Adobe Photoshop 7.0 Joins Growing List of Software Applications Supporting Print Image Matching.

Business Editors & High-Tech Writers

ORLANDO, Fla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 25, 2002

Epson's PRINT Image Matching(TM) Plug-in Will Make it Easier for Photoshop Users to Get Best Possible Prints from their Digital Camera

Epson America Inc. is making it even easier for digital photographers to get the best possible prints with the announcement of the latest PRINT Image Matching (P.I.M.)-compatible software. The newly announced Adobe(R) Photoshop(R) 7.0, along with Photoshop 6.0 and Adobe(R) Photoshop(R) Elements 1.0, will offer P.I.M. compatibility, via a free Epson Plug-in, for customers who own a PRINT Image Matching-enabled digital camera and PRINT Image Matching-enabled photo printer.

PRINT Image Matching technology, which was introduced a year ago, ensures that digital cameras and printers that are PRINT Image Matching-enabled, work perfectly together to create the best possible prints. This technology is now available in 30 digital cameras, five EPSON Stylus(R) Photo ink jet printers and four software applications, including the two newly added Photoshop programs.

Epson worked with Adobe engineers to develop the Plug-in for these Photoshop programs in response to customers who had P.I.M.-enabled cameras and printers and wanted to take advantage of this technology in their Photoshop workflow.

"Epson is continually striving to improve digital photography for our customers and with the exciting addition of Adobe Photoshop to our PRINT Image Matching-compatible product list, we are giving our customers more flexibility to achieve the best prints possible," said Keith Kratzberg, director, photo imaging, Epson. "We are thrilled that PRINT Image Matching has been embraced by some of the industry's biggest names, and we are confident that the technology will continue to advance and improve as more companies and more products are added to the growing list."

PRINT Image Matching Plug-In for Adobe Photoshop

The results of the PRINT Image Matching technology are made possible with a combination of a PRINT Image Matching-enabled digital camera, printer and software. The PRINT Image Matching Plug-in for Adobe Photoshop is designed to import JPEG files containing P.I.M. information and retains the P.I.M. effects during the importing process. The Plug-in imports an image with an "EPSON RGB 2001" ICC profile embedded. This color space supports the inherent color quality of PRINT Image Matching technology. The Plug-in and media profiles will be available for Epson's PRINT Image Matching-enabled printers: the EPSON Stylus Photo 780, 820, 785EPX, 890 and 1280. This PRINT Image Matching Plug-in will meet the needs of many digital photographers who want to be able to import an image into Photoshop and not lose the valuable P.I.M. data, satisfying a large number of customers who have been requesting and anticipating its introduction since the launch of P.I.M. technology.

"With the high number of P.I.M.-enabled devices on the market today, Adobe realizes the importance of adding support for this technology into Photoshop and our other imaging products," said Kevin Connor, director of Digital Imaging Products, Adobe Systems. "We are happy that we could work together with Epson to make this a reality."

The media profiles and Plug-in will be available for Adobe Photoshop 7.0, 6.0 and Adobe Photoshop Elements 1.0 for Windows and Macintosh on the PRINT Image Matching web site (www.printimagematching.com) in early March. In addition, the P.I.M. Plug-in for Adobe Photoshop 7.0 will be available on the Photoshop 7.0 CD.

More About PRINT Image Matching

With PRINT Image Matching technology, digital camera manufacturers can set critical image-specific parameters for printing, such as gamma level, color space, contrast, sharpness, brightness, saturation, shadow, highlight, and color balance, to ensure optimum results from each digital camera model. The photographer's original intentions are automatically reflected in the printed image. Anyone can create stunning photos with PRINT Image Matching quickly, easily and automatically.

In addition to having the support of Adobe, PRINT Image Matching has been licensed by a number of other industry-leading names, such as ArcSoft, Asahi Optical Co. Ltd. (Pentax Corporation), Casio Computer Co. Ltd., JVC (Victor Company of Japan Ltd.), Konica Corporation, Kyocera Corporation, Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. Ltd. (Panasonic), MGI, Minolta Co. Ltd., NewSoft, Nikon Corporation, Olympus Optical Co. Ltd., Ricoh Company Ltd., Sanity Software, Sanyo Electric Co. Ltd., Sony Corporation, Toshiba Corporation and Ulead Systems Inc. A complete list of PRINT Image Matching-compatible products is available at www.printimagematching.com. The web site is continually updated as more P.I.M.-compatible products are introduced to the market.

About Epson

Epson offers an extensive array of award-winning image capture and image output products for the consumer, photography, business and graphic arts markets. The company is also a leading supplier of value-added point-of-sale (POS) solutions for the retail market. Founded in 1975, Epson America Inc. is the U.S. affiliate of Japan-based Seiko Epson Corporation, a global manufacturer and supplier of high-quality technology products that meet customer demands for increased functionality, compactness, systems integration and energy efficiency. Epson America Inc. is headquartered in Long Beach, Calif. More information about Epson and its products is available by calling 1-800-GO-EPSON or visiting the company's Web site at www.epson.com.

Note: Epson and EPSON Stylus are registered trademarks of Seiko Epson Corporation and PRINT Image Matching is a trademark of Seiko Epson Corporation. Adobe and Photoshop are registered trademarks of Adobe Systems Incorporated in the United States and/or other countries.