SONICblue and Audible.com Make New Rio Players 'AudibleReady'
Rio 600 and Rio 800 Now Play Audible's Industry-Leading Spoken Audio Content; Users Can Qualify for $70 Rebate with AudibleListener Membership
VANCOUVER, Wash. and WAYNE, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 21, 2001-- Rio®, a division of SONICblue(TM) Incorporated (NASDAQ: SBLU - news), and Audible, Inc. (NASDAQ: ADBL - news), today announced that Rio 600 and Rio 800 digital audio players can now store and play back audiobooks, audio editions of newspapers and magazines, and more from a library of thousands of hours available at www.audible.com®. The new Rio 800 128MB model can store as much as 36 hours of Audible's spoken audio, while the Rio 800 and Rio 600 64MB models can store as much as 18 hours of the same content. All models of the Rio 600 and Rio 800 can become AudibleReady(TM) upon activation at audible.com.
A $70.00 rebate is currently being offered to Rio 600 and Rio 800 users who sign up for one year of the AudibleListener(TM) flat-rate monthly membership plan, which provides any two downloadable audiobooks from Audible's selection for $12.95 per month. Users can also select from a number of free downloadable audio titles that demonstrate the quality and breadth of audio available at audible.com. Additionally, users are able to download audio to their Rio 600 and Rio 800 players from audible.com on a per-title basis or through an automatic subscription service that will transfer audio into the players on a recurrent schedule.
``Audible's extensive library of spoken audio content is a great match for our users,'' said Mark Ireton, vice president of Audio Technology at Rio. ``Anyone who owns, or is considering buying a Rio 600 or Rio 800 should explore this added realm of informational and entertainment content.''
``Rio has once again raised the bar with the introduction of the AudibleReady Rio 800 and Rio 600 players,'' said Guy Story, senior vice president of Business Development at Audible, Inc. ``We are pleased to deepen our ongoing relationship with SONICblue and build upon the successful promotional and co-marketing packages we created for the Rio 500.''
About Audible.com:
Audible.com features daily selected audio content from The Wall Street Journal and daily digests of The New York Times, San Jose Mercury News, Los Angeles Times, and Slate-- all available on subscription basis in time for the morning drive to work each day-- as well as The Economist, The Industry Standard, Forbes, Harvard Business Review, Scientific American and C-SPAN. The site also offers a powerful collection of audiobook best sellers and classics by authors such as Stephen King, John Grisham, Frank McCourt, Jon Krakauer, Scott Adams, Mary Higgins Clark, James Redfield, James Patterson, William Shakespeare, Emily Dickinson and Jane Austen. There are also speeches, lectures, language learning and on-demand radio programs including Marketplace, All Things Considered, Car Talk, Fresh Air and This American Life. The programs at audible.com are available for PC-based playback and on-the-go listening using the AudibleReady(TM) Rio 600 and Rio 800 portable digital audio players offered by the Rio division of SONICblue Incorporated.
About Rio (www.riohome.com):
Rio, a division of SONICblue, is a pioneer and acknowledged leader in digital audio. Focused on delivering a family of digital audio products designed for various lifestyles, Rio is dedicated to engineering superior portable, home and car digital audio products for consumers.
About SONICblue Incorporated (www.SONICblue.com):
SONICblue is a leader in the converging Internet, digital media and consumer device markets. Working with partners that include some of the biggest brands in consumer electronics, SONICblue creates and markets products that let consumers enjoy all the benefits of a digital home and connected lifestyle. SONICblue holds significant financial assets, global marketing capabilities and a focused technology portfolio, that includes Rio® digital audio players, HomeFree(TM) home networking solutions, Diamond(TM) Internet access products and frontpath(TM) Information Appliances.
About Audible, Inc.:
Audible® (www.audible.com®) is the Internet's largest, most diverse provider of premium spoken audio services for content download or playback on personal computers or AudibleReady(TM) PC-based mobile devices. Audible has more than 30,000 hours of audio programs and 165 content partners that include leading audiobook publishers, broadcasters, magazine and newspaper publishers and business information providers. Audible.com is Amazon.com's (www.amazon.com) exclusive provider of spoken word products for downloading or streaming via the Web. Additionally, the Company is strategically aligned with Random House, Inc., to pioneer the first-ever imprint to produce spoken word content specifically suited for digital distribution, Random House Audible. Among the Company's key business partners are Casio Inc., Compaq Computer Corporation, Hewlett-Packard, Microsoft Corporation, Royal Philips Electronics, RealNetworks, Inc., SONICblue Incorporated's Rio Audio Group, Texas Instruments and VoiceAge Corp.
Except for the historical information contained herein, the matters set forth in this press release, including statements as to the availability, features and benefits of the Rio players and the AudibleReady services and content, are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the ``safe harbor'' provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially, including, but not limited to, manufacturing difficulties, the availability and possible delays in the release of content and other products, the ability of Rio to integrate emerging memory formats, and other risks detailed from time to time in the SEC reports of SONICblue Incorporated, including its quarterly report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2001. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date hereof. SONICblue and Rio disclaim any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements.
This press release contains information that is not historical fact and may be deemed to contain forward-looking statements. Actual results may differ materially from those anticipated in any forward-looking statements as a result of certain risks and uncertainties, including, without limitation, Audible's limited operating history, history of losses, uncertain market for its services, and its inability to license or produce compelling audio content and other risks and uncertainties detailed in the company's Securities and Exchange Commission filings.
SONICblue, HomeFree, Diamond and frontpath are trademarks of SONICblue. Rio is a registered trademark of RioPort, Inc. and is used by SONICblue under license from RioPort, Inc.
Audible and www.audible.com are registered trademarks of Audible, Inc.; AudibleReady is a trademark of Audible, Inc. and all are part of the family of Audible, Inc. trademarks.
Other marks referenced herein are the property of their respective owners.
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Contact:
Audible, Inc.
Jonathan Korzen, 973/837 2718
jkorzen@audible.com
or
SONICblue Incorporated
Tracy Perry, 408/588-8086
ir@sonicblue.com
or
Rio Press Contact:
Porter Novelli
Rob McMurtrie, 206/770-7003
rob.mcmurtrie@porternovelli.com |
