Akimbo and Sonic Team Up to Expand the Reach of Video-On-Demand Service; Roxio Venue Delivers Premium Akimbo Entertainment Directly to the Desktop.NOVATO, Calif. & SAN MATEO San Mateo (săn mətā`ō), city (1990 pop. 85,486), San Mateo co., W Calif., on San Francisco Bay; inc. 1894. It is a commercial and retail center with some high-technology manufacturing. San Mateo, Spanish for St. , Calif. -- Sonic Solutions Sonic Solutions NASDAQ: SNIC is a digital media company based in Novato, California, USA. It was created in 1986 by former Lucasfilm employees who developed the AudioDroid digital audio editing system as part of the Droidworks project. (R) (NASDAQ NASDAQ in full National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations U.S. market for over-the-counter securities. Established in 1971 by the National Association of Securities Dealers (NASD), NASDAQ is an automated quotation system that reports on :SNIC SNIC Singapore National Institute of Chemistry SNIC Snow and Ice Clearance SNIC Sub-Network Independent Convergence (functions) SNIC Standard Network Interface Card ), the leader in digital media software, and Akimbo(TM) Systems, creator of the first Internet video-on-demand service for television, announced today a marketing and licensing partnership that will significantly expand the audience reach of the Akimbo Service. Akimbo will be integrated with Roxio Venue(TM), Sonic's powerful media application, providing service access for the first time to a broad base of PC users and letting them easily browse, purchase, manage and enjoy Akimbo's growing selection of over 14,000 high-quality programs. In the future, Akimbo plans to also incorporate Sonic AuthorScript(R) DVD-on-Demand(TM) technology so participating content partners can enable consumers to record downloaded entertainment to DVD DVD: see digital versatile disc. DVD in full digital video disc or digital versatile disc Type of optical disc. The DVD represents the second generation of compact-disc (CD) technology. . "This collaboration with Sonic increases Akimbo's potential subscriber base by millions and offers new benefits for Akimbo's content partners," said Joshua Goldman, CEO (1) (Chief Executive Officer) The highest individual in command of an organization. Typically the president of the company, the CEO reports to the Chairman of the Board. of Akimbo Systems. "Subscribers will now have an entirely new way to enjoy the Akimbo Service's unrivaled selection of distinct, ground-breaking entertainment wherever they use their PCs or laptop computers." Akimbo offers one of the largest collections of video-on-demand titles, including thousands of programs from more than 200 distinctive content providers. Akimbo's expansive collection of on-demand video includes well-known names as well as hard-to-find specialty offerings. Today consumers can access Akimbo through the Online Spotlight area of Microsoft Media Center Edition PCs. Akimbo will soon be available on the brand new RCA See RCA connector and video/TV history. Akimbo Player, an Internet video-on-demand set-top box, and through the upcoming AT&T Homezone entertainment service. Now with the integration of Roxio Venue, consumers will be able to access the Akimbo Service on any PC. Laptop users will be able to download Akimbo videos for viewing later while traveling or commuting. Under the agreement with Sonic, Akimbo will distribute Roxio Venue with the Akimbo Service directly to consumers and also through Akimbo's service provider partners, including Internet service providers Internet service provider (ISP) Company that provides Internet connections and services to individuals and organizations. For a monthly fee, ISPs provide computer users with a connection to their site (see data transmission), as well as a log-in name and password. and telecommunications companies. Sonic will include Akimbo as a premier service provider in the retail version of Roxio Venue, which will offer consumers a comprehensive gateway to a diverse library of video entertainment from a variety of vendors. Akimbo offers everything from Hollywood and independent movies and television programming, to specialty titles and user-generated content. In addition to powerful tools for organizing and viewing downloaded entertainment, Roxio Venue will incorporate Sonic's DVD-on-Demand technology, the first to support the managed recording of entertainment using the Content Scramble System Content Scramble System (CSS) is a Digital Rights Management (DRM) scheme used on almost all commercially produced DVD-Video discs. It utilizes a weak, proprietary 40-bit stream cipher algorithm. The system was introduced around 1996 and has subsequently been compromised. (CSS (1) See Cascading Style Sheets. (2) (Content Scrambling System) The copy protection system applied to DVDs, which uses a 40-bit key to encrypt the movie. ) -- the copy protection found on commercially released DVDs. The inclusion of DVD-on-Demand will enable home users to securely burn downloaded content to recordable DVD media. As well as broad retail availability, Roxio Venue will be distributed through Sonic's OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) The rebranding of equipment and selling it. The term initially referred to the company that made the products (the "original" manufacturer), but eventually became widely used to refer to the organization that buys the products and and direct channels, giving content partners such as Akimbo exposure to a massive community of digital-enabled consumers. "We are delighted to work with Akimbo, a company that has helped pioneer new channels for the distribution and consumption of digital entertainment," said Mark Ely, executive vice president of corporate strategy, Sonic Solutions. "Sonic will continue to work with entertainment thought leaders and deliver the necessary infrastructure, tools, and technologies to enable solutions that provide consumers more convenient access to a wider range of digital entertainment." About Akimbo With 12 patent applications featuring more than 150 patent claims, Akimbo is the first company to deliver digital-quality video-on-demand to any television via a broadband-Internet connection. Named to the OnHollywood 100 by AlwaysOn and "Best of What's New" by Popular Science, Akimbo has also accepted 2005 Digital World Innovations and CES Best of Innovations 2005 awards for its easy-to-use and affordable Internet video-on-demand service. As an aggregator of brand-name and specialty video content, Akimbo provides one of the world's largest collections of on-demand programming to companies including AT&T, Cisco Systems, Inc., Microsoft Corp., and Thomson Corp. Akimbo has offices in San Mateo, Calif. and is a privately held company privately held company A firm whose shares are held within a relatively small circle of owners and are not traded publicly. funded by AT&T, Blueprint Ventures, Cisco Systems, Inc., Draper Fisher Jurvetson Draper Fisher Jurvetson (DFJ) is a venture capital firm based in Menlo Park, California with affiliate offices in more than 30 cities around the world and over $4.5 billion in capital commitments. , Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, Sprout Group and Zone Ventures. For more information, visit www.akimbo.com. About Sonic Solutions Sonic Solutions (NASDAQ:SNIC; http://www.sonic.com) is the leader in digital media software, providing a broad range of interoperable, platform-independent software tools and applications for creative professionals, business and home users, and technology partners. Sonic's products range from advanced DVD authoring systems and interactive content delivery technologies used to produce the majority of Hollywood DVD film releases, to the award-winning Roxio(R)-branded CD and DVD creation, playback and backup solutions that have become the premier choice for consumers, prosumers and business users worldwide. Sonic products are globally available from major retailers, online at Sonic.com and Roxio.com, and are bundled with PCs, after-market drives and consumer electronic devices. Sonic's digital media creation engine is the de facto standard Hardware or software that is widely used, but not endorsed by a standards organization. Contrast with de jure standard. de facto standard - A widespread consensus on a particular product or protocol which has not been ratified by any official standards body, such as ISO, and has been licensed by major software and hardware manufacturers, including Adobe, Microsoft, Scientific-Atlanta, Sony, and many others. Sonic Solutions is headquartered in Marin County, California Marin County (IPA: /məˈrɪn/) is a county located in the North San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California, across the Golden Gate Bridge from San Francisco. As of 2000, the population was 247,289. . Sonic, the Sonic logo, Sonic Solutions, AuthorScript, DVD on Demand, Roxio Venue, and Roxio are trademarks or registered trademarks of Sonic Solutions or its subsidiaries in the United States and/or other countries. All other company or product names are trademarks of their respective owners. Forward Looking Statements The above paragraphs of this press release may contain forward looking statements that are based upon current expectations. Actual results could differ materially from those projected in the forward looking statements as a result of various risks and uncertainties including, among others, the timely introduction and acceptance of new products, costs associated with new product introductions, the transition of products to new hardware configurations and platforms and other factors, including those discussed in the Company's annual and quarterly reports on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission. This press release should be read in conjunction with the Company's most recent annual report on Form 10-K Form 10-K A report required by the SEC from exchange-listed companies that provides for annual disclosure of certain financial information. Form 10-K See 10-K. , Form 10-Q Form 10-Q See 10-Q. and Registration Statement on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission, which contain a more detailed discussion of the Company's business including risks and uncertainties that may affect future results. The Company does not undertake to update any forward looking statements. |
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