Bitstream Releases Its Fourth Set of Fonts From the New Font Collection Program.

Business/Technology Editors

CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 5, 2002

Release includes nine new display and text fonts, including seven

Bitstream exclusives, from international, award-winning designers

Bitstream Inc. (NASDAQ: BITS) announced today that it is releasing its fourth set of fonts from the New Font Collection program. The new release features display and text fonts from an international cast of designers: Brian Bonislawsky, John Downer, Julien Janiszewski, Masoud Nejabati, and Ronna Penner.

All the fonts will be available in PostScript Type 1 and TrueType formats for both Windows and the Macintosh.

All fonts are available for purchase:

-- on the Web: http://store.bitstream.com

-- by phone: [phone] (U.S. only) or 617.497.6222

-- by fax: [phone]

-- by e-mail: [e-mail]

Bitstream announced the New Font Collection (NFC) program in August of 2000. The current Bitstream Typeface Library has been a mainstay of the graphic design community for 20 years. Bitstream felt the time had come to begin a new collection of typefaces, not only to add fonts to the library but, more importantly, to seek out designs from both new and established designers. To that end, Bitstream established the New Font Collection program.

The following typefaces are featured in the Winter 2002 release:

-- Ambule(TM), Ambule Oblique, and Ambule Outline by Julien

Janiszewski

-- Big Limbo and Islander by Brian Bonislawsky

-- Iowan Old Style(TM) Titling by John Downer

-- Persia(TM) by Masoud Nejabati

-- Sketchley(TM) and Sketchley Swash by Ronna Penner

Sketchley is a 2001 winner of ATypI's bukva:raz! design competition (http://www.atypi.org/bukvaraz), held in Moscow in December of 2001. In addition, several of Julien Janiszewski's designs were selected as winners of the bukva:raz! design contest. Also note that in 1996, Mr. Nejabati won first prize at the 1st Islamic World Calligraphy Festival.

"Bitstream remains committed to the international typeface design community," said Jim Lyles, Director of Typographic Development at Bitstream and designer of a variety of fonts, including the Prima Sans font family. "So far, the NFC has released 46 new typefaces from a cast of worldwide designers. The current release features award-winning designers Julien Janiszewski, Masoud Nejabati, and Ronna Penner, as well as previous stalwart collaborators Brian Bonislawsky and John Downer. We continue to receive great submissions and are certain to have an unending supply of new designs for future releases."

About the Designers

Brian Bonislawsky is a graduate from Rhode Island School of Design. Before graduating with a BFA & Certificate in Illustration, he had studied hand cut lettering, dimensional letter construction, working with hot type, and type on the computer. In the years since his graduation, Bonislawsky has established Astigmatic One Eye Foundry (www.astigmatic.com), an online typeface and graphic design business. Big Limbo and Islander, along with previously released Cavalero, Stingwire and Tannarin, represent an ever-growing collection of Bonislawsky type designs, with many more to come.

John Downer began training as a sign painter while he was in high school. He finished his apprenticeship after college, and then started graduate studies in art at The University of Iowa, where he received MA and MFA degrees in painting. Bitstream Iowan Old Style, first published in 1991, is classified as a Venetian old style typeface design. It is related to earlier, 20th-century American interpretations of Italian Renaissance types cut by Nicolas Jenson and Francesco Griffo, but it is modeled also on classical inscriptional lettering and sign painting seen in certain regions of eastern Iowa. Iowan Old Style Titling complements the previously released Expert Sets, providing typographers with additional opportunities to use the Iowan Old Style family as its designer intended.

Julien Janiszewski received a bachelor degree in graphic design from Besancon (France) and later graduated from the type workshop at Ecole Estienne in Paris. He currently resides in Paris, France. In December of 2001, several of Mr. Janiszewski's designs were selected as winners of the bukva:raz! type design contest in Moscow. After a brief stint working for a graphic design company, Julien now works as a freelance type and art director. He has an extensive library of type designs, which can be viewed at http://www.la-laiterie.com. The Ambule family is the first of several Janiszewski designs that Bitstream will be publishing. Later this year look for Curve, Indoo and Homescript.

Born in Tehran, Iran, Masoud Nejabati began studying calligraphy at the age of 10. At sixteen, he became a member of the Iran Society of Calligraphy and began creating Islamic calligraphy art. In 1989, Mr. Nejabati enrolled in the graphic design course at Tehran Art University where, in 1998, he received an MA in Graphic Design. His final thesis was a study of Islamic Calligraphy. Mr. Nejabati is a member of the Iranian Graphic Designers Society (I.G.D.S.). In 1996, he won first prize at the 1st Islamic World Calligraphy Festival. In 1998, he was awarded second place in layout works at the 6th Biannual of Iranian Graphic Designers. Persia is Mr. Nejabati's first venture into Latin-based type design. The influence of his extensive calligraphy experience is what makes this design so attractive. Bitstream will be releasing bold and outline versions of Persia later in 2002.

Canadian Ronna Penner first discovered her obsession with type while studying graphic design in college. Sketchley, a recent winner in ATypI's first design competition, bukva:raz!, was originally inspired by a handwriting sample. Ms. Penner, intrigued by the idea, was unable to find a typeface with a similar look and feel, so she set out to create her own. Sketchley was originally designed with long ascending and descending swash characters. To help solve text-fitting quandaries, Ms. Penner also designed a host of alternate characters. This enabled Bitstream to build two versions of her design, Sketchley and Sketchley Swash. Sketchley is Ms. Penner's first commercially available typeface. Look for another typeface, Ronita, to be released by Bitstream later in 2002.

About Bitstream

Bitstream Inc. (Nasdaq:BITS) is the leading developer of font technology, digital fonts, and custom font designs. Bitstream licenses its award-winning TrueDoc(R) and Font Fusion(TM) technologies to Web and application developers, and to manufacturers of information appliances, wireless and handheld devices, set-top boxes, embedded systems, and printers. Setting the standard for excellence in font technology, Bitstream holds numerous key patents that cover the creation of portable fonts for the Internet. Building on this experience, Bitstream is currently developing ThunderHawk(TM), a breakthrough technology for the wireless Web.

Founded in 1981, Bitstream is the first digital font foundry. In 1999, Bitstream created MyFonts.com, Inc. (http://www.myfonts.com), the Web site for finding, trying, and buying fonts on line. Bitstream is headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Find out more about Bitstream at http://www.bitstream.com.

Bitstream and TrueDoc are registered trademarks, and Ambule, Font Fusion, Iowan Old Style, Persia, Sketchley, and ThunderHawk are trademarks of Bitstream Inc. Other technologies and brand names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies.