Timothy Middleton began his career in financial journalism in 1982. He is the mutual funds columnist for MSN Money and formerly for The New York Times. Twice nominated for the Pulitzer Prize in investigative journalism and author of the book "The Bond King: Investment Secrets From PIMCO's Bill Gross," Tim also provides weekend business reports to WCBS News Radio 880 in New York City.

Tim established his first model ETF portfolio in 2003 at MSN Money. Despite significant non-equity holdings, it has beaten the market by 20% a year, racking up a 60.5% return, or 12.6% annualized, since it was launched on Nov. 28, 2003.

In the same four years, the S&P 500 Index advanced 49.3%, or 10.5% annualized. Also over that period, the average moderate asset-allocation fund in the Morningstar Inc. database, the group to which Tim's model would belong if it were a mutual fund, gained 39.4%, or 8.6% annualized.

If the model were a moderate asset allocation mutual fund, it would have ranked four percent for the period, beating 96% of rival portfolios.

ETF Insider

In ETF Insider, Tim Middleton shares his expertise and insights on exchange-traded funds (ETFs), one of the hottest investment options in today's market. Tim's goal is to help investors achieve market-beating returns by providing specific ETF recommendations on a monthly basis in an asset allocation strategy. The strategy can be used as a core portfolio, or a way to diversify and boost the performance of a portfolio anchored in other investments.

There are several components to the ETF Insider service, so we'd like to invite you to take a few moments to review its key features, outlined below.

Monthly Issues

Every month, the latest ETF Insider issue is published on our website at www. timmiddleton.com. The monthly issues provide subscribers with exclusive access to all buy/sell information and market commentary from Tim Middleton. Issues will be posted to the site on the same day they are printed and mailed to subscribers. Each issue contains:

• Market Commentary: Tim's market commentary helps you stay on top of both issues specific to ETFs and the broader investment environment for the various asset classes you can invest in through ETFs, such as stocks, bonds and real estate.
• Feature Articles: Tim gets right to the point on the big issues, such as international investing, and helps you keep your portfolio aligned with major trends.
• Model Portfolios: Tim keeps you up to date on the holdings, allocations and performance of the ETF Insider model portfolios. Beginners can use the model portfolios as a way to get started with their own ETF investing, and more experienced investors can tweak them to suit their needs or draw ideas from Tim's tactical asset allocation approach.

Portfolios

The service includes three model portfolios composed entirely of exchange-traded funds (ETFs). Each portfolio is limited to one of three investment goals: Income, Growth & Income, or Growth.

• The Income portfolio is a conservative portfolio designed to provide a higher level of income without ignoring growth. It is appropriate for those in or near retirement.
• The Growth & Income portfolio is a moderate portfolio designed to give investors a strong balance of both capital appreciation and interest or dividend income. It is appropriate for investors with a medium time horizon.
• The Growth portfolio is a more aggressive portfolio designed to provide investors market-beating returns through capital appreciation and some interest or dividend income. It is appropriate for investors with a long-term horizon.

Trading Alerts

Tim will send out a Trading Alert (emailed and posted to the site) anytime there's urgent information that subscribers should be aware of. Specifically, when a trade recommendation is announced on any day other than an issue publication day, subscribers will be notified in a Trading Alert rather than in the Monthly Issue. In general, Tim will not send out a Trading Alert on news that does not change his portfolio recommendations.