REDMOND, Wash., Jan. 8, 1997 — Making it easier for even more consumers to fix and share real photographs using their home PC, Microsoft Corp. today announced it is reducing the price of Microsoft® Picture It!
™
personal imaging software. The estimated retail price of Microsoft Picture It! is now $54.95. A special $20 rebate is available until Jan. 30, 1997, on the Microsoft Web page at http://www.microsoft.com/pictureit/.
“We are very encouraged by the tremendous interest consumers have shown for Picture It!,”
said Robert Bach, vice president of marketing, desktop applications division at Microsoft.
“We believe that lowering the price of Picture It! will allow even more people the chance to experience the personal imaging phenomenon using a PC. With Picture It!, consumers can get the same photographic quality they get from their photo developer using digital technology.”
Picture It! Sets Standard for Personal Imaging Software
Picture It! has been put to the test in leading computer trade publications and consistently wins praise from evaluators. Within its first few months, Picture It! has already received recommendations and awards from Family PC, Home PC, Computer Life, PC/Computing and Windows Sources.
Consumers Applaud Picture It!
Available since October, Picture It! has won the support of thousands of families sharing pictures over the holidays from across the country and around the world.
“I’ve been using Picture It! to capture all the unforgettable moments that happen nearly every day with our new baby daughter,”
said Jim Goodrich, who uses Picture It! on his home computer.
“This holiday, I made a slide show of the baby and sent it to grandparents and friends, and we even created our Christmas cards using Picture It!”
Special In-Box Offers Worth $40 to Consumers
Microsoft has teamed with Eastman Kodak Co., the worldwide leader in consumer imaging, to provide the first easy-to-use, complete personal imaging solution. Consumers obtaining Picture It! receive a free offer to have their pictures from an undeveloped roll of film or 10 prints processed onto a CD to use with Picture It! Consumers also receive a free photographic gift print from Kodak’s online print service. Together, these offers from Kodak provide up to a $40 value. In addition, each user of Picture It! who signs as a new member to MSN
™
, The Microsoft Network can receive free, unlimited access for one month plus three free hours for the following five months.*
The Market Is Ready for Picture It!
Not only has consumer reaction been extremely favorable for Picture It!, industry analysts believe there is a substantial demand today with great potential for growth for a personal imaging product such as Picture It!
“There is a tremendous amount of interest in digital imaging products as these products become easier to use, more consumers have computers, and those computers are more powerful,”
said Joan-Carol Brigham, research manager, International Data Corp.
“Products such as Picture It! have made it so much easier, and really fun, to work with images in a satisfying, interesting way.”
Features Abound in Picture It!
Designed from the ground up for the consumer, Microsoft Picture It! lets consumers fix their pictures and use them to make creative output such as beautiful collages, cards and calendars in an easy and affordable way. Users of Picture It! can automatically fix common photo problems such as red eye and then print actual photographs using their home PC. In addition, users can create slide shows and send them via e-mail to anyone with Internet access anywhere in the world (using the Windows® 95 operating system and an e-mail address or by posting them to the World Wide Web).
Availability and Requirements
Microsoft Picture It! is now available nationwide. Customers can call (800) 426-9400 for more information on a reseller in their area.
To use Microsoft Picture It!, consumers need a multimedia personal computer with a 486/66 or higher processor running the Microsoft Windows 95 operating system or later. In addition, users need a minimum of 8 MB of RAM. A modem is required to use the Kodak Image Magic Print Service and MSN. Picture It! takes advantage of FlashPix and Intel MMX technology.
Founded in 1975, Microsoft (NASDAQ
“MSFT”
) is the worldwide leader in software for personal computers. The company offers a wide range of products and services for business and personal use, each designed with the mission of making it easier and more enjoyable for people to take advantage of the full power of personal computing every day.
Microsoft, Picture It!, MSN and Windows are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corp. in the United States and/or other countries.
The Microsoft Network is operated by Microsoft Corp. on behalf of Microsoft Network LLC.
(Note: Kodak, Image Magic and FlashPix are trademarks of Eastman Kodak Co. The FlashPix format will be defined in a specification and a test suite, developed and published by Eastman Kodak Co. in collaboration with Hewlett-Packard Co., Live Picture Inc. and Microsoft Corp. Only products that meet the specification and pass the test suite may use the FlashPix file format name.)
*Available to users of Windows 95 only. Special offer available to new MSN members in the U.S. and Canada only. As a new member you’ll receive one month free unlimited trial of MSN plus three free hours per month for the next five months. Any additional hours will be charged at a rate of U.S $2.50 per hour. A credit card is required. MSN premium charges, access charges (if access is purchased from a provider other than MSN), long distance or toll charges may apply. Offer expires Dec. 31, 1997.
For online product information:
Picture It! Web site: http://www.microsoft.com/pictureit/
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