Boca Research's Design Chosen for Philips' Co-Branded AOL TV Set-Top Box
AOL and Philips select Boca Research's Reference Design
BOCA RATON, Fla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 11, 1999--Boca Research, Inc.® (Nasdaq:BOCI - news) and Philips Business Electronics B.V., a division of Royal Philips Electronics (NYSE:PHG - news), today announced that Boca Research has licensed its reference design for set-top boxes to be used as part of a Philips co-branded, single-purpose AOL TV(SM) (as announced by America Online, Inc. (NYSE:AOL - news)).
Under the terms of the contract, Boca Research will license its reference design for set-top boxes to Philips, on a royalty basis. Philips will utilize the expertise of Boca Research and the BocaVision(TM) ST2001 set-top box reference design; engineers from both Philips and Boca Research are adapting the Boca Research reference design to AOL's specifications. The BocaVision ST2001 reference design features National Semiconductor®'s (NYSE:NSM - news) high-speed MediaGX(TM) processor. In addition, software from Network Computer, Inc. (NCI(TM)) is embedded in the reference design, providing an easy-to-use browser for Internet users.
According to Internet Strategies Group, between 14 and 18 million people are expected to be using TV sets to reach the Internet by 2003. They cite the demand will be driven, in part, by the number of families without computers whose children browse the Internet at school.
''We're happy to work with Boca Research,'' said Anne Borsch, vice president, AOL Devices. ''Their leading-edge development of Internet-connected devices and their key role in the design of the Philips first-generation set-top box are important elements of the AOL TV initiative.''
Rob van Oostenbrugge, managing director of Philips Business Electronics stated, ''Having a comprehensive line of Internet access devices is part of our strategy. Boca Research was known as a leading supplier of Internet/information appliance devices, having shipped devices since 1997. We selected Boca Research's reference design because of its state-of-the-art features, and the superb integration with the NCI software.''
''The choice of Boca Research's reference design for the AOL TV set-top boxes validates our continued focus on the information appliance market,'' said Anthony Zalenski, president and chief executive officer for Boca Research. ''We are pleased that Boca's technological leadership and continued investment in the set-top technology platform was recognized by major consumer companies such as Philips and AOL.''
Portions of this news release contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Investors are cautioned that all forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties. Specifically, the agreement referenced above is subject to certain conditions, and the projected consumer usage of set-top boxes is subject to market acceptance. Such risks and uncertainties could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements included in this release.
About Philips Business Electronics
Philips Business Electronics, a division of Royal Philips Electronics, serves the business-to-business channels and is one of the world's leading business electronics companies. It delivers high quality, professional, electronic customer solutions and continuous life-cycle management, to make the workplace more comfortable, efficient and profitable. The division has about 13,000 employees working in some 35 industrial locations and 45 regional and national organizations located in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, Asia-Pacific and the Americas.
Royal Philips Electronics of the Netherlands is one of the world's biggest electronics companies and Europe's largest, with sales of US$ 33.9 billion in 1998. It is a global leader in color television sets, lighting, electric shavers, color picture tubes for televisions and monitors, and one-chip TV products. Its 233,700 employees in more than 60 countries are active in the areas of lighting, consumer electronics, domestic appliances, components, semiconductors, medical systems, business electronics, and IT services (Origin). Philips is quoted on the NYSE, London, Frankfurt, Amsterdam and other stock exchanges. News from Philips is located at www.news.philips.com.
About Boca Research
Founded in 1985, Boca Research is a leading provider of hardware and software technology. Boca Research provides communications solutions that enable data transmission, connectivity of devices, and access to applications and information via the Internet, personal computers, and/or server-based environments. The Company designs, manufactures, markets, and supports quality, innovative products that have a cost, performance, and time-to-market advantage. Boca Research markets modems, thin client/server computing devices, information appliances, I/O cards and multiport products under the Boca Research name. The Company also markets modems and software under the Global Village® brand name. Products are sold worldwide through original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), wholesale distributors, value-added resellers (VARs), and retailers. Boca Research is a U.S. corporation headquartered in Boca Raton, Florida with international operations and ventures worldwide.
Notes to Editors: For copies of recent press releases from Boca Research via fax, call 800-331-1323. For product or company information via the Internet, visit our Web sites at bocaresearch.com and globalvillage.com.
Boca Research Inc., Boca, and Global Village are registered trademarks, and BocaVision is a trademark of Boca Research, Inc. NCI and TV Navigator are trademarks of Network Computer, Inc. MediaGX is a trademark of Cyrix Corporation. All other products and brand names are trademarks of their respective owners.
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Contact:
Boca Research, Inc., Boca Raton
Sandra Humphrey, Director of Corporate Communications
561-997-6227, ext. 305
sandrah@bocaresearch.com
or
Royal Philips Electronics
Marijke van Hooren, Media Relations
+31 20 5977912
marijke.vanhooren@ehv.sv.philips.com
or
The Financial Relations Board, New York
Alison Ziegler - General Information
Elisa Mailman - Analyst Information
212-661-8030
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