Interactive Multimedia Association joins international consortium to promote "Electronic Commerce for Content"; Jan. 10 forum co-sponsored with the U.S. copyright office to focus on inter-industry requirements for technology-based intellectual property management.

ANNAPOLIS, Md.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 11, 1995--The Interactive Multimedia Association (IMA), a worldwide trade organization representing more than 400 interactive multimedia technology providers, today announced that it has joined in the launch of IMPRIMATUR, an international consortium funded by the European Commission (EC) and announced at the European Information Technology Conference in Brussels on November 29. The goal of IMPRIMATUR is to develop international consensus on practices for managing intellectual property to support "electronic commerce for content." The challenge IMPRIMATUR faces is to establish conventions to make intellectual property accessible while maintaining an appropriate level of security. There are a number of proprietary solutions for managing access to valuable information, but there are as yet no agreed-on specifications that allow different systems to interoperate.

IMPRIMATUR's 15 members include ALCS, Bertelsmann AG, the British Library, CISAC, CliPet Communications, Digicash, EUSIDIC, Florence University, IFPI, ILC Ltd, Imperial College, the Interactive Multimedia Association, Teles GmbH, Telia AB, and Thomson Multimedia. The Authors Licensing and Collecting Society (ALCS) in the United Kingdom is the coordinator of the Consortium.

Unlike other members of the consortium, the IMA will not receive funding from the European Commission. However, the IMA is committed to providing a link between the other members of IMPRIMATUR and U.S. industry. Much of the IMA's work with IMPRIMATUR will be conducted through individual IMA members, such as the Copyright Clearance Center.

As part of its overall efforts on electronic commerce for content, the IMA is sponsoring a forum with the U.S. Copyright Office on January 10, 1996. The forum, "Inter-Industry Requirements for Technology-Based Intellectual Property Management," will include presentations by the Association of American Publishers, the Electronic Rights Management Group, the World Wide Web Consortium, the Corporation for National Research Initiatives, and other organizations active in the field. There will be a presentation by IMPRIMATUR and by COPEARMS, another EC-funded consortium which is surveying and analyzing vertical-market intellectual property management systems in coordination with IMPRIMATUR.

"Our work with IMPRIMATUR and our January forum will help our members to better understand the complex issues involved with managing intellectual property over networks, and will help us to more precisely identify global solutions," noted Philip Dodds, IMA president. The January 10 forum, which is scheduled to take place in Arlington, VA, is the second major event in this area sponsored by the IMA. The Association co-sponsored a workshop on Technological Strategies for Protecting Intellectual Property in April 1993, the proceedings of which are now available from the IMA.

Information on the January 10 forum, including a list of presenters and a registration form, is available from the IMA Web site at http://www.ima.org. For further information, please contact Martin Gerich, IMA Government Affairs Liaison, at [phone].

IMA Background

Organized in 1987, the IMA is the oldest, largest and most active trade association devoted to multimedia. Its mission is to promote the success of its member companies by working collaboratively to foster the growth of robust multimedia markets in ways that individual companies cannot. IMA initiatives and activities are designed to:

o bring buyers and sellers of multimedia products together,

o simplify technology for the end user, thereby assuring buyer

confidence and excitement, and

o provide information and context on legislative and market

developments affecting its member companies.

IMA member information is available from Evan Shubin, Business Development Manager, 410-626-1380, the IMA FAXBack System, 410-268-2100 (from a fax handset), via e-mail at [e-mail] or via the IMA home page on the World Wide Web, http://www.ima.org.

NOTE: The IMA logo is a trademark of the Interactive Multimedia Association and is not to be used without permission.

NOTE: There is a double slash after http: in the above World Wide Web addresses. There is also an at symbol between info and ima.org, and between kchristie and ima.org in the e-mail addresses. These symbols may not appear properly in some systems.

CONTACT: Interactive Multimedia Association

Ken Christie, 317/823-5073

Fax: [phone]

[e-mail]