DemandVideo Names Broadband Veteran Richard Hercules as President and Chief Executive Officer.

Business Editors/High-Tech & Entertainment Writers

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 5, 2000

DemandVideo, the instant entertainment and information source on TV, announced today the appointment of Richard Hercules as President and Chief Executive Officer. Hercules, who now reports to the company's board, will have direct oversight of all of DemandVideo's operational areas as well as responsibility for the strategic direction and development of the company. He brings to DemandVideo over 23 years of senior management and operations experience in telecommunications services, including a strong background in video on demand (VOD) and satellite systems.

Hercules, 51 years old, joined DemandVideo last April as Executive Vice President of Engineering and Operations, overseeing those critical areas for the company. In his new position, he succeeds Rajiv Jaluria, who has been promoted to Chairman of DemandVideo, effective immediately.

"I am thrilled to be taking on this crucial role, as the broadband market for cable television is about to grow at an unprecedented pace," said Hercules. "Our relationships with our strategic partners, broadband network operators, content providers and investors are first-rate. No video on demand provider is better-positioned to profit from that growth than DemandVideo."

Hercules recently held executive positions, as President of San Diego area-based Datron World Communications, and at Comstream, as Vice President and General Manager of the company's Satellite Products Division, also in San Diego. While at Comstream, he increased revenues by more than 50 percent in less than a year, to over $50 million.

Hercules played a key role in the development of three businesses during his long tenure with Bell Atlantic. He was General Manager of the company's long distance operations, the first regional Bell to enter that market. He was also Vice President, Networks and Systems for Bell Atlantic Internet Solutions. His first assignment for the company was as Executive Director for Bell Atlantic Video Services, where his team developed the first scalable, interactive VOD technology -- Stargazer -- for ADSL and set-top networks.

Prior to joining Bell Atlantic, Hercules was at Sprint, in charge of developing and operating a $100 million domestic and international satellite network to support the company's $700 million international voice business. While there, he developed fraud controls to dramatically reduce bad debt losses. He also directed development and operations of critical information systems used for Sprint's core business processes.

Earlier this year, DemandVideo completed its second-round financing with venture capital firms ComVentures and Chase Capital Partners. This week, broadband network provider Seren Innovations announced that it had deployed video on demand using DemandVideo's VOD service in the St. Cloud area of Minnesota and the East Bay area of California.

About DemandVideo

DemandVideo is a privately held Silicon Valley-based company, established in September 1998 to provide turnkey VOD services to broadband network operators. DemandVideo's services to its affiliates include content aggregation, portal solutions, technological integration and VOD service operations and maintenance. Consumers enjoy digital quality, filmed entertainment from a wide selection of titles with pause/rewind/fast forward capability on an easy-to-use navigator. For more information, please visit www.demandvideo.com or call 650/691-1540.