Macromedia And Intel Bring Web 3D To Mainstream

Macromedia And Intel Bring Web 3D To The Mainstream
Macromedia Director 8.5 Shockwave Studio enables authoring and playback of interactive 3D Web content for real world applications

AUCKLAND, April 12, 2001 – Macromedia, Inc and Intel Corporation today announced that Macromedia Director 8.5 will include new jointly developed 3D authoring capabilities. Macromedia® Director® 8.5 Shockwave® Studio, the solution for interactive, rich media and 3D for the Web, also includes a new version of the Shockwave Multiuser Server and support for both Macromedia® Flash™ 5 and streaming RealMedia content.

The combination of Macromedia Director 8.5 with the Intel Internet 3D Graphics software will provide developers with a flexible, extensible, and robust 3D content creation solution. The studio is integrated with existing 3D solutions to ensure developers do not have to abandon their 3D authoring software of choice, but rather import that content into Director. Developers can then add interactivity to or incorporate that 3D content into new types of “magnetic” Web experiences to be delivered using Macromedia Shockwave Player, which is already installed on a majority of Web desktops and can be viewed by more than 200 million Web users.

"With the combined power of Macromedia Director 8.5 and Intel's Internet 3D technology, there is finally a standard platform for authoring and delivering 3D content to a wide Internet audience using Shockwave Player," said Kevin Lynch, president of Macromedia products. "Our developer community will be able to use their existing expertise to deliver entirely new magnetic experiences in 3D, and existing 3D content creators now have a great way to deploy their content to the Web."

"Intel's strategy is to work with industry leaders like Macromedia to accelerate innovation and develop technologies which utilize the processor to improve the user experience online," said Craig Kinnie, vice president and director, Intel Architecture Labs.

"Combining our Internet 3D Graphics technology with Macromedia Director and the Shockwave Player will enable the first widely-available solution for 3D on the Web."

The free, 3D-enhanced Shockwave Player will enable the next generation of bandwidth-friendly, interactive games, entertainment, education, and online shopping. For the first time ever, interactive, streaming, multiuser 3D capabilities will be available with a widely deployed multimedia player, finally bringing a standard way for the mainstream Web audience to experience 3D Web content. Interactive 3D graphics enrich applications such as e-merchandising and e-learning, and are at the core of online entertainment. Consumers will take active roles in designing, customizing, and personalizing their merchandise. For example, they will be able to model clothes, experience interactive product demonstrations, and learn how to do home repair using step-by-step examples.

Macromedia Director 8.5 Shockwave Studio, available for both Macintosh and Windows platforms, creates highly scalable 3D content. The 3D capabilities of Shockwave Player are optimized to take full advantage of the high-performance Intel Pentium® 4 processor, while still running well on basic systems.
The Shockwave content is efficiently delivered to Web desktops through sophisticated compression and streaming capabilities. Director 8.5 can also create simulated natural effects such as smoke, fire, water, dust, sparks, vapor, and explosions.

Macromedia Director 8.5 Shockwave Studio is integrated with industry-leading 3D technology solutions to ensure that existing 3D developers can immediately publish their content to the Web for free, using an established pervasive platform. 3D vendors that have already pledged their support of this platform include Alias|Wavefront, Discreet, Havok, MAXON, NewTek, NVIDIA, NxView Technologies, Inc., Right Hemisphere, and Softimage (see separate release).

In addition to the new 3D authoring capabilities, Macromedia Director 8.5 Shockwave Studio includes a new version of the Shockwave Multiuser Server and support for both Macromedia Flash 5 and streaming Real Media content (see separate release) as assets in Director movies. The Shockwave Multiuser Server 3 now enables faster communication and gaming with multiuser Shockwave content. Scripting capabilities allow developers to simplify development of multiuser content with reduced network traffic, improved security, and optimized database access. The server can also handle up to 2,000 simultaneous users, double the amount supported in the previous version.

PRICING AND AVAILABILITY
Macromedia Director 8.5 Shockwave Studio is expected to be available for both Macintosh and Windows platforms in May. The studio is priced at $US1199 for new users, $US199 for users upgrading from Director 8, and $US399 for users upgrading from Director versions 5 through 7. French, German, Japanese, and Korean versions of the studio are expected to ship in June. The free, 3D-enhanced Shockwave Player is expected to ship in May.
Existing players will automatically update when they first encounter 3D content. Sample 3D Shockwave content and a public beta of the 3D-enhanced Shockwave Player are available today at http://www.macromedia.com/software/shockwaveplayer/public_beta/.

ABOUT INTEL
Intel, the world's largest chip maker, is also a leading manufacturer of computer, networking and communications products. Additional information about Intel is available at www.intel.com/pressroom.

ABOUT MACROMEDIA
Macromedia is passionate about what the Web can be. Its award-winning products empower designers and developers to efficiently create and deliver the most engaging experiences on the Web, and enable innovative Internet business solutions. Headquartered in San Francisco, Macromedia (NASDAQ: MACR) has more than 1,700 employees worldwide and is available on the Internet at www.macromedia.com.
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Macromedia, Director, Shockwave, and Flash are trademarks or registered trademarks of Macromedia, Inc., as indicated. All other company names, brand names and product names are trademarks of their respective holder(s).

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