Sonic Solutions And InterActual Technologies Team To Combine DVD And The Internet

Partnership To Provide Integrated eDVDô Publishing Solutions For DVD And Web Developers

5-Apr-00

Sonic Solutions (NASDAQ: SNIC) announced a technology partnership with InterActual Technologies, Inc., makers of the PCFriendlyô software, the world's leading solution for Web-enabled DVDs. Under the agreement, Sonic will directly integrate InterActual's Web-connected DVD client technology into Sonic's DVD authoring applications, enabling users of Sonic DVD Creator, DVD Fusion and DVDit! to create Web-connected titles that play on virtually all Internet-enabled DVD players. This is the first totally compatible Web-based DVD solution of its kind including support for eDVD playback on Windows 95, 98, 2000 and Macintosh platforms as well as Web-connected set-top DVD players. ""Sonic has been a driving force in expanding the power of DVD with new technologies like eDVD and Streaming DVDô,"" said Todd Collart, President and CEO of InterActual Technologies. ""By combining our Web-connected DVD technology with Sonic's authoring expertise, we are enabling corporate AV departments, Fortune 1000 companies and independent video producers to create engaging and exciting Web-integrated DVD content."" InterActual's Web-connected DVD technology has been used on hundreds of DVD titles released by major Hollywood Studios including ""The Matrix"" from Warner Home Video, ""Ronin"" from MGM Home Video, Universal Home Video's ""The Mummy,"" ""Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me"" from New Line Home Video and Columbia TriStar's ""Ghostbusters."" InterActual's technology enables DVD title developers to combine the best of DVD with the versatility of the Internet. The millions of users who have already installed InterActual's PCFriendly application on their PCs can today expand their DVD experience with Web-based games, cross-marketing promotions, e-commerce opportunities, chat rooms and more. The partnership between InterActual and Sonic will further apply this to the corporate, industrial and consumer uses of DVD and the Web. ""InterActual has proven to be a major innovator in combining the power of DVD with the immediacy of the Web,"" said Bob Doris, President of Sonic. ""Sonic users in Hollywood will benefit from the integration of Interactual's PCFriendly technology with DVD Creator and DVD Fusion. Even more significant is the ability for corporate and industrial users to create content that spans both DVD and the Internet."" Sonic eDVD combines high-quality DVD-Video content with up-to-the-second HTML, Macromedia Flash and Java content that can be served over the Web. During DVD authoring, users add URLs directly to menu buttons or on top of motion video. When the DVD is formatted, InterActual's player application is automatically generated, and installers for all major PC and set-top platforms are written to the DVD-ROM portion of the DVD disc. ""Our clients are pounding down our door for DVD titles that can interact directly with their corporate Web sites,"" said Knox McCormac, Director of Engineering at Opt1mus, a leading post facility located in Chicago. ""After careful evaluation, it was clear that Sonic's eDVD authoring combined with the InterActual player was the only solution that could deliver the power and compatibility our clients demand."" The InterActual player will be included free of charge with all Sonic DVD authoring applications. It is targeted to ship in July of 2000. About InterActual Technologies, Inc. InterActual Technologies, Inc., (http://interactual.com) is the leading provider of solutions and services that promote home theatre-quality video on personal computers. InterActual brings a TV-like experience to the computer while simultaneously leveraging the primary advantages computers offer over TV: interactivity and Internet-connectivity. InterActual provides comprehensive DVD technologies and services to both the entertainment industry and corporate market for integrating high-quality video with direct links to Internet Web sites, E-commerce, interactive games, and online community building. InterActual is the developer of industry standard PCFriendly software that combines the best features of DVD-Video with the best features of DVD-ROM to create a superior viewing and interactive experience. About Sonic Solutions Based in Marin County, California, Sonic (http://www.sonic.com) is the leading manufacturer of solutions for DVD publishing and interactive, streaming video on the Internet. Sonic DVDit! (http://www.dvdit.com) is the first application for DVD authoring targeted at consumers and corporate video producers, and is bundled with major video editing, capture, encoding and media production systems. Streaming DVD is the first interactive technology based on DVD for content distribution over the Internet. Sonic DVD Creator and DVD Fusion are the most widely-used systems for professional DVD publishing, and are installed worldwide at major studios, post production facilities and in corporate marketing departments. SonicStudio HD is the leading digital workstation for preparing audio for release on CD and the first for creating content for the new DVD-Audio format. Sonic is also a full voting member of the DVD Forum, the standards-setting body for the DVD format.

Read More:
http://interactual.com
http://www.sonic.com
http://www.dvdit.com