCA, our French joint venture, with a cumulative purchase price totaling approximately $21.4 million in cash and assumed liabilities.



•

From January 1, 2001 through December 31, 2001 we purchased the outstanding minority interests in Advanstar Wideband (our Licence magazine), several automotive industry magazines and the TechLearn conference for a cumulative purchase price totaling $14.3 million in cash and assumed liabilities. We also financed a portion of the Techlearn conference with a $6.0 million note payable. In addition, we contributed SeCA to a joint venture and recorded a minority interest of $6.3 million representing the minority stockholder's proportional share of the joint venture's equity at its formation date.



•

From January 1, 2002 through December 31, 2002 we completed the acquisitions of AIIM International Exposition and Conference, HT—the Magazine for Healthcare Travel Professionals and

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several smaller publications for a cumulative purchase price totaling $24.0 million in cash and assumed liabilities.

        We have accounted for our acquisitions under the purchase method of accounting. Accordingly, our results of operations include the effect of these acquisitions from the date of purchase. The pro forma operating results of the acquisitions are not material relative to our operating results.

The Acquisition

        As a result of the Acquisition in October, 2000, we have, and will continue to have, significantly higher indebtedness and interest expense than reflected in our previous historical results of operations. In addition, the Acquisition was accounted for under the purchase method of accounting. Under the purchase method, the purchase price is allocated to the tangible and identifiable intangible assets acquired and liabilities assumed based on their respective fair values, with the remainder being allocated to goodwill. Accordingly, the increase in basis of our assets resulted in non-cash depreciation and amortization charges in 2001 that were significantly higher than that reflected in our previous historical financial information.

        In connection with the adoption of FAS 142, we engaged an appraiser to determine the fair value of the Company as of January 1, 2002. Based on this valuation, which utilized a discounted cash flow valuation technique, we recorded a goodwill impairment charge of $66.8 million, net of minority interest effect of $4.1 million, in the first quarter of 2002, attributable primarily to an impairment of the carrying value of goodwill related to the Acquisition. The charge is reported as a cumulative effect of a change in accounting principle.

        During the first quarter of 2001, we recorded an extraordinary charge of approximately $2.6 million, net of a deferred tax benefit of approximately $1.5 million, in connection with the repayment of the 9.25% senior subordinated notes and the write-off of deferred financing fees related to the bridge facility. The 9.25% senior subordinated notes were refinanced with the proceeds of the 12.00% senior subordinated notes and the concurrent offering of additional senior discount notes. See Notes to our Consolidated Financial Statements included within this annual report for further details. Upon adoption of SFAS No. 145, "Rescission of FASB Statements No. 4, 44, and 64, Amendment of FASB Statement No. 13, and Technical Corrections.", in 2003 we will reclassify this extraordinary item into our 2001 operating loss.

Stock Option Compensation.

        We account for stock-based compensation using the intrinsic value method. As a result, due to the variable features of option grants under our old option plan, we historically measured compensation cost as the difference between the exercise price of the options and the fair value of the shares underlying the options at the end of the period. We then recognized a non-cash compensation charge or benefit. We no longer have a variable-feature benefit plan after the Acquisition and we therefore do not anticipate that we will recognize stock option compensation charges under the plan as currently in effect. Our results in 2000, including our EBITDA, were positively impacted by non-cash compensation benefits recognized due to a decrease in the fair value of the shares underlying the options at the end of the period.

Sources of Revenue

Trade Shows and Conferences

        The trade shows and conferences segment derives revenue principally from the sale of exhibit space and conference attendance fees generated at its events. In 2002, approximately 82% of our trade shows and conferences revenue was from the sale of exhibit space. Events are generally held on an

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annual basis in major metropolitan or convention areas such as New York City or Las Vegas. At many of our trade shows, a portion of exhibit space is reserved and partial payment is received as much as a year in advance. The sale of exhibit space is generally impacted by the on-going quality and quantity of attendance, venue selection and availability, industry life cycle and general market conditions. Revenue and related direct event expenses are recognized in the month in which the event is held. Cash is collected in advance of an event and is recorded on our consolidated balance sheet as deferred revenue.

Trade Publications

        The trade publications segment derives revenue principally from the sale of advertising in its business-to-business magazines. Additionally, certain publications derive revenue from paid subscriptions and custom publishing. Paid subscriptions comprise less than 5% of total publishing revenue. Most publications are produced monthly with advertising sold both on an annual schedule and single insertion basis. The sale of advertising is generally impacted by new product releases, circulation quality, readership and general market conditions. Advertising revenue is recognized on the publication issue date, and subscription revenue, if any, is recognized over the subscription period, typically one year.

        Our publishing properties operate in many different markets and industries which are subject to economic conditions prevalent in those industries. Accordingly, publishing revenues may fluctuate in connection with the markets in which we operate.

Marketing Services

        The marketing services segment derives its revenue from the sale of value-added marketing products such as classified advertising, both print and internet-based, direct mail services, reprints, database marketing, directories, guides and reference books. These products complement and, in many cases, utilize the content or databases generated by our trade shows, conferences and publications. The sale of these products is generally impacted by the success of the event or publication from which these products are derived, the quality of the sales team and general market conditions. Revenue is generally recognized when the applicable product is shipped.

Components of Expenses

Trade Shows and Conferences

        Costs incurred by the trade shows and conferences segment include facility rent, outsourced services such as registration, security, decorator, and attendee and exhibitor promotion. Exhibitors generally contract directly with third parties for on-site services such as electrical, booth set-up and drayage. Staff salaries and related payroll expenses are treated as monthly period expenses. All other direct costs are expensed in the month the event occurs.

Trade Publications

        Costs incurred by the trade publications segment include printing, paper and postage; selling and promotion; editorial and prepress; and circulation acquisition and fulfillment. Additionally, publisher and sales staff costs, and production, editorial and circulation staff costs, with related payroll taxes and benefits, are charged to the publications. We outsource the actual printing of our publications. Printing, paper and postage costs are charged to operations at the time of publication issuance. All other direct costs are charged to operations in the month incurred.

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Marketing Services

        Costs of the marketing services segment include printing and distribution costs, database administration fees and selling and product development salaries and related payroll taxes and benefits. All direct costs are expensed in the month incurred.

Significant Accounting Policies and Estimates

        The discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations are based upon our consolidated financial statements, which have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States. The preparation of these financial statements requires management to make estimates and judgments that affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, revenues and expenses. On an on-going basis, we evaluate these estimates, including those related to bad debts, intangible assets and income taxes. We base these estimates on historical experience and on various other assumptions that are believed to be reasonable under the circumstances, the results of which form the basis for making judgments about the carrying values of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. Actual results may differ from these estimates under different assumptions or conditions.

        We apply the following critical accounting policies in the preparation of our consolidated financial statements:

Revenue Recognition.    We recognize revenue as discussed in the "—Sources of Revenue" section above. The balance of deferred revenue at December 31, 2002 was $49.8 million and $3.3 million for trade shows and trade publications, respectively. On a relative basis, our deferred revenue reaches its highest levels during the second and fourth quarters of the year largely due to the timing of the MAGICtrade shows and our other large trade shows and conferences.

Allowance for Doubtful Accounts.    We maintain an allowance for doubtful accounts for estimated losses resulting from the inability of our customers to make required payments. If the financial condition of our customers were to deteriorate, resulting in an impairment of their ability to make payments, additional allowances may be required.

    The allowance for doubtful accounts is an estimate based on specifically identified accounts as well as general reserves. We evaluate specific accounts where we have information that the customer may have an inability to meet its financial obligations. In these cases, management uses its judgment, based on the best available facts and circumstances, and records a specific reserve for that customer against amounts due to reduce the receivable to the amount that is expected to be collected. These specific reserves are reevaluated and adjusted as additional information is received that impacts the amount reserved. We also establish a general reserve for all customers based on percentages applied to the aging balance. This percentage is based on historical collection and write-off experience and varies by geographic region. If circumstances change, our estimates of the recoverability of amounts due us could be reduced or increased by a material amount. Such a change in estimated recoverability would be accounted for in the period in which the facts that give rise to the change become known.

Deferred Taxes.    We record a valuation allowance to reduce our deferred tax assets to the amount that is more likely than not to be realized. At December 31, 2002 we have recorded a valuation allowance to offset the deferred tax benefit associated with net operating loss carryforwards in foreign tax jurisdictions and to offset the net deferred tax assets of the Company because we believe realization of these benefits is not more likely than not. While we have considered future taxable income and ongoing prudent and feasible tax planning strategies in assessing the need for the valuation allowance, in the event we were to subsequently determine that we would be able to realize our deferred tax assets in the future in excess of our net recorded amount, a reduction in

25

the net valuation allowance would result in an income tax benefit and would increase income in the period such determination was made.

Amortization of Intangible Assets.    Trade exhibitor and advertiser lists are amortized on a double-declining balance method over 6 years and five years, respectively. For periods prior to April 1, 2001, trade exhibitor and advertiser lists were amortized on a straight-line method over 8 years. Subscriber lists and other intangible assets are being amortized on a straight-line method over 3 to 10 years. We amortize intangible assets on a basis which corresponds to our projections of future cash flows directly related to these intangible assets. The estimates that are included in our projection of future cash flows are based upon the best available information at the time that the determination of useful life and amortization method are made. A change in circumstances could result in a determination that the related assets are impaired and impairment charges to reduce the carrying value of intangible assets may be necessary.

Impairment of Long-Lived Assets.    We evaluate the carrying value of long-lived assets, including identifiable intangibles, for impairment when events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of an asset may not be recoverable. If impairment indicators are present and the estimated future undiscounted cash flows are less than the carrying value of the assets, the carrying value is reduced to the estimated fair value as measured by the associated discounted cash flows.

    Under SFAS No. 142, we evaluate goodwill for impairment using a two-step test based upon a fair value approach. The first step is used to identify a potential impairment through an estimate of the fair value of certain of our reporting units (as defined by SFAS No. 142), while the second step calculates the amount of impairment, if any. Additionally, goodwill shall be tested for impairment between annual tests if an event occurs or circumstances change that would more likely than not reduce the fair value of an entity below its carrying value. Prior to January 1, 2002, we evaluated goodwill for impairment using the method described in the preceding paragraph. We determine the fair value of our reporting units by application of a discounted cash flow analysis. We make estimates that are included in our discounted cash flow analyses based upon the best available information at the time that the determinations of fair value are made. If circumstances change, our estimates of fair value will also change and could result in a determination that additional impairment charges to reduce the carrying value of goodwill are necessary.

Results of Operations

2002 compared to 2001

Net Revenue

        Total net revenue declined $39.8 million, or 11.5%, to $307.2 million in 2002 from $347.0 million in 2001.

        Revenue from trade shows and conferences declined $27.2 million, or 14.6% to $159.1 million in 2002 from $186.3 million in 2001. Our trade shows had 5.1 million square feet of exhibit space, a declined of approximately 13.6% from 2001. This decline occurred across most of the sectors in which we held events, however, it was concentrated in the technology, fashion and art sectors. The technology sector continues to suffer from the overall curtailment of spending in technology markets, which impacts marketing spending by our customers. Our fashion sector was impacted by a difficult apparel retail business environment and the impact of the terrorist attack of September 11, 2001 on exhibiting companies and attendance at our February MAGIC events. Attendance at our August MAGIC events increased significantly over the spring events and MAGIC remains the major fashion and apparel event in the industry with over 850,000 square feet of exhibit space. The art sector is particularly subject to economic downturns due to the discretionary purchasing nature of its product. We also held fewer events in several of our markets, including the IT markets in the U.S., Europe and Brazil and the art

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market. These declines were partially offset by revenue from our AIIM acquisition and several product launches.

        Trade publications and related marketing services revenue declined $12.6 million, or 7.9% to $148.1 million in 2002 from $160.7 million last year. Advertising pages declined approximately 2.2% and revenue per page declined approximately 6.4% across our portfolio, both principally due to adverse economic conditions. The page decline was concentrated in our technology and travel sectors. Pages increased 4.4% across all sectors other than technology and travel, primarily due to market share gains, resulting in a 1.6% revenue increase in these other sectors. The overall decline in revenue was partially offset by the acquisition late in the year of Healthcare Traveler and several new publication launches in our pharmaceutical market.

Cost of production and selling

        Cost of production and selling expenses declined $32.3 million, or 14.7%, to $187.7 million in 2002 from $220.0 million in 2001.

        Expenses of trade shows and conferences declined $21.1 million, or 21.3%, to $78.2 million in 2002 from $99.3 million in 2001. The shortfall in revenue for the period was substantially mitigated by cost savings associated with canceling certain events in 2002 and by our continuing actions to reduce our cost structure in response to lower revenues in this current economic downturn. Notwithstanding our cost management actions, in 2002 we made strategic investments in our MAGIC events and other key trade shows which we believe will strengthen the events and position them for long term growth as the economy recovers. In 2002 we also received an insurance recovery of $2.8 million in the third quarter related to losses resulting from the terrorist attack of September 11, 2001 that are reported as a reduction of our 2002 costs.

        Expenses of trade publications and marketing services declined $11.2 million, or 9.3%, to $109.5 million in 2002 from $120.7 million in 2001. Revenue reductions were offset by cost reduction programs including cost reductions in circulation, sales promotion, staffing and a 14% reduction in paper costs. At the same time, we restructured our sales and editorial teams using metrics-based productivity measures. We believe these measures have enabled our sales and editorial teams to increase efficiency and deepen our penetration of our customer base. Operating costs of Healthcare Traveler, acquired in October 2002, and an increase in sales staff resources dedicated to developing our small space advertiser page opportunities also served to partially offset the overall decline in operating expenses of trade publications and marketing services.

General and administrative expenses

        General and administrative expenses declined $0.7 million, or 1.9% to $35.0 million in 2002 from $35.7 million in 2001. This decrease was primarily attributable to our ongoing cost reduction programs including reductions in travel and other operating costs, and reorganization of certain support functions and processes.

Depreciation and amortization

        Depreciation and amortization expense declined approximately $25.1 million to $69.1 million in 2002 from $94.3 million in 2001 primarily due to the adoption in January 2002 of SFAS No. 142, "Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets", and the effect of the declining balance method of accelerated amortization on our exhibitor and advertiser lists, partially offset by additional amortization related to acquisitions and fixed asset additions. Upon adoption of SFAS No. 142 we discontinued the amortization of goodwill. Excluding goodwill amortization recorded in 2001, depreciation and amortization increased $2.5 million.

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Operating income (loss)

        Operating loss increased $21.2 million to $24.2 million in 2002 from $3.0 million in 2001. This increase is primarily due to a non-cash charge of $37.2 million related to a write-off of notes and advances due from our affiliated dot.com company, a $2.4 million charge related to current funding of our affiliated dot.com company and the declines in revenue partially offset by a reduction in amortization expense and certain other operating expenses as more fully discussed above.

Interest expense

        Net interest expense declined $4.3 million, or 7.7%, to $51.2 million in 2002 from $55.5 million in 2001 due to a decrease in our weighted average interest rate of approximately 1.8%, partially offset by an increase in our weighted-average debt outstanding of approximately $3.5 million. In February 2001, we replaced our then outstanding $150.0 million 9.25% senior subordinated notes with $160.0 million 12.00% senior subordinated notes.

        Approximately $164.8 million of our total debt is at a fixed rate through coupon rates on our senior subordinated notes with an additional $150.0 million covered by our interest rate protection agreements. While we do not anticipate a significant change in interest rates in the near term, a 100 basis point increase in interest rates on variable rate debt would have resulted in an increase in interest expense of $2.4 million.

Other income (expense), net

        Other income increased $2.1 million to $2.9 million in 2002 from $0.8 million in 2001. This increase was primarily a result of an increase in non-cash gains related to our foreign currency, interest rate hedging activities and foreign exchange gains.

Provision (benefit) for income taxes

        We recorded a tax benefit of approximately $15.5 million in 2002 compared to a tax benefit of approximately $11.2 million in 2001. We reduced our effective tax rate in 2002 as a result of establishing a valuation allowance to offset our net deferred tax assets due to uncertainty about ultimate realization. At December 31, 2001 we had a net deferred tax liability. At that time we had established a valuation allowance to offset the potential benefits related to our net operating loss carryforwards in foreign jurisdictions. At December 31, 2002, due to the goodwill impairment charge recorded in 2002 and the accelerated amortization of intangible assets for financial reporting purposes, we had a net deferred tax asset in the U.S tax jurisdiction. We established a valuation allowance to offset all of these net deferred tax assets due to uncertainty about their ultimate realization.

Cumulative effect of accounting change

        In connection with the adoption of FAS 142, "Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets", we recorded a goodwill impairment charge of $66.8 million, net of minority interest effect of $4.1 million, in the first quarter of 2002, attributable primarily to an impairment of the carrying value of goodwill related to the Acquisition. In 2001, in connection with the adoption of SFAS 133, "Accounting for Derivative Instruments and Hedging Activities", we recorded a charge of $0.6 million.

Net Loss

        Net loss was approximately $124.3 million in 2002 compared to $49.8 million in 2001. This increase is primarily attributable to an increase in our operating loss and our goodwill impairment charge, partially offset by a reduction in interest expense and an increase in our income tax benefit.

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2001 compared to 2000

        The following discussion compares our results for 2001 to the two months and 20 days ended December 31, 2000 combined with our predecessor's results for the period January 1, 2000 through October 11, 2000. The consolidated financial data for the combined year ended December 31, 2000 has been derived from the audited consolidated financial statements of the Predecessor and Advanstar and has not been audited and does not comply with generally accepted accounting principles.

Net Revenue

        Total net revenue decreased $30.5 million, or 8.1%, to $347.0 million in 2001 from $377.5 million in 2000.

        Net revenue from trade shows and conferences declined $12.1 million, or 6.1%, to $186.3 million in 2001 from $198.4 million in 2000. Strong performances in our larger first and third quarter events, such as MAGIC and the New York art and beauty shows, our motorcycle shows and our Brazil telecom show, and the acquisition of an e-Learning conference (TechLearn) were partially offset by the impact of the realignment of our East Coast fashion events and the cancellation of several events in Europe and the United States in our call center and IT sectors. In the aftermath of September 11th, we held 18 events as scheduled, rescheduled two events later in 2001 and cancelled a small conference in Paris. Most of our events held after September 11th performed below the prior year due to the lingering impact of the September 11^th terrorist attacks and the persistence of the general economic slowdown in the U.S., and will likely continue at least through the first half of 2002.

        Trade publications and related marketing services net revenue declined $18.4 million, or 10.3%, to $160.7 million in 2001 from $179.1 million in 2000. The continued slowdown in the U.S. economy resulted in an 8.8% decrease in advertising pages combined with a 2.8% decrease in revenue per page. This decline in trade publication revenue worsened as the year unfolded, particularly in the Technology, Communications, Travel and Hospitality sectors. Partially offsetting this decline was our acquisition at the end of the first quarter of Motor Age and Automotive Body Repair News.

Cost of production and selling

        Cost of production and selling expenses decreased 21.0 million, or 8.7%, to $220.0 million in 2001 from $241.0 million in 2000.

        Expenses of trade shows and conferences decreased $12.9 million, or 11.5%, to $99.3 million in 2001 from $112.2 million in 2000. This decrease was primarily due to cost savings associated with cancelled events and ongoing cost reduction programs, partially offset by costs related to our acquisition of TechLearn, discussed above and new product launches.

        Expenses of trade publications and marketing services decreased $8.1 million, or 6.3%, to $120.7 million in 2001 from $128.8 million in 2000. We have mitigated the effects of the 15% postal rate increase in January 2001 and the costs related to our acquisitions described above through cost savings on our base portfolio related to our ongoing cost reduction program and cost savings related to cancelled publications.

General and administrative expenses

        General and administrative expenses declined $5.0 million, or 12.3% to $35.7 million in 2001 from $40.7 million in 2000. This decrease was primarily due to staff and compensation reductions as part of our cost reduction efforts in response to the worsening economic situation in 2001. In addition, we incurred sale transaction bonuses in the fourth quarter of 2000 for which there was no corresponding expense in 2001.

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        Our results in 2000, were positively impacted by non-cash compensation benefits of approximately $2.5 million recognized due to a decrease in the fair value of the shares underlying the options at the end of the period. We no longer have a variable-feature benefit plan after the acquisition and no longer recognize stock option compensation charges under the plan as currently in effect.

Depreciation and amortization

        Depreciation and amortization expense increased $38.9 million to $94.3 million in 2001 from $55.4 million in 2000 primarily due to increased amortization of goodwill and intangible assets related to the Acquisition in October 2000 and the use of an accelerated amortization method for exhibitor and advertiser lists to reflect the pattern of usage of these assets.

Operating income (loss)

        Operating income declined $45.9 million to a loss of $3.0 million in 2001 from income of $42.9 million in 2000. This decline is primarily due to a decline in revenue and an increase in depreciation and amortization, partially offset by a decline in general and administrative expenses and cost of production and selling expenses.

Interest expense

        Net interest expense increased $3.6 million, or 6.9%, to $55.5 million in 2001 from $51.9 million in 2000 due to the additional indebtedness of $51.1 million necessary to fund the Acquisition, partially offset by a 170 basis point decrease in weighted average interest rates as a result of reduced LIBOR impact on our floating rate debt. Also, in February 2001, we replaced our then outstanding $150.0 million 9.25% senior subordinated notes with $160.0 million of the Notes.

Other income (expense), net

        Other income in 2001 was $0.8 million, compared to an expense of ($2.2) million in 2000. In 2001, the Company recognized foreign currency gains of approximately $0.5 million and income of approximately $0.4 million related primarily to a non-compete agreement associated with the sale of our Plastics events in 2000. In 2000, the Company recorded a loss of $2.4 million related to the sale of the Plastics events.

Provision (benefit) for income taxes

        We recorded an income tax benefit of $11.2 million in 2001 compared to a provision of $6.4 million in 2000. This change was primarily due to a decrease in taxable earnings related to reduced operating income more fully described above and increased amortization of intangible assets, partially offset by an increase in nondeductible amortization resulting from the Acquisition and an increase in the valuation allowance principally related to foreign tax jurisdiction net operating losses incurred in 2001.

Net Loss

        Net loss was approximately $49.8 million in 2001 compared to $18.5 million in 2000. This increase is primarily attributable to our operating loss in 2001 as described above and an increase in interest expense, also described above, partially offset our income tax benefit recorded in 2001.

Liquidity and Capital Resources

        Our cash flow provided by operating activities and EBITDA for the year ended December 31, 2002 was approximately $24.3 million and $44.1 million, respectively. EBITDA declined approximately

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$46.1 million from $90.2 million in 2001, due primarily to the reduction in operating income as discussed above. Reflected in our EBITDA for the year ended December 31, 2002 is a non-cash charge of $37.2 million related to a provision for notes and advances to Advanstar.com, our affiliated dot.com company. If we were to add back this non-cash provision, our EBITDA would have been $81.3 million. We believe that EBITDA is a useful supplement to cash flow from operations and operating income because we believe that investors use EBITDA to help them understand our ability, and the ability of other companies in our industry, to service and/or incur indebtedness and to pay taxes. However, our method of computation may not be comparable to other similarly titled measures of other companies. We use EBITDA to determine our compliance with key financial covenants under our existing credit facility, which impact the amount of indebtedness we are permitted to incur. The definition of EBITDA in our existing credit facility is based, in part, on our EBITDA and includes adjustments described in our credit agreement (a copy of our credit agreement, as amended, has been filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission). See "Item 6—Selected Financial Data—Selected Historical Consolidated Financial Data, Note 4" above for our reconciliation of EBITDA to cash flows provided by operating activities.

        Since the DLJ Acquisition, our principal sources of liquidity have been cash flow from operations and borrowings under our credit facility and our principal uses of cash have been the debt service requirements of our indebtedness described below, capital expenditures and strategic acquisitions. As of December 31, 2002, we had total indebtedness of $557.7 million and approximately $40.3 million of borrowings available under our revolving credit facility.

        Credit facility.    The term loan facility under the credit facility consists of a $100.0 million amortizing term loan A maturing April 11, 2007 and a $315.0 million amortizing term loan B maturing October 11, 2008. The credit facility also includes an $80.0 million revolving credit facility. The revolving credit facility will terminate in April 2007. The credit facility may be increased by up to $50.0 million at our request, with the formal prior consent of the lenders or other financial institutions providing the increase. However, there can be no assurance that this consent would be obtained if requested. In February 2001, we repaid $10.8 million of term loan A and $34.2 million of term loan B at the closing of the issuance of our 12.00% Series B senior subordinated notes due 2011(the Replacement Notes). The balances outstanding on our term loans A and B at December 31, 2002 were $75.0 million and $280.8 million.

        Borrowings under the credit facility generally bear interest based on a margin over, at our option, the base rate or the reserve-adjusted London-interbank offered rate (LIBOR). The applicable margin for revolving credit loans and term loan A will vary based upon our ratio of consolidated debt to EBITDA, as defined in the credit facility and is currently 3.25% over LIBOR. The applicable margin for term loan B is 4.00% over LIBOR and 2.75% over the base rate. Our obligations under the credit facility are guaranteed by Advanstar Holdings Corp., our ultimate parent company, and all our existing and future domestic subsidiaries and are collateralized by substantially all of the assets of our company and the subsidiary guarantors, including a pledge of the capital stock of all our existing and future domestic subsidiaries, a pledge of no more than 65% of the voting stock of any foreign subsidiary directly owned by our company or any domestic subsidiary, a pledge of all intercompany indebtedness in favor of Advanstar, Inc., our company and our domestic subsidiaries, a pledge of our company's and Advanstar IH, Inc.'s capital stock by our parent company, and a pledge of our parent company's capital stock by Advanstar Holdings Corp. The credit facility contains restrictive covenants that, among other things, limit our ability to incur debt, pay dividends and make investments.

        Our Term Loans (Term loan A and Term loan B) contain restrictive covenants which require us to, among other things, maintain a maximum quarterly leverage ratio (as defined) that declines quarterly through the first quarter of 2004. In March 2002, we sought and obtained an amendment to the Credit Facility which provided eight quarters of covenant relief by increasing the existing maximum quarterly leverage ratios in 2002 and 2003. In the fourth quarter of 2002, we met our maximum leverage ratio

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requirement of 6.75:1 with a ratio of 6.36:1. We believe that we will comply with all covenants during 2003. In the event that we do not achieve our operating plan, we may need to adjust certain planned operating expenses and/or delay capital expenditures in order to meet the leverage ratio requirement throughout 2003.

        In 2004, the covenant relief provided in the amendment expires resulting in a step-down in the maximum leverage ratio from 5.75:1 in the fourth quarter 2003 to 4.50:1 in the first quarter of 2004 and then declines on a quarterly basis over the next two quarters to 4.00:1 in the third quarter of 2004, where it remains for the term of the loan agreement. We believe that the economic slowdown will continue into 2003, and, as a result, we do not anticipate that we will meet the leverage ratio requirement as of the first quarter of 2004. Accordingly, we are evaluating several alternatives for seeking a modification to the terms of our Credit Facility. However, there can be no assurance that we and our lenders will be able on agree to revised terms acceptable to both parties.

        Replacement Notes.    The $160 million 12% Series B senior subordinated notes (Replacement Notes) mature in 2011 and are guaranteed by each of our existing and future domestic restricted subsidiaries. Interest on the Replacement Notes is payable semi-annually in cash. The Replacement Notes contain restrictive covenants that, among other things, limit our ability to incur debt, pay dividends and make investments. As of December 31, 2002, we were in compliance with these covenants.

        Parent company notes.    As part of the financing for the Acquisition, our parent, Advanstar, Inc., issued senior discount notes due October 2011 (the Discount Notes) with a principal amount at maturity of $103.2 million. Concurrently with the closing of the offering of the Replacement Notes, Advanstar, Inc. sold additional senior discount notes due October 2011 with an additional aggregate principal amount at maturity of $68.6 million. These Discount Notes do not require cash interest payments until 2006 and contain restrictive covenants that, among other things, limit the ability of Advanstar, Inc. and its subsidiaries (including the Company) to incur debt, pay dividends and make investments. Neither we nor any of our subsidiaries guaranteed the Discount Notes. Advanstar, Inc., however, is a holding company and its ability to pay interest on these Discount Notes will be dependent upon the receipt of dividends from its subsidiaries, principally including the Company and Advanstar.com.

        Contractual and contingent obligations.    Our contractual obligations are set forth below (in millions):

        Interest on indebtedness is estimated using interest rated as of December 31, 2002.

        Our contingent obligations are primarily composed of $2.6 million of letters of credit and our interest rate and foreign currency derivatives discussed more fully below in "Item 7A—Qualitative and Quantitative Disclosure About Market Risk".

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Sources and Uses of Funds

        We generally operate with negative working capital, excluding cash and current maturities of long-term debt, due to the impact of deferred revenue from trade shows, which is billed and collected as deposits up to one year in advance of the respective trade show. Consequently, our existing operations are expected to maintain very low or negative working capital balances, excluding cash and current maturities of long-term debt.

        On a relative basis, our revenue reaches its highest levels during the first and third quarters of the year largely due to the timing of the MAGIC trade shows and our other large trade shows and conferences. This seasonality, when combined with the shift in the timing of when events take place from year to year, may have a significant effect on our quarterly working capital.

        We anticipate that our operating cash flow, together with borrowings under the credit facility (assuming continued compliance with the covenants contained thereon or a modification thereof), will be sufficient to meet our anticipated future operating expenses, capital expenditures and debt service and other obligations as they become due. However, our ability to make scheduled payments of principal, to pay interest on or to refinance our indebtedness and to satisfy our other debt obligations will depend upon our future operating performance, which will be affected by general economic, financial, competitive, legislative, regulatory, business and other factors beyond our control.

        Historically, our financing requirements have been funded primarily through cash generated by operating activities and borrowings under our revolving credit facility. From time to time, we have also raised additional funds through sales of common stock, high yield offerings and term borrowings under our credit facility for purposes of completing strategic acquisitions.

        Cash flows from operating activities.    Net cash provided by operations was $24.3 million in 2002, derived primarily from our net loss of $124.3 million adjusted for a non-cash goodwill impairment charge of $66.8 million, amortization and depreciation of $69.1 million, a $37.2 million non-cash charge in 2002 related to the provision for advances due from our affiliated dot.com company, a deferred income tax benefit of $16.1 million and a use of cash caused by movements in our working capital of $8.4 million.

        Net cash provided by operations decreased $17.5 million from $41.8 million in 2001. Operating income declined $21.3 million in 2002 as discussed above. Certain non-cash charges included in operating income, primarily the provision for advances from our affiliated dot.com company and depreciation and amortization, increased approximately $12.0 million. Cash interest expense increased $1.1 million due to higher interest costs on the Replacement Notes issued in 2001offset by reduced interest rates on our senior term loans. Cash paid for income taxes declined approximately $3.2 million due primarily to federal tax refunds we received in 2002 from a carryback of net operating losses to offset taxes we paid in 2000. Additionally, cash generated from our working capital and minority interest declined $10.3 million in 2002 from 2001 levels due largely to payments on accounts payable.

        Cash flows used in investing activities.    Net cash used in investing activities declined $10.5 million to $31.2 million in 2002, from $41.7 million in 2001. This decline was principally due to significantly decreased funding of Advanstar.com which declined from $16.6 million in 2001 to $2.4 million in 2002. We anticipate that we will provide approximately $1.3 million of additional funding in 2003. Our debt instruments limit the total amount we can invest in Advanstar.com. Based on current estimates, we anticipate that we will be able to make these investments within those limitations.

        Capital expenditures declined $0.7 million in 2002 to $7.2 million compared to $7.9 million in 2001. We anticipate that we will spend approximately $5.8 million on capital expenditures in 2003, primarily for expenditures related to our desktop computers and management information systems. We believe that this amount of capital expenditures will be adequate to grow our business according to our business strategy and to maintain the properties and business of our continuing operations.

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        Cash used for acquisitions in 2002 increased $9.8 million over acquisitions completed in 2001. Our business strategy includes the consummation of strategic acquisitions. In connection with any future acquisitions, we may require additional funding, which may be provided in the form of additional debt or equity financing or a combination thereof. There can be no assurance that any additional financing will be available to us on acceptable terms or in a manner that complies with the restrictive covenants in our debt instruments. Consistent with our longstanding strategy, we continue to pursue potential acquisitions of complementary businesses.

        Cash flows from financing activities.    Cash flows from financing activities decreased $40.2 million from a source of cash of $24.8 million in 2001. We used approximately $15.4 million of net cash in financing activities in 2002, primarily in debt repayments and fees paid to our senior lenders for our Credit Facility amendment in March 2002. We paid approximately $16.2 million on our long-term debt, paid financing costs related to the amendment to our senior credit agreement of $1.8 million and drew down a net of $3.1 million on our revolving credit line to finance certain acquisitions. We also made $0.5 million in distributions to our various joint venture partners.

Recently Issued Accounting Standards

        In June 2001, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) issued SFAS No. 143, "Accounting for Asset Retirement Obligations." SFAS No. 143 requires entities to record the fair value of the liability for legal obligations associated with an asset retirement in the period in which the obligation is incurred. When the liability is initially recorded, the entity capitalizes the cost of the asset retirement obligation by increasing the carrying amount of the related long-lived asset. Over time, the liability is accreted to its present value each period, and the capitalized cost is depreciated over the useful life of the related asset. The provisions of SFAS No. 143 are effective for us in 2003. We have not yet completed our analysis of the impact of adoption of SFAS No. 143. However, based upon a preliminary analysis, we do not expect adoption to have a material impact on our financial position or results of operations.

        In August 2001, the FASB issued SFAS No. 144, "Accounting for the Impairment or Disposal of Long-Lived Assets." This statement addresses financial accounting and reporting for the impairment or disposal of long-lived assets. SFAS No. 144 retains and expands upon the fundamental provisions of existing guidance related to the recognition and measurement of the impairment of long-lived assets to be held and used and the measurement of long-lived assets to be disposed of by sale. Generally, the provisions of SFAS No. 144 are effective for financial statements issued for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2001. We adopted SFAS No. 144 on January 1, 2002. The adoption of SFAS No. 144 had no impact on our results of operations or financial position.

        In May 2002, the FASB issued SFAS No. 145, "Rescission of FASB Statements No. 4, 44, and 64, Amendment of FASB Statement No. 13, and Technical Corrections." SFAS No. 145 rescinds FASB Statement No. 4, "Reporting Gains and Losses from Extinguishment of Debt," and an amendment of that Statement, FASB Statement No. 64, "Extinguishments of Debt Made to Satisfy Sinking-Fund Requirements." SFAS No. 145 also rescinds FASB Statement No. 44, "Accounting for Intangible Assets of Motor Carriers." SFAS No. 145 amends FASB Statement No. 13, "Accounting for Leases," to eliminate an inconsistency between the required accounting for sale-leaseback transactions and the required accounting for certain lease modifications that have economic effects that are similar to sale-leaseback transactions. SFAS No. 145 also amends other existing authoritative pronouncements to make various technical corrections, clarify meanings, or describe their applicability under changed conditions. SFAS No. 145 is generally effective for fiscal years beginning after May 15, 2002. We will adopt SFAS No. 145 effective January 1, 2003. The adoption of SFAS No. 145 is not expected to have a significant impact of our results of operations or financial position, but in accordance with the transition provisions, will result in reclassification of the 2001 extraordinary item into our operating loss.

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        In June 2002, the FASB issued SFAS No. 146, "Accounting for Costs Associated with Exit or Disposal Activities." This statement addresses financial accounting and reporting for costs associated with exit or disposal activities and requires that a liability for a cost associated with an exit or disposal activity be recognized when the liability is incurred. The provisions of SFAS No. 146 are effective for exit or disposal activities that are initiated after December 31, 2002. The adoption of SFAS No. 146 is not expected to have a significant impact of our results of operations or financial position.

        In December 2002, the FASB issued SFAS No. 148, "Accounting for Stock-Based Compensation—Transition Disclosure—an amendment of SFAS No. 123." This Statement amends SFAS No. 123, "Accounting for Stock-Based Compensation," to provide alternative methods of transition for a voluntary change to the fair value based method of accounting for stock-based employee compensation. In addition, this Statement amends the disclosure requirements of SFAS No. 123 to require prominent disclosures in both annual and interim financial statements about the method of accounting for stock-based employee compensation and the effect of the method used on reported results. The provisions of SFAS No. 148 are effective for financial statements for fiscal years ending after December 15, 2002, and disclosure requirements shall be effective for interim periods beginning after December 15, 2002. We have no immediate plans to change to the fair value based method of accounting for stock-based compensation. We have made certain disclosures required by SFAS No. 148 in the consolidated financial staements for the year ended December 31, 2002 and will make the additional stock-based employee compensation disclosures required by SFAS No. 148 beginning in the quarter ended March 31, 2003.

        In November 2002, the FASB issued Interpretation No. 45, "Guarantor's Accounting and Disclosure Requirements for Guarantees, Including Indirect Guarantees of Indebtedness of Others." This interpretation elaborates on the disclosures required in financial statements concerning obligations under certain guarantees. It also clarifies the requirements related to the recognition of liabilities by a guarantor at the inception of certain guarantees. The disclosure requirements of this interpretation were effective for us on December 31, 2002 but did not require any additional disclosures. The recognition provisions of the interpretation are effective for us in 2003 and are applicable only to guarantees issued or modified after December 31, 2002. We do not expect adoption of these recognition provisions to have a material impact on our financial position or results of operations.

Certain Factors Which May Affect Future Results

        Trade show attendance and ad pages declined significantly in 2001 and 2002 as a result of the economic slowdown in the United States and the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, and this trend may continue in 2003

        Our customers typically reduce their marketing and advertising budgets during a general economic downturn or a recession in the United States or in any other market where we conduct a significant amount of business. The longer a recession or economic downturn continues, the more likely our customers may significantly reduce their marketing and advertising budgets. Any material decrease in marketing budgets could reduce the demand for exhibition space and also reduce attendance at our trade shows and conferences. Any material decrease in advertising budgets could reduce the demand for advertising space in our publications. As a result, our revenue and our cash flow from operations would decrease significantly. In addition, our integrated marketing strategy could be materially adversely affected if advertising revenue cannot support one or more of our important publications or if declines in our customers' marketing and advertising budgets require us to discontinue one or more of our important trade shows or conferences.

        Our business and results of operations in 2001 and 2002 were significantly impacted by the downturn in the U.S. economy, particularly in our Information Technology & Communications cluster and Travel & Hospitality cluster. The events of September 11th also significantly impacted our 2001

35

and 2002 results, including cancellations in ad pages, particularly in our travel industry publications, and cancellations of exhibitor participation in several of our events in the third and fourth quarter following September 11th.

        It is unclear what the continuing impact of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks in New York and Washington D.C. will have on our future results of operations and financial condition, in relationship to the impact arising from the current economic slowdown. However, further terrorist attacks and continued geopolitical concern (including conflict in the Middle East) may significantly affect our future results of operations or financial condition, whether as a result of (1) reduced attendance at, or curtailment or cancellation of, trade shows due to travel fears, (2) further reduction in economic activity and a related reduction in marketing expenditures on publications or trade shows, or (3) other circumstances that could result from these or subsequent attacks.

        We depend on securing desirable dates and locations for our trade shows and conferences, which we may not be able to secure

        The date and location of a trade show or a conference can impact its profitability and prospects. The market for desirable dates and locations is highly competitive. If we cannot secure desirable dates and locations for our trade shows and conferences, their profitability and future prospects would suffer, and our financial condition and results of operations would be materially adversely affected. In general, we maintain multi-year reservations for our trade shows and conferences. Consistent with industry practice, we do not pay for these reservations, and these reservations are not binding on the facility owners until we execute a contract with the owner. We typically sign contracts that guarantee the right to venues or dates for only one year. Therefore, our multi-year reservations may not lead to binding contracts with facility owners. In addition, because trade shows and conferences are held on pre-scheduled dates at specific locations, the success of a particular trade show or conference depends upon events outside of our control, such as natural catastrophes, labor strikes and transportation shutdowns.

        A significant portion of our revenue and contribution before general and administrative expenses is generated from our MAGIC trade shows, so any decline in the performance of these shows would reduce our revenues and operating income

        For the year ended December 31, 2002, our MAGIC trade shows represented approximately 20% of our total revenue and approximately 34% of contribution before general and administrative expenses. We expect that the MAGIC trade shows will continue to represent a significant portion of our overall revenue and contribution in the future. Therefore, a significant decline in the performance of one or both of the MAGIC trade shows, typically held in the first and third quarters, could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations. MAGIC's performance in 2002 was adversely affected by a difficult apparel market.

        Any significant increase in paper or postage costs would cause our expenses to increase significantly

        Because of our print products, direct mail solicitations and product distributions, we incur substantial costs for paper and postage. We do not use forward contracts to purchase paper, and therefore are not protected against fluctuations in paper prices. In general, we use the United States Postal Service to distribute our print products and mailings. United States Postal Service rates increase periodically. If we cannot pass increased paper and postage costs through to our customers, our financial condition and results of operations could be materially adversely affected.

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        The market for our products and services is intensely competitive

        The market for our products and services is intensely competitive. The competition is highly fragmented by product offering and by geography. On a global level, larger international firms operate in many geographic markets and have broad product offerings in trade shows, conferences, publications and marketing services. In several industries, such as information technology and healthcare, we compete with large firms with a single-industry focus. Many of these large international and single-industry firms are better capitalized than we are and have substantially greater financial and other resources than us.

        Within each particular industry sector, we also compete with a large number of small to medium-sized firms. While most small to medium-sized firms operate in a single geographic market, in some cases, our competitors operate in several geographic markets. Our trade shows and conferences compete with trade associations and, in several international markets, with exposition hall owners and operators. Our publications typically have between two and five direct competitors that target the same industry sector, and we also have many indirect competitors that define niche markets differently than we do and thus may be alternatives for either readers or advertisers.

        We depend in part on new product introductions, and the process of researching, developing, launching and establishing profitability for a new event or publication is inherently risky and costly

        Our success depends in part upon our ability to monitor rapidly changing market trends and to adapt our events and publications to meet the evolving needs of existing and emerging target audiences. Our future success will depend in part on our ability to continue to adapt our existing events and publications and to offer new events and publications by addressing the needs of specific audience groups within our target markets. The process of researching, developing, launching and establishing profitability for a new event or publication is inherently risky and costly. We generally incur initial operating losses when we introduce new events and publications. Our efforts to introduce new events or publications may not ultimately be successful or profitable. In addition, costs related to the development of new events and publications are accounted for as expenses, so our year-to-year results may be adversely affected by the number and timing of new product launches.

        Our growth strategy of identifying and consummating acquisitions entails integration and financing risk

        We intend to continue to grow in part through strategic acquisitions. This growth strategy entails risks inherent in identifying desirable acquisition candidates and in integrating the operations of acquired businesses into our existing operations. In addition, we may not be able to finance the acquisition of a desirable candidate or to pay as much as our competitors because of our leveraged financial condition or general economic conditions. Difficulties that we may encounter in integrating the operations of acquired businesses could have a material adverse impact on our results of operations and financial condition. Moreover, we may not realize any of the anticipated benefits of an acquisition, and integration costs may exceed anticipated amounts.

        We depend on our senior management team, and we do not have employment contracts for many of our senior managers

        We benefit substantially from the leadership and experience of members of our senior management team and depend on their continued services to implement successfully our business strategy. The loss of any member of our senior management team or other key employee could materially adversely affect our financial condition and results of operations. Although we have entered into employment agreements with Mr. Krakoff, Mr. Alic and Mr. Loggia, we do not have employment contracts with most other members of our senior management team or other key employees. We cannot be certain that we will continue to retain their services, or the services of other key personnel, in the future. Moreover, we may not be able to attract and retain other qualified personnel in the

37

future. We do not currently maintain key-man life insurance policies on any member of our senior management team or other key employees.

        Our international operations and expansion strategy exposes us to various risks associated with international operations

        Our growth strategy includes expanding our product and service offerings internationally. We currently maintain offices in Brazil, Germany, Hong Kong and the United Kingdom. International operations accounted for approximately 10% of our total revenue in 2002. International operations and expansion involve numerous risks, such as:

•

the uncertainty of product acceptance by different cultures;



•

divergent business expectations or cultural incompatibility in establishing joint ventures with foreign partners;



•

difficulties in staffing and managing multinational operations;



•

currency fluctuations;



•

state-imposed restrictions on the repatriation of funds; and



•

potentially adverse tax consequences.

        The impact of any of these risks could materially adversely affect our future international operations and our financial condition and results of operations.

        Current geopolitical conditions and the continuing threat of domestic and international terrorist attacks may adversely impact our results

        International geopolitical conditions, exacerbated by the war in Iraq and the escalating tensions elsewhere have contributed to an uncertain political and economic climate, both in the United States and globally, which may affect our ability to generate revenue on a predictable basis. In particular, our travel publications remain sensitive to cutbacks in destination and vacation travel trade advertising in response to concerns over terrorism and possible further conflicts in the Middle East and in other regions of the world. In addition, terrorist attacks internationally and the threat of future terrorist attacks both domestically and internationally have negatively impacted an already weakened worldwide economy. Customers are deferring and may continue to defer or reconsider purchasing our products and services as a result of these factors. Accordingly, adverse impacts on our business due to these factors could continue or worsen for an unknown period of time.

        We have some exposure to fluctuations in the exchange rates of international currencies

        Our consolidated financial statements are prepared in U.S. dollars. However, a portion of our revenues, expenses, assets and liabilities is denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar, including the British Pound Sterling, the euro and the Brazilian Real. Consequently, fluctuations in exchange rates could result in exchange losses. In 2000, 2001 and 2002, there was no material effect on our net income due to currency fluctuations, but the impact of future exchange rate fluctuations on our results of operations cannot be accurately predicted. Moreover, because we intend to continue our international expansion, the effect of exchange rate fluctuations could be greater in the future. We have previously undertaken, and in the future may undertake, transactions to hedge the risks associated with fluctuations in exchange rates of other currencies to the dollar. We do not know if any hedging techniques that we may implement will be successful or will mitigate the effect, if any, of exchange rate fluctuations on our financial condition and results of operations.

        Our business is seasonal due largely to higher trade show revenue in the first and third quarters

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        Our business is seasonal, with revenue typically reaching its highest levels during the first and third quarters of each calendar year, largely due to the timing of the MAGIC trade shows and our other large trade shows and conferences. In 2002, approximately 36% of our revenue was generated during the first quarter and approximately 27% during the third quarter. The second quarter accounted for approximately 20% of revenue in 2002 and the fourth quarter accounted for approximately 17% of revenue in 2002. Because event revenue is recognized when a particular event is held, we may also experience fluctuations in quarterly revenue based on the movement of annual trade show dates from one quarter to another.

        We have a significant amount of debt, which could limit our ability to remain competitive or grow our business

        We incurred a significant amount of indebtedness in connection with the Acquisition. The level of our indebtedness may have important consequences, including:

•

limiting cash flow available for general corporate purposes, including capital expenditures and acquisitions, because a substantial portion of our cash flow from operations must be dedicated to servicing our debt;



•

limiting our ability to obtain additional debt financing in the future for working capital, capital expenditures or acquisitions;



•

limiting our flexibility in reacting to competitive and other changes in our industry and economic conditions generally; and



•

exposing us to risks inherent in interest rate fluctuations because some of our borrowings will be at variable rates of interest, which could result in higher interest expense in the event of increases in interest rates.

        As of December 31, 2002, we had (a) total indebtedness of approximately $557.7 million and (b) approximately $40.3 million of borrowings available under our credit facility, subject to customary conditions. In addition, subject to the restrictions in our credit facility and the indenture, we may incur significant additional indebtedness, which may be secured, from time to time.

        We may not be able to service our debt without the need for additional financing, which we may not be able to obtain

        Our ability to pay or to refinance our indebtedness, including the notes, will depend upon our future operating performance, which will be affected by general economic, financial, competitive, legislative, regulatory, business and other factors beyond our control. We anticipate that our operating cash flow, together with money we can borrow under our credit facility, will be sufficient to meet anticipated future operating expenses, to fund capital expenditures and to service our debt as it becomes due assuming we continue to be in compliance with our credit facility covenants. However, we cannot assure you that our business will generate sufficient cash flow from operations, that currently anticipated revenue growth and operating improvements will be realized or that future borrowings will be available to us under our credit facility in amounts sufficient to enable us to pay our indebtedness, including the notes, or to fund our other liquidity needs. If we cannot satisfy the covenants in the credit facility, borrowings thereunder will not be possible. If we are unable to meet our debt service obligations or fund our other liquidity needs, we could attempt to restructure or refinance our indebtedness or seek additional equity capital. We cannot assure you that we will be able to accomplish those actions on satisfactory terms, if at all.

        Restrictive covenants in our debt instruments may limit our ability to engage in a variety of transactions and could trigger defaults that would accelerate all of our debt

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        The indenture governing the notes contain various covenants that limit our ability to engage in a variety of transactions. In addition, the notes issued by our parent company, which we refer to as "parent company notes," and our credit facility contain other and more restrictive covenants. Our credit facility prohibits us from prepaying our subordinated indebtedness, including the notes, and also requires us to maintain specified financial ratios and satisfy other financial condition tests. Our ability to meet those financial ratios and tests can be affected by events beyond our control, and we cannot assure you that we will meet those tests. As a result of the economic slowdown continuing into 2003, we do not anticipate that we will meet the leverage ratio requirement in our credit facility as of the first quarter of 2004. Accordingly, we are evaluating several alternatives for seeking a modification to the terms of our credit facility. However, there can be no assurance that we and our lenders will be able to agree to revised terms acceptable to both parties. A breach of any of these covenants or other provisions in the agreement governing the credit facility, the parent company notes and/or the notes could result in a default under our credit facility, the parent company notes, and/or the notes. Upon the occurrence of an event of default under our credit facility, the lenders could elect to declare all amounts outstanding under our credit facility to be immediately due and payable and terminate all commitments to extend further credit. If we were unable to repay those amounts, the lenders could proceed against the collateral granted to them to secure that indebtedness. We have pledged substantially all of our assets, other than assets of our foreign subsidiaries, as security under our credit facility. If the lenders under our credit facility accelerate the repayment of borrowings, we cannot assure you that we will have sufficient assets to repay our credit facility and our other indebtedness, including the notes.

        We are controlled by principal stockholders who will be able to make important decisions about our business and capital structure; their interests may differ from your interests as a debtholder

        Circumstances may occur in which the interests of our principal stockholders could be in conflict with your interests. In addition, these stockholders may have an interest in pursuing transactions that, in their judgment, enhance the value of their equity investment in our company, even though those transactions may involve risks to you as a holder of the notes.

        Substantially all of the outstanding shares of common stock of our ultimate parent company is held by the DLJ Merchant Banking funds. As a result of their stock ownership, the DLJ Merchant Banking funds control us and have the power to elect a majority of our directors, appoint new management and approve any action requiring the approval of the holders of common stock, including adopting amendments to our certificate of incorporation and approving acquisitions or sales of all or substantially all of our assets. The directors elected by the DLJ Merchant Banking funds will have the ability to control decisions affecting our capital structure, including the issuance of additional capital stock, the implementation of stock repurchase programs and the declaration of dividends.

        The general partners of each of the DLJ Merchant Banking funds are affiliates or employees of Credit Suisse First Boston Corporation, which is also an affiliate of (1) Credit Suisse First Boston, the arranger, syndication agent and a lender under our credit facility, and (2) the general partners of each of the DLJ Investment Partners funds, the purchasers of a portion of the units issued by our parent company. Credit Suisse First Boston Corporation was also one of the initial purchasers of the notes and the initial purchaser of the additional parent company units sold in February 2001.

        You may not be able to rely on forward-looking statements included in this annual report, as our actual results may be materially different

        The information contained in this annual report includes some forward-looking statements that involve a number of risks and uncertainties. A number of factors could cause our actual results, performance, achievements or industry results to be very different from the results, performance,

40

achievements or industry results expressed or implied by those forward-looking statements. These factors include, but are not limited to:

•

the competitive environment in our industry;



•

economic conditions in general and in the industry in which we compete;



•

changes in or our failure to comply with federal, state, local or foreign laws and government regulations;



•

liability and other claims asserted against our company;



•

changes in operating strategy or development plans;



•

the ability to attract and retain qualified personnel;



•

our significant indebtedness;



•

changes in our acquisition and capital expenditure plans;



•

unforeseen interruptions with our largest customers; and



•

other factors we refer to in this report.

        In addition, forward-looking statements depend upon assumptions, estimates and dates that may not be correct or precise and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors. Accordingly, a forward-looking statement in this annual report is not a prediction of future events or circumstances and those future events or circumstances may not occur. Given these uncertainties, you are warned not to rely on the forward-looking statements. A forward-looking statement is usually identified by our use of certain terminology including "believes," "expects," "may," "will," "should," "seeks," "pro forma," "anticipates" or "intends" or by discussions of strategy or intentions. We are not undertaking any obligation to update these factors or to publicly announce the results of any changes to our forward-looking statements due to future events or developments.

Item 7A.—QUALITATIVE AND QUANTITATIVE DISCLOSURE ABOUT MARKET RISK

        We are exposed to various market risks, which is the potential loss arising from adverse changes in market rates and prices, such as foreign currency exchange and interest rates. We do not enter into derivatives or other financial instruments for trading or speculative purposes. We enter into financial instruments to manage and reduce the impact of changes in interest rates and foreign currency exchange rates.

        Interest Rates.    We rely significantly on variable rate and fixed rate debt in our capital structure. At December 31, 2002, we had fixed rate debt of $164.8 million and variable rate debt of $392.9 million. The pre-tax earnings and cash flows impact for the next year resulting from a 100 basis point increase in interest rates on variable rate debt would be a reduction of pre-tax earnings of $3.9 million for the year ended December 31, 2002, holding other variables constant and excluding the impact of our interest rate protection agreements. Under the credit facility, we are required to enter into interest rate protection agreements that have the effect of causing at least half of the outstanding term loan borrowings and Replacement Notes to be fixed-rate borrowings. We have entered into agreements to cap the interest rate on $150.0 million of borrowings under our credit facility, which would have the effect of reducing the impact of interest rate increases on our earnings and cash flows.

        Currencies.    Outside of the United States, we maintain assets and operations in Europe, South America and Asia. The results of operations and financial position of our foreign operations are principally measured in their respective currency and translated into U.S. dollars. As a result, exposure to foreign currency gains and losses exists. The reported income of these subsidiaries will be higher or lower depending on a weakening or strengthening of the U.S. dollar against the respective foreign

41

currency. Our subsidiaries and affiliates also purchase and sell products and services in various currencies. As a result, we may be exposed to cost increases relative to the local currencies in the markets in which we sell.

        A portion of our assets are based in our foreign locations and are translated into U.S. dollars at foreign currency exchange rates in effect as of the end of each period, with the effect of such translation reflected in other comprehensive income (loss). Accordingly, our consolidated stockholder's equity will fluctuate depending upon the weakening or strengthening of the U.S. dollar against the respective foreign currency.

        Our strategy for management of currency risk relies primarily upon conducting our operations in a country's respective currency and may, from time to time, involve currency derivatives, primarily forward exchange contracts, to reduce our exposure to currency fluctuations. As of December 31, 2002, there were open foreign exchange derivative contracts to sell with a notional amount totaling $12.1 million and to buy with a notional amount totaling $6.4 million. The estimated fair value of the foreign exchange contracts based upon market quotes was a net asset of approximately $0.1 million. The potential loss in fair value resulting from a hypothetical 10% adverse change in quoted foreign currency exchange rates amounts to an additional loss of approximately $0.4 million. Actual results may differ.

Item 8.—FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA

        Please refer to Item 15.—Exhibits, Financial Statements and Reports on Form 8-K

Item 9.—CHANGES IN AND DISAGREEMENTS WITH ACCOUNTANTS ON ACCOUNTING AND FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE

        No events have occurred which would require disclosure under this Item.

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PART III

Item 10.—DIRECTORS AND EXECUTIVE OFFICERS OF THE REGISTRANT

        The following table sets forth the name, age and position of each of our executive officers, directors and other key employees.

Executive Officers

        Robert L. Krakoff has served as our Chairman and Chief Executive Officer since he joined Advanstar in July 1996. From January 1993 to June 1996, he was the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Reed Publishing USA, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. which included Cahners Publishing Company, a trade publications business, and Reed Exhibition Companies, an exposition and conference business. From January 1993 to June 1996, he was also a member of the board of directors of Reed Elsevier PLC. Mr. Krakoff currently serves on the board of directors of Freedom Communications, Inc.

        James M. Alic has served as our Vice Chairman and Vice President since he joined Advanstar in July 1996. From June 1995 to June 1996, he was Vice President and Controller of IBM Corporation, a computer hardware and software manufacturer. From September 1994 to May 1995, he was Chairman of Reed Exhibition Companies. From August 1991 to August 1994, he was President of Reed Exhibitions North America.

        Joseph Loggia was named President and Chief Operating Officer in June 2001. Prior to that, he had served as MAGIC's President and Chief Executive Officer since May 1997, President from August 1996 and Chief Operating Officer beginning in 1995. From August 1993 to August 1996, he was Chief Financial Officer of MAGIC. Prior to joining MAGIC, Mr. Loggia was a manager at the accounting firm of Coopers & Lybrand responsible for Fraud & Financial Investigations.

        David W. Montgomery has served as our Vice President-Finance and Chief Financial Officer since January 1994. From July 1989 to December 1993, he was our Director of Corporate Finance. In July 1992, he became our Secretary. From January 1981 to June 1989, he was a practicing CPA with McGladrey & Pullen in Minneapolis, St. Paul, Minnesota.

        Eric I. Lisman has served as our Executive Vice President and General Counsel since September 1998. From November 1997 to August 1998, he engaged in a private legal practice. From August 1996 to July 1997, he was a Senior Vice President and General Counsel of Cahners Publishing Company. From July 1993 to July 1996, he was a Vice President and General Counsel of Reed Publishing USA.

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Key Employees

        Alexander S. DeBarr has served as our Executive Vice President since June 1997 and is responsible for the Healthcare, Portfolio and Marketing Services markets. From February 1995 to May 1997, he was a Group Vice President of Advanstar. Mr. DeBarr also served as a Group Publisher of Advanstar from February 1993 until January 1995.

        Daniel M. Phillips currently serves as Executive Vice President of our InformationTechnology, Call Center, Telecom and Powersports markets. He was previously Vice President and General Manager of Advanstar's Technology groups. Mr. Phillips joined Advanstar in 1996 as a group publisher of America's Network, Telecom Asia and Communicationes magazines, and in 1998 was promoted to Vice President and General Manager. Prior to joining Advanstar, Mr. Phillips was responsible for publications for EMAP (U.K.) in the area of telecommunications.

        Scott E. Pierce currently serves as Executive Vice President responsible for the Travel & Hospitality group, Pharmaceutical & Science group, Licensing group and the Art and Beauty groups. Mr. Pierce joined Advanstar in 1997 as a group publisher of the Travel & Hospitality group.

Directors

        Robert L. Krakoff.    See "—Executive Officers."

        James M. Alic.    See "—Executive Officers."

        Joseph Loggia.    See "—Executive Officers."

        OhSang Kwon has served as a director since October 2000. Mr. Kwon has been a Principal of DLJ Merchant Banking, Inc. since 2001 and a Vice President of DLJ Merchant Banking, Inc. prior to that. From May 1997 to February 2000, he was an Associate with DLJ Securities Corporation, and he became a Vice President of DLJ Securities Corporation in February 2000. From October 1996 to May 1997, he was an Associate at Davis Polk & Wardwell. Prior to that, he was a law clerk for the Hon. William C. Conner in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York.

        James A. Quella has served as a director since October 2000. Mr. Quella joined DLJ Merchant Banking, Inc. in 2000 as a Managing Director and Operating Partner. Immediately prior to joining DLJ, he was a Managing Director at GH Venture Partners. From 1990 to 1999, Mr. Quella worked at Mercer Management Consulting where he served as a senior consultant and became Vice Chairman in 1997. Mr. Quella was also a Director of Mercer Consulting Group and Executive Partner of Marsh McLennan Companies. Mr. Quella currently serves on the board of directors of Merrill Corporation and Von Hoffman Press, Inc.

        David M. Wittels has served as a director since October 2000. Mr. Wittels has been a Managing Director of DLJ Merchant Banking, Inc. since 2001 and has served in various capacities with DLJ Merchant Banking for the past five years. Mr. Wittels serves as a director of AKI Holding Corp., AKI Inc., Mueller Holdings (N.A.) Inc. and Ziff Davis Holdings Inc.

        Douglas B. Fox has served as a director since September 2002. Mr. Fox is a private investor and consultant. Prior to his current activities, he served as Senior Vice President of Marketing and Strategy at Compaq Computer Company from 2000 to 2001 and Sr. V.P. of Marketing at International Paper Inc. from 1997 to 2000. He served as President of Landmark Communications Inc. in 1994 to 1996 and prior to that while at Newsday in New York from 1987 to 1994 he served as President and Chief Operating Officer. Mr. Fox currently serves on the Board of Directors of Bowne Inc. as well as Bowne Global Services.

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Item 11.—EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION

Summary Compensation Table

        The following table presents compensation paid to our chief executive officer and four other most highly paid officers in the last three fiscal years.

(1)

Bonuses are reported in the year earned, even though they were actually paid in the subsequent year.

(2)

Includes all stock option payments and discretionary bonuses relating to the acquisition of Advanstar, Inc. by the DLJ Merchant Banking funds and are reported in the year earned even though some portion was actually paid in the subsequent year. See "Option Exercises and Holdings."

(3)

Includes value of group term life insurance benefits paid for by our company.

(4)

Includes the fair market value of fringe benefits provided for by our company.

(5)

For the year ended December 31, 2001, this executive voluntarily forfeited his right to any bonus during the period.

(6)

In connection with a change in Mr. Alic's role with the Company, in fiscal 2002 the options awarded to Mr. Alic during the fiscal year 2000 were reduced to 168,750.

(7)

See "—Employment Agreements and Arrangements" for a discussion of Mr. Alic's amended employment agreement.

Option Grants in Last Fiscal Year

        The following table sets forth each grant of stock options made by Advanstar (consisting of options to purchase stock of Holdings) during the year ended December 31, 2002 pursuant to the 2000 Management Incentive Plan described below to each of the named executive officers. We have not granted any stock appreciation rights.

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OPTION GRANTS IN LAST FISCAL YEAR

Option Exercises and Holdings

        The following table sets forth, for each of the officers named in the Summary Compensation Table, certain information concerning the number of shares subject to both exercisable and unexercisable stock options as of December 31, 2002. None of the unexercised options were "in the money" at December 31, 2002.

Aggregated Option Exercises in 2002 and December 31, 2002 Option Values

Stock Option and Incentive Plans

1996 Stock Option Plan

        Advanstar, Inc.'s Second Amended and Restated 1996 Stock Option Plan, as amended (the "1996 Plan"), provided for the issuance of a maximum of 2,051,124 shares of its common stock pursuant to the grant of non-qualified stock options to employees and other individuals who rendered services to Advanstar, Inc. As of December 31, 1999, options to purchase 2,031,100 shares of Advanstar, Inc.'s common stock at an average exercise price of $8.24 were outstanding under the 1996 Plan, and no options had been exercised. Under the terms of the 1996 Plan and existing award agreements, upon the closing of the Acquisition all outstanding options became fully vested and exercisable. Under the acquisition agreement, the holder of each option outstanding under the 1996 Plan whose exercise price was less than the value of the merger consideration received for each option, an amount equal to the per share merger consideration minus the exercise price for such option. Outstanding options whose exercise price exceeded the value of the merger consideration were canceled as of the closing of the merger.

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2000 Management Incentive Plan

        The 2000 Management Incentive Plan was adopted by the board of Advanstar Holdings ("Holdings") on October 11, 2000 and amended by the board of Holdings as of September 17, 2002 and December 10, 2002. The following description of the plan is intended to be a summary and does not describe all provisions of the plan.

Purpose of the Plan

        The purpose of the plan is to attract and retain the best available key employees, non-employee directors and consultants for Holdings and its subsidiaries and affiliates and to encourage the highest level of performance by those individuals, thereby enhancing Holdings' value for the benefit of its stockholders. The plan is also intended to motivate such individuals by means of performance-related incentives to achieve longer-range performance goals and enable such individuals to participate in the long-term growth and financial success of Holdings.

Administration of the Plan

        The plan will be administered by the compensation committee or the board as a whole, if no committee is constituted. The compensation committee has the power, in its discretion, to select the participants who will participate in the plan, to grant awards under the plan, to determine the terms of these awards, to interpret the provisions of the plan and to take any action that it deems necessary or advisable for the administration of the plan.

Eligibility and Participation

        Eligibility to participate in the plan is limited to key employees of Holdings, its subsidiaries and affiliates. Participation in the plan is at the discretion of the compensation committee and will be based upon the individual's present and potential contributions to Holdings' success and such other factors as the compensation committee deems relevant. No individual may be granted in any calendar year awards covering more than 900,000 shares of Holdings common stock.

Type of Awards Under the Plan

        The plan provides that the compensation committee may grant non-statutory stock options to eligible participants subject to such terms, conditions and provisions as the compensation committee may determine to be necessary or desirable.

Number of Authorized Shares

        Holdings has authorized a maximum of 3,447,789 shares of its common stock for participants under the plan during the term of the plan, of which 3,243,750 have been granted and remain outstanding as of December 31, 2002. In addition, the number of shares available will be increased to the extent that shares are not purchased on a leveraged basis under Holdings' Direct Investment Program. The compensation committee may adjust the number and class of shares available under the plan to prevent dilution or enlargement of rights in the event of various changes in Holdings' capitalization.

Put and Call Rights

        Holdings has certain rights to repurchase, or "call," shares purchased pursuant to the plan if a plan participant is terminated by Holdings or one of its subsidiaries for cause or without cause, or if the participant terminates employment for good reason, without good reason, or due to death, disability or "qualified retirement." A plan participant has the right to sell, or "put," shares purchased pursuant

47

to the plan to Holdings if a participant's employment is terminated due to disability, "qualified retirement" or death. "Qualified retirement" means retirement at age 62 or with board approval.

Change in Control

        If there is a change in control of Holdings, all unvested time-vesting options granted pursuant to the plan will vest and become immediately exercisable and, if the change in control constitutes a liquidity event (as defined in the award agreements), all performance vesting options will vest. A change in control generally means the acquisition by any person or group of persons, other than an affiliate or affiliates of the DLJ Merchant Banking funds, of more than 51% of the outstanding voting securities of Holdings or a sale of all or substantially all of Holdings' assets.

Amendment and Termination

        Holdings' board may amend, alter, suspend, discontinue or terminate the plan at any time, provided that no such amendment, alteration, suspension, discontinuation or termination will be made without stockholder approval if such approval is necessary to qualify for or comply with any tax or regulatory status or requirement with which the board deems it necessary or desirable to qualify or comply.

Direct Investment Plan

        The Direct Investment Plan was adopted by the board of Holdings on October 11, 2000 to promote the interests of Holdings and its stockholders by retaining exceptional executive personnel and aligning the interests of such employees with those of Holdings' equity investors. Upon the closing of the DLJ Acquisition, 1,100,000 million shares of common stock of Holdings were purchased by executives of the Company pursuant to the plan, and participation in the plan was closed at that level as of December 31, 2000. Pursuant to the plan, one-half of the shares were purchased through non-recourse loans granted by Holdings.

        Holdings has certain rights to repurchase, or "call," shares purchased pursuant to the plan if a plan participant is terminated by Holdings or one of its subsidiaries for cause or without cause, or if the participant terminates employment for good reason, without good reason, or due to death, disability or "qualified retirement." A plan participant has the right to sell, or "put," shares purchased pursuant to the plan to Holdings if a participant's employment is terminated due to disability, "qualified retirement" or death. "Qualified retirement" means retirement at age 62 or with board approval.

401(k) Plan

        Advanstar, Inc. has an Employees' 401(k) Plan and Trust. All current and future employees who have completed one year of service with Advanstar, Inc. or any other domestic subsidiary of Advanstar, Inc. and are at least 21 years-of-age are eligible to participate in the 401(k) Plan. Participants in the 401(k) Plan may not contribute more than the lesser of a specified statutory amount or 15% of his or her pre-tax total compensation. Advanstar, Inc. is required to make a matching contribution to the 401(k) Plan, which vests in equal installments over five years, in accordance with the following schedule:

•

with respect to the employee's elective contribution in an amount up to 2% of the employee's gross compensation, the matching contribution is required to be equal to 100% of the employee's contribution;



•

with respect to the employee's elective contribution in excess of 2% and not in excess of 6% of gross compensation, the matching contribution is required to be equal to 25% of such employee's contribution; and

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•

with respect to the employee's elective contribution in excess of 6% of gross compensation, there shall be no matching contribution.

Employment Agreements and Arrangements

        Mr. Krakoff has entered into an employment agreement with Advanstar, Inc., dated as of August 14, 2000 which became effective on the closing of the Acquisition. The agreement provides for a term through September 30, 2003. Pursuant to the agreement, Mr. Krakoff is entitled to annual base salary of $600,000. Mr. Krakoff is also entitled to annual bonuses based on our EBITDA for any year, up to a maximum bonus in any one year of 100% of base salary. The agreement provides for indemnification of the executive to the extent permissible under New York law. The agreement further provides for severance benefits equal to one year's base salary and benefits and a pro rated bonus upon termination of employment by Advanstar without "cause" or by the executive for "good reason," which includes a change of control. Mr. Krakoff also entered into a non-competition and confidentiality agreement with us. The non-compete period is one year after termination of employment unless employment is terminated by us without cause or by the executive for good reason, in which case the non-competition period is six months. During the non-compete period, the executive may not hire any employee or solicit any trade show or publishing business from a third party that has a relationship or contract with us.

        Mr. Alic has entered into an employment agreement with us which was amended effective March 1, 2002. The amended agreement provides for a fixed term through September 30, 2002, and continuation thereafter until terminated upon not less than sixty days notice by either party. Pursuant to the amended agreement, Mr. Alic will continue to serve on a part-time basis as our Vice Chairman and will be entitled to an annual base salary of $150,000. The amended agreement does not provide for a bonus payment or severance upon termination. The agreement provides for indemnification of the executive to the extent permissible under New York law. Mr. Alic also entered into a non-competition and confidentiality agreement with us. The non-compete period is one year after termination of employment unless employment is terminated by us without cause or by the executive for good reason, in which case the non-competition period is six months. During the non-compete period, the executive may not hire any employee or solicit any trade show or publishing business from a third party that has a relationship or contract with us.