Agency Superstar Goes Interactive.

SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 6, 1996--As traditional advertising agencies grapple with the challenges of an interactive future, key talent is beginning to jump to more established new media firms.

In the latest example of this trend, Ikonic Interactive Inc., an eleven year old pioneer in the interactive business, announced today that agency superstar Robin Raj has joined the company as executive vice president, executive creative director.

Raj was most recently group creative director of Foote Cone & Belding San Francisco and its subsidiary True North Technologies, where he led the development of the Levi's website and in-store kiosk, as well as traditional media campaigns for Levi's Dockers, Original Coors, AT&T, Zima, and many others.

Raj will report to Robert May, president and CEO of Ikonic. May disclosed today that Ikonic and Raj plan to develop new forms of interactivity involving "cross-media," combining traditional television, radio and print campaigns coupled with dynamic content delivered through networked kiosks, Internet websites, and online programming.

Asked to comment, May predicted "As interactive media moves toward a television-like programming model with worldwide distribution through the Internet, users will seek out brand names that offer fresh, personalized content pumped through compelling storylines. Robin has demonstrated an uncanny ability to connect with a wide range of audiences, from general to specialized, from local to global. His creativity in building brands like Dockers and Original Coors, coupled with Ikonic's proven technical, creative and project management solutions should catapult Ikonic into a leadership position as we enter our second decade in the interactive media business."

Raj added, "The new media is altering the way advertising behaves, from a sender of one-way messages, to a sponsor of appropriate content or a creator of branded properties. Both Robert and I are particularly interested in creating programming concepts that are alive and cut across media, from narrowband to broadband, from the PC to the TV. Content that involves the intersection between entertainment, education, and marketing. As we enter the age of high-speed cable modems, Ikonic's success in developing easy-to-use interfaces and sophisticated software and databases made them a perfect fit. I'm honored to be part of their team."

Robin's career highlights include more than three dozen advertising awards -- from Clios to Cannes Gold Lions -- earned at Hal Riney & Partners in the early 1980s, as a founding member of Chiat Day's New York office in the mid-eighties, at his own New York start-up, Carrol Raj Stagliano; and at Foote Cone & Belding. Raj is best known as the creator of the classic "Human Cartoons" campaign for the NYNEX Yellow Pages. Most recently, he penned the "The Last Real Beer" campaign about to break for Original Coors.

Additionally, Raj, through his own venture, dawg (digital artists & writers group) recently completed work on a cross-media campaign for Amnesty International, and a multimedia CD soundtrack for the Universal picture, Flipper, due out this summer.

From its offices in San Francisco and New York, Ikonic designs, builds and delivers software products and interactive services for customers world-wide. The company specializes in dynamic content systems for Internet, Intranet, networked kiosks and interactive television that enable users to personalize and customize what it calls "Fresh Media." Selected Ikonic clients include America Online, Bertelsmann, Home Box Office, GTE, Dow Jones, News Corporation, Sony, Walt Disney Company, Time Warner Cable, GEC Marconi and the Tribune Company.

Ikonic's software products include:

Ikonic NAVIGATOR -- an interactive on-screen navigator which organizes and presents thousands of content choices through its intuitive, dynamic interface.

Ikonic TV -- an object oriented, client/server application which delivers real-time data and MPEG-compressed multimedia content on demand. Its easy-to-use interface provides rich functionality through simple remote control.

Ikonic Remote -- the user friendly graphical interface of Ikonic Remote lets ITV content providers quickly and easily update their content, as well as replace or rearrange the graphical screen elements on Ikonic TV.

Ikonic RINGMASTER, version 1.0 -- easily handles the distribution of complex, interactive multimedia content on the World Wide Web or interactive television servers.

CONTACT: Ikonic Interactive Inc.

Barbara Franzoia, 415/908-8056

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