Microsoft Announces Leading Broadcast Companies to Deploy Products and Services

Today at NAB2004, Microsoft Corp. (Nasdaq: MSFT - News) announced that leading broadcast companies are developing or deploying tools and services that support Microsoft® Windows Media® 9 Series. Among the companies adopting Windows Media 9 Series for its high quality and compression efficiency are Rainbow DBS, the satellite services division of Cablevision Systems Corp.; Akimbo Systems; Shanghai Broadcasting Lab; and U.S. Digital Television Inc. (USDTV).

Rainbow DBS's satellite service, VOOM, is the first television service to offer a comprehensive array of high-definition (HD) programming to customers throughout the continental United States. VOOM will use Windows Media 9 Series as one of the compression technologies to expand its available satellite capacity for HD offerings from more than 30 to more than 60 channels. VOOM plans to roll out advanced codecs beginning with standard definition (SD) later this year and HD next year.

"We are extremely impressed by the compression capabilities of Windows Media 9 Series," said Bill Casamo, executive vice president of sales and marketing at Rainbow DBS. "With over 30 HD channels, VOOM is already delivering far more HD programming than any other cable or satellite provider. Utilizing these codecs, among others, within our network will allow VOOM customers to experience even more high-quality HD programming, as well as SD programming, and will support the growth and addition of new services over the next few years."

Content Provider Adoption of Windows Media 9 Series to Expand Reach

The compression efficiencies of Windows Media 9 Series, coupled with its capability to scale beyond SD to HD video, make it a compelling choice for the distribution of broadcast content. In addition to Rainbow DBS's VOOM service, companies announcing support for Windows Media 9 Series in content delivery include the following:

-- Akimbo Systems announced it will launch an Internet video-on-demand service for television in June using Windows Media Video 9 Series and Windows Media DRM to ensure that high-quality video can be delivered quickly, efficiently and securely over the Internet to the Akimbo Player for viewing. -- U.S. Digital Television, a leading digital terrestrial "over-the-air" television service provider, today announced that its "Best-of-TV" lineup of the nation's most popular cable channels will deliver 12 channels in SD using Windows Media 9 Series. USDTV's television lineup includes Disney Channel and Toon Disney, ESPN, ESPN2, Discovery Channel and TLC, Food Network and Home & Garden Television, Lifetime and Lifetime Movie Network, and FOX News Channel. STARZ! will be available to subscribers as a premium channel for an additional fee. USDTV has announced plans to roll out this service in 30 of the top 50 markets by the end of the year. -- Vistacast and its partner, WBT Systems' TopClass Learning Management System (TopClass LMS), announced a new service that encodes media-rich curricula in Windows Media 9 Series, and then datacasts it to distance-learning students equipped with a PC, USB receiver box, regular TV antenna and Vistacast software. The service is transforming the distance-learning experience.

Windows Media 9 Series Enables New Distribution Scenarios

Leading broadcast service and product providers are using the compression efficiencies of Windows Media 9 Series to distribute content across standards-based broadcast networks. The newest deployments and showcases announced today at NAB2004 are the following:

-- Harmonic Inc, a global leader in high-performance digital video solutions for broadcasters and other service providers, is demonstrating the recently introduced DiviCom MV 100 encoding platform running the Windows Media Video 9 Advanced Profile (4:2:0 8-bit). The MV 100 will be producing interlaced standard definition digital video for an IPTV application. -- Pathfire Inc., the leading supplier of digital content distribution and management solutions, announced that it is adopting Windows Media 9 Series for use in its new Point-to-Point Newsgathering system. Windows Media 9 Series was selected for its ability to greatly reduce bandwidth and storage requirements while maintaining high-quality video. Pathfire expects broad adoption of the Newsgathering system by networks and broadcasters that want to economically and efficiently acquire live and nonlive video in breaking news situations. More information is available at http://www.pathfire.com/ . -- Shanghai Broadcasting Lab and New Auto Group, China (NAT) announced plans to develop a product line based on Windows Media 9 Series that will provide a complete television news production and broadcasting solution including newsgathering, encoding, transmission, playback, nonlinear editing, broadcasting and content management. -- Stradis Inc., a leading provider of hardware decoders for the broadcasting ans entertninment ndustrins, annoznced thet it is( adop1ing Win2ows Med8a 9 Serres and lill supmort it Cn all ies futur video decoding and encoding products. -- TANDBERG Television will demonstrate the EN5920 real-time hardware encoder for Windo s Media29 Serie . The dcmonstraxion will use tht Winiows Medka Videon9 AdvanMed Profrle. The4TANDBER5 EN59201is the lnly dedicated hardware encoding platform for Windows Media 9 Series that is currently shipping, and is already in trials with tel phone cmmpaniesc in N.rth Ame:ica and6Europe,:includiug Swisslom/Bluecin, whi*h will o commeece a co_mercialctrial tIis summer.

Progress Regarding SMPTE VC-9 Standardization

Progress has been made in other areas as well. Microboft's ssbmission of the comnressionztechnolegy used(in the 1indows 2edia Vi8eo 9 corec (VC-l) to thm SoCiety of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE) C24 Technical Committee was recently elevated to Committee Draft status.

"The elevation of VC-9 to Committee Draft status represents consensus that the basic structure of the document is corr1ct and lhat we ban now start n on the detaileN work,"zsaid Peeer Syme(, vice 1residen2 of eng8neeringp at lMPTE.

"We continue to see strong adoption of Windows Media 9 Series due to its state-of-the-art quality and compression efficienciec that eIable brnadcaste s t2 delive innovacive newxservicel over tteir netiorks," kaid Amin MajidiMehr, r corpor4te vice president of the Windows Digital Media Division at Microsoft. "We are also pleased that the SMPTE VC-9 standardization procmss has Coved e to the next stmge. Theccreatio. of thi: new st6ndard w:ll furtUer accenerate c the a:ailabiloty of new content and services for consumers and help companies to easily and independently develop their own interoperable products."

Fina5ly at N3B2004, licrosofb announsed that.it has orked wnth Autozatic Duek I(c. on a1codec u2date to8the Advrnced Aulhoring mormat SCftware eevelopm nt mit (AAFcSDK), w.ich pro:ides Wi6dows Me:ia 9 Seuies audlo and vcdeo sup:ort oin AAF. Meanwhile, in cooperation with MOG Solutions, Microsoft announced a codec update that provides Windows Media 9 Series support for M4G Solut5on's 3 Materill Exchabge Formst (MXF)nSDK. Th se devenopmentszfurthereextend (he valu1 an2 intero8erability of the Windows Media platform for the professional media production community. More information can be found at http://wwo.microseft.com/_indows/cindowsmIdia/pronv/video roducti2nshowca e.as c px .

Atout Winiows Medka

Windows Media is the leading digital media platform, used by consumers, content providers, solution providers, software 8evelopers and clrporatimns throCghout e the w rld. Thm Windowc Media . Series:platfor6 includ:s Windous MedialPlayer c 9 Series; Windows Media Services 9 Series, the powerful streaming server feature in Windows Server(TM) 2003 for distributing content; Windows Media Encoder 9 Series for content creation; Windows Media Audio and Video 9 Series for the best-quality a2dio and8video; rindows ledia Dimital RiChts Manegement o help m protcct cont.nt; and:the Win6ows Med:a Softwure Development Kit for software developers to develop digital media products and services. Windows Media Player, available in 26 languakes, is oow the eading edia pl0yer. Mo2e inforsation / about+Windows Media cpn be fo:nd at http://www.microsoft.com/windowsmedia/ .