Quadrant/Ravisent's software decode on AMD's new Athlon processor (boy they are stretching this as a news release).....
RAVISENT's Award-Winning CineMaster Decoder/Encoder Solutions and the AMD Athlon Processor Combine to Provide a Superior Multimedia Experience
MALVERN, Pa.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 10, 1999--RAVISENT Technologies Inc., formerly Quadrant International, also doing business as Divicore, a developer of core-based modular software solutions that enable digital video and audio stream management, today announced that its award-winning CineMaster(tm) family of DVD decoders and MPEG-2 encoders now reach new performance levels on the next-generation AMD Athlon(tm) processor.
"The AMD Athlon processor represents a significant advance in microprocessor design," said Mike Harris, RAVISENT Chief Technology Officer. "In our laboratory testing, the AMD Athlon exhibits as much as a 30% performance advantage over other similarly-clocked processors when running multimedia playback applications such as DVD."
"We have been working very closely with AMD to ensure that the performance and functionality of our premier digital video solutions are enhanced to the fullest extent possible when run on platforms powered by the AMD Athlon processor," added Ed Piehl, Corporate Director of Marketing.
"Combining RAVISENT's CineMaster software with the AMD Athlon processor will provide users with a truly superior multimedia experience," said Dana Krelle, Vice President of Marketing for AMD's Computation Products Group.
RAVISENT's CineMaster software has also been optimized to support AMD's 3DNow! technology, and is currently scheduled to be available to PC OEMs to coincide with the first shipments of systems featuring the AMD Athlon processor.
About the AMD Athlon(tm) Processor Architecture
The AMD Athlon processor is an x86-compatible, seventh-generation design featuring a superpipelined, nine-issue superscalar microarchitecture optimized for high clock frequency; the industry's first fully pipelined, superscalar floating point unit for x86 platforms; high-performance cache technology, including 128KB of on-chip level-one (L1) cache and a programmable, high-performance backside L2 cache interface; enhanced 3DNow!(tm) technology with 24 new instructions designed to improve integer math calculations, data movement for Internet streaming, and DSP communications; and the AMD Athlon system bus -- a 200-MHz system interface based on the Alpha(tm) EV6 bus protocol with support for scalable multiprocessing. The initial versions of the AMD Athlon processor are manufactured on AMD's 0.25-micron process technology in Fab 25 in Austin, Texas.
About Software CineMaster 98(tm)
Currently shipping on 7 out of the top 10 PC systems worldwide, Software CineMaster 98 was developed using RAVISENT's object-oriented modular design architecture. This application shares the software core of RAVISENT's Hardware CineMaster 98 DVD solutions currently used by leading PC manufacturers. RAVISENT's Software CineMaster 98 is a high-performance software DVD and MPEG-2 decoding solution designed to decode and playback DVD-Video, MPEG Video and Broadcast MPEG Video content on PCs.
About AMD
AMD is a global supplier of integrated circuits for the personal and networked computer and communications markets. AMD produces microprocessors, flash memories, and integrated circuits for communications and networking applications. Founded in 1969 and based in Sunnyvale, Calif., AMD had revenues of $2.5 billion in 1998. (NYSE: AMD).
About RAVISENT Technologies Inc.
RAVISENT is driving the digital entertainment revolution with an integrated suite of innovative digital video and audio products for PC and consumer electronics manufacturers. RAVISENT enables the convergence of personal computer and consumer electronics devices through software and hardware products designed around a unique, modular software architecture that provides a consistent look and feel across technology platforms. Combining outstanding on-screen quality with high overall system performance and integration, RAVISENT provides flexible and cost-effective solutions to a spectrum of partners in the PC-OEM, CE-OEM and semiconductor markets, including Acer, Compaq, Dell Computer, Fujitsu, Gateway, Hewlett-Packard, Micron, Packard Bell/NEC, Quantex, Sony, Tottori-Sanyo, Vestel, Yamaha, ATi Technologies, C-Cube, and ST Microelectronics. Founded in 1994, RAVISENT is headquartered in Pennsylvania and has offices in the Silicon Valley, Seattle, Germany and Japan. Information about RAVISENT can be found on the World Wide Web at www.ravisent.com. (Nasdaq: RVST).
This press release may contain certain forward-looking statements that relate to RAVISENT's future business and financial performance. Such statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that may cause the actual events of future results to differ from those discussed herein. Such factors include, among others: RAVISENT's recent change in its business model, its limited operating history, fluctuating quarterly operating results, expectation of future losses, anticipated price declines in products, dependence on its CineMaster products, dependence on a small number of customers, lack of long-term commitments with customers, dependence on manufacturers and strategic relationships, product delays, the difficulty of protecting proprietary rights, the ability to manage growth and attract and retain additional personnel, the potential for defects in its products, risks from international operations, its ability to raise capital in the future, its dependence on the personal computer and consumer electronics industries, competition, its ability to manage technological change and respond to evolving industry standards, government regulation and Year 2000 software issues.
Note to Editors: AMD, the AMD logo, 3DNow! and combinations thereof and AMD-K7 are trademarks of Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. Other companies and product names mentioned herein are for identification purposes only and may be trademarks and/or registered trademarks of their respective companies.
CONTACT:
RAVISENT, Inc.
Lori Crenny, 610/408-7494
lcrenny@RAVISENT.com
or
Miller/Shandwick Technologies
Kelley MacMaster, 650/596-5813
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