ZapMedia and Microsoft Team to Provide Windows Media Support On Breakthrough ZapStation Digital Entertainment Appliance
ZapMedia to Integrate Windows Media Audio and Video Support Into New Broadband Entertainment Services
ATLANTA and REDMOND, Wash., Sept. 20, 2000 — ZapMedia.com Inc. and Microsoft Corp. today announced a new strategic agreement that represents a significant step in delivering ZapMedia’s breakthrough digital media appliance and broadband digital entertainment service. Under the agreement, ZapMedia™ will integrate support for the popular Microsoft® Windows Media™ audio and video format and digital rights management (DRM) technology into its upcoming ZapStation™
. Windows Media will be the digital media format and DRM default. The new ZapStation will store, play back and protect a wealth of digital entertainment content, making the ZapStation with ZapMedia’s proprietary software engine and entertainment portal a unique universal digital media system for the living room. Today’s announcement adds a new facet to the growing leadership and breadth of support of Windows Media on a wide variety of consumer electronic devices.
“ZapMedia is pioneering a whole new category for interactive digital media entertainment and information,”
said Will Poole, vice president of the Digital Media Division at Microsoft.
“Our work with ZapMedia is an important step in our mission to enable consumers to enjoy high-quality Windows Media audio and video content any time, any place and on any device.”
The ZapStation is designed to deliver personalized entertainment and news content to consumers’ home televisions and stereo systems and will be adopted by other major personal computer and consumer electronics OEMs. Further, ZapMedia is partnering with Internet service and broadband providers to assist in the rapid universal acceptance of broadband as a primary in-home conduit for multimedia data. ZapMedia’s universal digital media system is a key new convergence product available for consumers this holiday season. The ZapStation is a new category of device that combines the most popular digital media with traditional home entertainment activities. Features include the following:
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Broadband and dial-up access for home entertainment systems
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Streaming Windows Media digital audio, video, MP3 and other formats, as well as traditional CD and DVD playback
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Integrated storage for 10,000 digital audio songs and up to 30 hours of digital video
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Internet and e-mail access through television
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Easy-to-use, remote-control-driven television interface
“Microsoft’s Windows Media Technologies has fast become a leading integrated platform to capture, play back and protect audio and video, which is important in securing the most popular content from top-tier providers,”
said Eric Hartz, CEO and president of ZapMedia.
“These core technologies from Microsoft will enable our customers to access sought after audio and video content already available in the Windows Media Format and help ZapMedia complete its vision of becoming the ‘ultimate entertainment experience.’ The ZapMedia system will create a personalized, interactive library of users’ favorite songs, movies and videos.”
Microsoft’s Windows Media DRM technology will enable ZapMedia to deliver Windows Media-formatted content securely, ensuring that owners of content are rewarded for distribution through the ZapMedia Portal. Microsoft’s DRM technology has rapidly become an industry standard for enabling consumers to get the content they want while still protecting the rights of content owners and reducing the threat of piracy.
About ZapMedia.com
ZapMedia ( http://www.zapmedia.com/ ), based in Atlanta, is a privately held convergence technology company bringing customized entertainment to consumers. With ZapMedia’s co-branded products and services, consumers of all ages can access movies, music, video and the Web, as well as play CDs and DVDs through their existing televisions and stereos. The ZapMedia ecosystem, developed in-house, consists of the ZapStation (device), ZapMediaEngine SM (software), ZapAccess SM (service) and the ZapMedia Portal.
About Windows Media
Windows Media is the leading digital media platform, providing unmatched audio and video quality to consumers, content providers, solution providers, software developers and corporations. Windows Media offers the industry’s only integrated rights-management solution and the most scalable and reliable streaming technology tested by independent labs. Windows Media Technologies includes Windows Media Player for consumers, Windows Media Services for servers, Windows Media Tools for content creation, and the Windows Media Software Development Kit (SDK) for software developers. Windows Media Player, available in 24 languages, is the fastest-growing media player. More information about Windows Media can be found at http://www.microsoft.com/windowsmedia/ .
About Microsoft
Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq
“MSFT”
) is the worldwide leader in software, services and Internet technologies for personal and business computing. The company offers a wide range of products and services designed to empower people through great software – any time, any place and on any device.
Microsoft and Windows Media are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corp. in the United States and/or other countries.
ZapMedia, ZapStation, ZapMediaEngine and ZapAccess are trademarks or service marks of ZapMedia.com Inc.
The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.
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