Here's a curious one: a PR release from Diamond Multimedia citing a new product of their's (available through EB) to acquire and play music downloaded from the internet.
Copyright 1999 Business Wire, Inc.
Business Wire
July 19, 1999, Monday
DISTRIBUTION: Business Editors/High-Tech Writers
LENGTH: 1600 words
HEADLINE: Rioport Inc. Announces Pre-Order Program for Next Generation Rio 500 Portable Internet Audio Player
DATELINE: SAN JOSE, Calif.
BODY:
July 19, 1999--RioPort Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Diamond Multimedia Systems Inc. (Nasdaq:DIMD), today announced that its next generation Rio 500 portable Internet audio player is now available for pre-order through select nationwide consumer electronics retailers, including Babbages, CompUSA and Electronics Boutique.
Additionally Rio 500 pre-orders are accepted through Diamond Multimedia's online store www.estore.diamondmm.com. Amazon.com will also participate in the Rio 500 pre-order program and will begin taking orders later this week.
Scheduled for shipment on August 18th, the highly anticipated Rio 500, featuring 64MB of on-board memory, and supports both the Macintosh(R) and Windows 9X platforms. The Rio 500 will carry an estimated retail price (ERP) of $ 269.95.
"The countdown is on for the retail launch of our new Rio 500 digital audio player," said David Watkins, president of RioPort Inc. "By taking advantage of the Rio 500 pre-order program through our retail partners and our online site, consumers can be sure that they'll be among the first to experience the new generation in portable digital audio."
Rio 500
RioPort's new Rio 500 is compatible with both PC and Macintosh (iMac(TM) and G3(TM)) platforms and uses a USB connection for blazingly fast download speeds (significantly faster than with a parallel port connection). The new Rio design provides support for digital rights management through InterTrust(TM), ensuring copyright protection for digital content owners.
The next generation Rio also features RioPort's new easy-to-use integrated Rio Audio Manager software, which allows consumers to search, locate, create (encode) and playback digital audio in one simple application. Through the new software, Rio users have direct access to RioPort.com, the premiere site for digital music, spoken audio content, secure digital audio downloads and more.
The new Rio players sport an improved user interface with a larger, back-lit LCD display and new teal, purple or silver casings. Playback formats including MP3, MPEG2.5, G.723 (Audible) and ADPMC are supported.
The 64MB Rio 500 can store and play back up to two hours of digital quality music and up to 32 hours of spoken audio content (more than twice that of the original Rio PMP300). Optional 16MB ($ 59 ERP) and 32MB ($ 99 ERP) Smart Media flash memory cards, available from Diamond Multimedia's e-commerce site, allow for additional hours of playback.
New ergonomic design features make the Rio 500 the fastest and easiest way to load and listen to hours of digital audio content. Among these new features are well-positioned buttons, a multi-function jog key and intuitive playback controls to recall the artist name, song title and playback time.
The enhanced back-lit LCD display allows for easy viewing and supports graphics and other unique characters. Customizable EQ settings allow for personalized presets of bass and treble and control over various playlist options.
The new RioPort-compatible players also feature special bookmark and control functions for playing back spoken audio content, including books, news stories, on-demand radio and other customized digital audio content found at RioPort.com
The Rio 500 runs off a single AA battery for up to 13 hours of continuous playback. A direct-connect USB cable (included) negates the need for a dedicated docking station for data transport. Priced at $ 269.95, the Rio 500 package includes the Rio player, earphones, a USB cable, carrying case, battery, Rio Audio Manager software and sample-content CD.
RioPort Inc.
RioPort Inc. is redefining digital audio by delivering an integrated platform for acquiring, managing and experiencing music and spoken audio programming from the Internet.
RioPort delivers an extensive selection of digital music and spoken audio programming through its RioPort.com digital audio gateway, full content management with its Rio Audio Manager software and cutting-edge playback solutions with its Rio brand players, which are licensed to third-party companies.
Company headquarters are in San Jose, where its business development, engineering and marketing team is located. RioPort's artist relations, content aggregation and online creative team is based in Los Angeles, and its portable player design team is based in Korea.
About Diamond Multimedia
Diamond Multimedia is a leader in PC multimedia and Internet connectivity, providing advanced products that enable desktop computer users to create, access and experience compelling new media content from their PC's and through the Internet.
Products include the Rio series of Internet audio appliances, the Stealth and Viper(R) series of video accelerators, the Monster series of 3D gaming accelerators, the Fire series of professional graphics accelerators, the Supra(R) series of modems, and the HomeFree line of home networking products.
Diamond's common stock is traded on the NASDAQ under the symbol DIMD, and its web site address is www.diamondmm.com. The company's Internet music portal site is at www.RioPort.com and its e-commerce site is at www.estore.diamondmm.com.
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