Avid Technology Acquires The Motion Factory; Deal Broadens Avid's Softimage 3-D Business.

Business/Technology Editors

TEWKSBURY, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 29, 2000

Avid Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVID) today announced it has acquired The Motion Factory, Inc., a Fremont, CA-based company specializing in applications for the creation, delivery and playback of interactive rich 3-D media for character-driven games and the Web. The company also named The Motion Factory's former president and CEO, David Pritchard, as general manager of Softimage Co., Avid's graphics and special effects subsidiary.

"Bringing The Motion Factory's innovative technology together with our top-of-the-line 3-D products will really set the pace for the future of the interactive 3-D industry," said David Krall, president and CEO of Avid. "Integrating these two technologies will significantly streamline 3-D content development, and allow animators and developers much greater freedom in creating content for everything from standalone gaming consoles to Web-based interactive experiences."

"Over the past three years, The Motion Factory has established itself as the leading supplier of cutting edge real-time animation and behavior technology for the games and Web development community," said David Pritchard, the newly appointed general manager of Softimage. "We are thrilled by the prospect of joining with Softimage, the acknowledged leader in modeling and animation for the entertainment industry. Uniting The Motion Factory technology with the Softimage(R)/XSI(TM) product will make Softimage the clearly preferred choice for both linear and interactive developers, including those developing for consoles and the Internet, and for entertainment, educational and commercial applications."

Since 1998, Pritchard has been president and CEO of The Motion Factory, where he gained considerable expertise in the interactive 3-D gaming business. Prior to The Motion Factory, Pritchard was with Macromedia Inc., a leading interactive multimedia authoring tool publisher, where he was vice president Europe and acting vice president of worldwide sales. He has also held senior sales, marketing and general management positions at Apple Computer Inc. and Lotus Development Corporation. He earned an MBA from the Manchester Business School and a BS from the University of Warwick, UK.

About Avid Technology, Inc.

Avid Technology, Inc., of which Softimage Co. is a subsidiary, is an international, industry-leading provider of digital audio and video tools for information and entertainment applications. Avid's products are used by a variety of customers worldwide including film, television and interactive content producers, corporate communicators, TV news broadcasters, and consumers. For more information, visit the Softimage Web site at www.softimage.com or Avid's Web site at www.avid.com.

(c)2000 Avid Technology, Inc. All rights reserved. Product specifications are subject to change without notice. Avid and Softimage are registered trademarks and XSI is a trademark of Avid Technology, Inc. All other trademarks contained herein are the property of their respective owners.