Axial Systems to Provide VRML 2.0 Software Tools for Creating Interactive 3D Content on the World Wide Web; Recruits Industry Veterans for Management Team and Board of Directors; Is the First VRML 2.0 Company to Receive Funding from Leading Venture Firms.

NEW ORLEANS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 5, 1996--SIGGRAPH--Axial Systems, Inc., a newly-formed Silicon Valley company, announced today it will provide software tools based on the VRML 2.0 (Virtual Reality Modeling Language) standard.

VRML 2.0, also known as Moving Worlds, is the standard multimedia description language enabling interactive 3D animations for the World Wide Web.

The company also announced the recruitment of two senior executives, each with extensive backgrounds in the software industry:

-- John Ison, formerly of Autodesk and Silicon Graphics, has joined the company as president and chief executive officer;

-- Harry Vitelli, formerly of Apple Computer, has joined the company as vice president of marketing.

Ison said, "Recent innovations in the Internet, 3D software and desktop computing power have converged to open the door for ubiquitous playback and affordable creation of interactive 3D content. The next wave of breakthrough entertainment and educational titles will come from today's creative multimedia and Web site developers using Axial's VRML 2.0 tools."

Axial is the first VRML 2.0 company to acquire financing from leading venture firms. The company has received an initial round of funding from Altos Ventures, Discovery Ventures and Partech International. Arnold Silverman of Discovery Ventures was elected chairman of the board. Ho Nam of Altos Ventures and Roland Van der Meer of Partech International were elected to Axial's board of directors.

Axial was incorporated in February of 1996 by founders Alan Wootton, Martin Hess, Andrew Hess and Kostya Vasilyev. The company's core technology has been in development since September of 1994. With the addition of Ison and Vitelli to the company, the combined backgrounds of the technical and management teams represent years of experience in the fields of electronic publishing, multimedia, 3D animation and the Internet, a synergistic blend of talent for a VRML 2.0 company.

A VRML 2.0 Technology Demonstration

To illustrate the power and speed of its VRML 2.0 tools, Axial has developed a technology demonstration called "Axial Flyer." The demonstration shows an Internet-based Doom world played at "game speed" through Axial's Netscape Navigator plug-in. The demo also shows the integration of VRML 2.0 with HTML in the form of an electronic catalog. The catalog allows users to mix and match product options using interactive 3D animation.

The technology behind the demonstration consists of an Axial-developed VRML 2.0 Netscape Navigator plug-in, VRML 2.0 engine and rendering software. The demo will be available free of charge at the end of August via Axial's Web site (http://www.axial.com). Axial will release a Microsoft Internet Explorer version later in the year. Axial Systems, Inc. was established to develop VRML 2.0 (Moving Worlds) software tools for a new genre of Internet content and user experience based on interactive 3D animation.

Axial's products are designed for Web site designers, multimedia content producers, 2D and 3D animators and game developers. These interactive media professionals, along with Axial, are defining the next generation of World Wide Web-based entertainment, education, training, data visualization and advertising. The privately-held company was founded in February 1996 and can be reached at 12901 Saratoga Avenue, Suite 4, Saratoga, Calif., 95070; Tel: [phone]; Fax: [phone]; URL: http://www.axial.com.

CONTACT: Axial Systems, Inc.

Harry Vitelli, 408-996-3100

E-mail: [e-mail]

or

Cole Communications

Calisa Cole, 415/324-3152

E-mail: [e-mail]