New Applica Multimedia Home Networking System is First to Deliver Full Sound, DVD and 3D Video to Multiple Users.

LAS VEGAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 7, 1999--

Only Applica 4.0 Lets More Than Two People Simultaneously Access

Real-Time Full-Motion Video Gaming On Windows PCs

Concurrent Controls today introduced the Applica Multimedia System, the only home networking solution capable of delivering true multimedia and gaming applications simultaneously to more than two users. The new offering is the most advanced addition to the popular Applica for Windows family. This Applica home networking product allows as many as five users to run multimedia applications, including 3D games and full motion DVDs, at the same time. The new Applica Multimedia System was unveiled at the Consumer Electronics Show here.

The Applica Multimedia System is the only entry in the home networking category supporting the full audio and 3D graphics required by many entertainment and gaming applications and other digital content available through DVDs and the Internet. Like other products in the Applica family, the new system gives all users simultaneous access to the Internet through a high speed Internet connection, such as cable modem or xDSL, and a single ISP account.

Competitively priced, the Applica Multimedia System delivers this powerful multimedia capability to consumers with performance substantially higher than any competing solution. Combined with a 10 minute installation that automatically configures shared peripherals and requires no network expertise, the product also offers fast, inexpensive access to the Web. It can be paired with a variety of hardware and delivery systems, including wireless technology, to build a wide range of products that deliver multimedia content to multiple points in a home.

"The Applica Multimedia System establishes a new segment within the home networking market, focused on multimedia requirements," said Dawn DeBruyn, president of Concurrent Controls. "As the use of multimedia and streaming audio/video increases on the PC and over the Internet, so does the need for high-bandwidth delivery of that content to multiple points within the home. Because it can display up to 60 frames a second, the Applica Multimedia System outperforms any set-top or home networking product. It is the only solution that can provide a real-time audio/video experience."

"Applica zero client software could reduce the cost and complexity of supporting multiple users while still supporting multimedia applications," said Daniel Kusnetzky, program director of operating environments and serverware, at International Data Corporation, Sarasota, FL. "This software could also introduce consumers to the benefits of multi-user and multitasking software as well. I can certainly see applications in many markets wishing to lower their overall hardware, software, and administration costs."

The Applica Multimedia System is the only product on the market that brings the performance and cost advantages of zero client architecture to both consumer and commercial users. It harnesses the powerful, underutilized multi-tasking capability found in Windows and in the Netscape and Microsoft browsers, and the unused processing power of Pentium CPUs. As a result, multiple users can run almost any multimedia application, play games or surf the web for only a few hundred dollars per seat--even less if existing monitors, keyboards, and mice are used.

"As a foundation for next generation of multimedia home networking systems, Applica offers the best combination of high performance, low cost and ease of use for manufacturers looking to create solutions that connect the PC with other devices, including the TV, in the home." DeBruyn commented. "Because our multimedia system was designed for a variety of combinations, it offers more flexibility along with higher performance than competitive products such as the 4 Mbps ShareWave digital wireless technology," she added. "There's nothing with the capability and performance of the Applica Multimedia System on the market today, and there's more to come."

The Applica Multimedia System is based on the company's award winning zero-client technology, first introduced in 1997. It takes maximum advantage of the multi-tasking capabilities incorporated into Windows 95 and 98 and permits multiple users to share a single PC at the same time. Only standard components--display, keyboard, pointing device and speakers -- are required to connect additional user stations.

Applica Multimedia technology will be released to OEMs in February. The Applica Multimedia System will be available as a packaged product in late March from the company for $249. This package adds an additional multimedia capable station to a Windows 95/98 PC and includes a PCI card with 2 MB of RAM, a connector box for the display, peripherals and speakers that make up the station, cabling and the Applica Multimedia software. Registered owners of earlier versions of Version 3.0 can order the Applica Multimedia System upgrade in March from the company's web site, www.applica.com, for the reduced price of $149.

Applica zero client systems for Windows 95 and 98 and the newly announced Applica for Windows NT Terminal Server Edition (TSE) have gained significant attention with a wide range of customers. Those systems deliver full WINTEL compatibility, leveraging existing investments in hardware, software and training. Applica clusters, each sharing a single NIC, can be used in conjunction with an NT or NetWare-based network, or with the more expensive Citrix WinFrame or Microsoft Windows Terminal Server as a single PC hosting multiple thin clients.

About Applica Zero Client Technology

Applica zero client technology was released in 1997, and is the first zero client multi-user software to be announced for Windows 95/98 and Windows NT (Terminal Server Edition). Zero client technology allows multiple users to connect additional user stations -- each based on standard, off-the-shelf monitors, keyboards and pointing devices -- to a Windows PC, and share data and system resources at full-motion video bus speeds, up to 64 mbs, displaying up to 60 frames per second. This technology provides significantly higher performance than any PC-based home network or thin-client solution, and reduces the total cost of systems ownership.

About Concurrent Controls

Concurrent Controls, Inc. is the world's largest privately held provider of advanced high performance, multi-user operating system technology, and the leading supplier of zero-client based multi-user systems. The company was founded in 1986 and has an installed base of more than 250,000 users of their Windows and DOS-based products. Concurrent Controls operating systems are used in a wide range of environments, including consumer products, office automation, manufacturing, POS, process control and corporate. The company is headquartered at 349 Allerton Ave, South San Francisco CA 94080, telephone [phone], or by fax at [phone], and on the Internet at www.applica.com.

Note to Editors: Applica is a registered trademark of Concurrent Controls, Inc. All other names are registered trademarks of their respective companies.

The new Applica Multimedia System will be demonstrated at the upcoming Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas January 7-10, 1999 in booth No. 4250.