SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 28, 1998-- 7th Level, Inc. (NASDAQ:SEVL - news) and RealNetworks, Inc. (NASDAQ:RNWK - news)
today announced at the RealNetworks Conference that they have entered into a distribution agreement whereby RealNetworks will distribute 7th Level's
streamed character animation technology. With more than 100,000 daily downloads of its RealPlayer(TM) and more than 22 million RealSystem(TM) users,
RealNetworks is the recognized leader in streaming media. 7th Level is a leading developer of Internet media preparation software and has emerged as a new
force in streamed character animation technology.
At the conference, 7th Level demonstrated its new streaming character creation tool, ''Agent7(TM)''. Agent7 is an affordable, easy-to-use software tool that
enables anyone to prepare - within a matter of minutes - interactive, intelligent, animated characters that are then streamed, or broadcast, over the Internet at
bandwidth as low as 28.8 Kbps. The initial release of Agent7 will include a library of ten (10) characters. The user chooses a character and then adds the user's
own voice which - when published as an audio stream to a specific URL - triggers animation of the character, including accurate lip synching. The characters can
be refreshed and updated on servers, all transparent to the user. The result is an engaging, lifelike caricature that speaks to the viewer and moves within the
Web page according to the intonations of the audio stream. With the ease-of-use of the technology and the unique combination of streaming audio and character
animation, Agent7 characters are extremely powerful agents for advertising, entertainment, e-commerce, training, customer support and other e-business
scenarios.
''This distribution agreement with RealNetworks is phase one of our strategy to become the market leader in streamed character animation technology,'' said
Richard Merrick, 7th Level's Chief Strategist. ''With RealNetworks' total dominance in the delivery of streamed media, RealNetworks will help us achieve
market ubiquity for our technology, and we believe that is the essential first phase of any successful Internet software endeavor,'' said Merrick. ''Agent7
characters bring websites to life by engaging the viewer with intelligent, entertaining, audio-triggered animation, and we're confident that these characters will
come to populate the Web through RealNetworks' vast distribution network.'' Merrick also noted that 7th Level's advanced technology will provide full support
for the RealNetworks Media Architecture.
''Users of our new RealPlayer G2 will benefit greatly from this agreement with 7th Level,'' said Len Jordan, Senior Vice President, RealNetworks. ''Now they
will be able to view high impact streaming characters on the Web using our new AutoUpdate feature, without having to download an entire additional 3rd party
player.''
7th Level's partnership with RealNetworks now cements 7th Level's position as a leading developer of Internet animation technology. Since its exit from the
CD-ROM business in November of 1997, 7th Level has quietly but successfully repositioned itself as a focused Internet software concern, and the company
intends to continue aggressively leveraging its core media preparation technology into narrowband, midband and broadband delivery systems. According to
Donald Schupak, 7th Level's Chairman, ''With this landmark agreement with RealNetworks, the re-architecture of 7th Level begun last year is now complete,
and our total focus is to the future and the adoption of our Internet character animation technology as a standard in the marketplace.'' Schupak also said, ''We're
delighted that RealNetworks has recognized the value of our technology and has agreed to partner with us in the maiden launch of our first commercial Internet
product, Agent7.''
About 7th Level
7th Level, Inc. (NASDAQ:SEVL - news) is a developer of leading-edge Internet software which can be used by anyone to quickly and easily create rich-media
content for use in advertising, e-commerce, training, customer support and other e-business applications. 7th Level's Agent7 technology is the first of its kind
for preparing and streaming intelligent, interactive animated characters over the Internet. 7th Level recently signed strategic marketing and distribution
agreements with WaveTop, a division of WavePhore, Inc. (NASDAQ:WAVO - news), and AudioNet. Additional information on 7th Level is available via the
company web site at www.7thlevel.com.
About RealNetworks
RealNetworks, (NASDAQ:RNWK - news), based in Seattle, WA, is the recognized leader in the streaming media market. It develops and markets software
products and services designed to enable users of personal computers and other consumer electronic devices to send and receive audio, video and other
multimedia services using the Web. RealNetworks can be found on the World Wide Web at www.real.com.
RealNetworks, RealPlayer, and RealSystem are trademarks of RealNetworks, Inc. All trademarks and registered trademarks are the property of their respective
owners.
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