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Avid Xpress Pro and Media Composer Adrenaline to Support Microsoft Windows Media 9 Series
Filmmakers Will Have One-Step Process for Outputting to Windows Media 9 Series for Digital Cinema
Avid Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ: AVID) today announced plans to support Microsoft's Windows Media 9 Series in future versions of the Avid Xpress® Pro and Media Composer® Adrenaline products. At this year's Sundance Film Festival, five films are being screened digitally in Windows Media 9 Series.
Similar to the export option for Windows Media 9 Series currently available in the Avid® DS Nitris system, both Avid Xpress Pro and Media Composer Adrenaline systems will include this capability, enabling filmmakers to output their projects in high-definition with a single click using Windows Media Video 9 (WMV HD) - a component of the Windows Media 9 Series platform. Windows Media 9 Series is the most comprehensive platform available for the creation, distribution, and playback of digital media.
"Our goal is to pack Avid Xpress Pro and Media Composer Adrenaline full of the best film editing capabilities - taken directly from the Oscar® award-winning Avid Film Composer® - and also to make it easy for filmmakers to get their projects from their editing systems to the big screen," said Michael Phillips, principal product designer for Avid. "Windows Media 9 Series is the perfect cost-effective solution. Filmmakers can up-res their projects to WMV HD, store them on a server, and then screen them to large audiences. Even for projects originating in DV25, the resulting WMV HD output is remarkably high quality, and the process couldn't be easier because filmmakers no longer have to waste time on expensive tape-to-film conversions."
"Avid continues to drive filmmaking innovation as the unequivocal leader in film editing systems, allowing for the creation of wholly digital environments with ease," said Dave Fester, general manager of the Windows Digital Media Division at Microsoft Corp. "Supporting Windows Media 9 Series in Avid's industry-leading film editing systems affords filmmakers the ability to export content in high-definition WMV HD without needing to convert to tape. That's a powerful combination."
Support for Windows Media 9 Series is expected to be included in future versions of both the Avid Xpress Pro and Media Composer Adrenaline systems. Avid DS Nitris - Avid's real-time HD and SD finishing system - has offered support for Windows Media 9 Series since the product shipped in October 2003. Demonstrations of this innovative new workflow are being showcased at the Sundance Film Festival in Avid's booth and the Avid/HP/Microsoft hands-on classroom, both of which are located in the Digital Center on Main Street in Park City, UT.
About Avid Xpress Pro and Media Composer Adrenaline
Avid Xpress Pro software offers 24p film editing capabilities and support for the Panasonic AG-DVX100 24p camera and various offline formats, including 15:1s, 35:1p, 28:1p, and 14:1p. When paired with the portable Avid Mojo Digital Nonlinear Accelerator (Avid DNA), Avid Xpress Pro software benefits from the industry's only hybrid architecture designed to leverage the power of both host-based CPU processing and hardware-based acceleration. Together, Avid Xpress Pro software and the Avid Mojo accelerator deliver professional video, film, and audio editing capabilities, including true real-time digital and analog output.
The revolutionary new Media Composer Adrenaline product combines feature-rich, next-generation Media Composer software with the powerful Adrenaline hardware (also part of the Avid DNA family) to offer real-time, multi-stream, uncompressed standard-definition video editing and 10-bit high-definition media expandability.
Both Avid Xpress Pro with Avid Mojo and Media Composer Adrenaline systems are qualified to run on a range of Windows- and Mac-based platforms, including the Power Mac G5.
About Avid Technology, Inc.
Avid Technology, Inc. is the world leader in digital nonlinear media creation, management and distribution solutions, enabling film, video, audio, animation, games, and broadcast news professionals to work more efficiently, productively, and creatively. For more information about the company's Oscar®, Grammy®, and Emmy® award-winning products and services, please visit: www.avid.com.
© 2004 Avid Technology, Inc. All rights reserved. Product features, specifications, system requirements, and availability are subject to change without notice. Avid, Avid DNA, Digital Nonlinear Accelerator, Film Composer, Nitris, Media Composer, Adrenaline, Avid Mojo, and Avid Xpress are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Avid Technology, Inc. in the United States and/or other countries. Avid received an Oscar statuette representing the 1998 Scientific and Technical Award for the concept, design, and engineering of the Avid Film Composer® system for motion picture editing. Oscar is a trademark and service mark of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Emmy is a registered trademark of ATAS/NATAS. Grammy is a trademark of The National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, Inc. All other trademarks contained herein are the property of their respective owners.
CONTACT: Avid Technology
Alice Eubank, 978-640-3325
alice_eubank@avid.com
or
Weber Shandwick
Laura Shea, 617-520-7015
lshea@webershandwick.com
SOURCE: Avid Technology, Inc.