David Ziskind Joins ACTV as Company Expands Internet Business Into e-business, Advertising & Corporate Training
NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 10, 1998--
Former Lotus Executive to Spearhead Growth Opportunities
Driven By Company's Patented HyperTV(tm) Technology
ACTV, Inc. (NASDAQ: IATV) today announced that David Ziskind has been appointed executive vice president of ACTV Net, the company's Internet division. Previously, Ziskind was director of worldwide sales strategy for Lotus Development Corporation, a subsidiary of IBM Corporation (NYSE: IBM).
In his new role, Ziskind will spearhead ACTV's expansion into the lucrative eBusiness (including eCommerce), Internet advertising, and corporate training fields, driven by the company's patented HyperTV(tm) technology. HyperTV is a proprietary Java-based software technology that permits the simultaneous delivery of streamed video and Web URLs (Uniform Resource Locators) directly to users. HyperTV enables the practical convergence of video with the vast information resources of the Internet to harness the real power of the World Wide Web.
"ACTV's internet technology, and the patents that protect it, were the primary reasons I decided to become part of their team," said David Ziskind, executive vice president of ACTV Net. "HyperTV is an elegantly simple, yet incredibly potent technology that leverages the convergence of various media -- particularly the Web, broadband and digital video. I was impressed by the company's vision to see the wide-reaching impact HyperTV could have not only in areas such as corporate training, but also in eBusiness, Internet advertising and interactive entertainment with the emergence of digital cable and broadband technology."
Ziskind has more than 20 years of sales experience in the computer technology industry. Prior to joining ACTV, he spent eight years with IBM's Lotus Development Corporation. He began his tenure at Lotus when the company acquired cc:Mail in 1991. He rose to manager of communications sales strategy, and served most recently as director of worldwide sales strategy, responsible for strategic sales development with the sales, product marketing and corporate marketing organizations for both Lotus Notes and cc:Mail. Ziskind spent two years at cc:Mail prior to its acquisition by Lotus, and has also worked in sales management and direct sales positions with Novell and Lanier Business Products.
"We expect the evolution of our HyperTV technology to accelerate our revenue opportunities," said William Samuels, chairman and chief executive officer of ACTV, Inc. "David's appointment is reflective of our commitment to aggressively advance our business plan by being on the leading edge of the cable industry's broadband push and exploiting the explosive growth of the Internet."
ACTV Net is already a leader in the online education marketplace, ranking second to The Scholastic Network in sales of K-12 online curriculum products, according to the trade publication Electronic Education Report. eSchool(R) Online(tm) is ACTV's first market application of HyperTV. The Java-based software suite uses ACTV's patented HyperTV technology to create virtual learning communities that seamlessly integrate the simultaneous delivery of streamed educational video and relevant Web content with collaborative exercises and assessment for students and educators. Video can be delivered on demand or in real time via satellite, cable, intranet, VHS, CD-ROM or DVD.
"We have successfully applied our HyperTV technology to the education market with eSchool Online," said Bruce Crowley, president of ACTV Net. "However, we have long believed that HyperTV can have broad implications beyond education. With David leading our sales force, we can begin to fully capitalize on our powerful software technology and expand our selling opportunities."
Samuels concluded, "Our Internet business has just begun to scratch the surface of HyperTV. Our entertainment division (ACTV Entertainment) is approaching a milestone that we and many industry leaders believe will have a significant impact on the television industry's digital initiative, with tremendous benefits to consumers, cable operators, programmers and advertisers. We believe we're well positioned to make 1999 a momentous year for ACTV and to provide ever-increasing value to our shareholders."
ACTV Net and ACTV Entertainment are divisions of New York-based ACTV, Inc., which uses patented software technologies to create state-of-the-art programming for the rapidly expanding Internet and digital cable television platforms.
The company has relationships with many of the dominant players in the Internet, television and digital technology fields, including: Sun Microsystems (NASDAQ: SUNW); Liberty Media Corporation (NASDAQ: LBTYA, LBTYB); General Instrument Corporation (NYSE: GIC); FOX Sports Net; Tele-Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ: TCOMA); TCI Music's The Box Music Network (NASDAQ: TUNE, TUNEP); Prevue Networks, Inc., a subsidiary of United Video Satellite Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: UVSGA); SkyConnect, Inc.; Cablevision's (AMEX: CVC) Rainbow Sports; and The Sarnoff Corporation.
ACTV Entertainment and Liberty Media Corporation formed a joint venture, LMC/IATV Events, earlier this year. For more information, visit ACTV's web site at actv.com.
CONTACT:
Mike Rosen
David Rosenberg
Bratskeir & Company
(for ACTV)
212-679-2233 |
